Hearst’s Baltimore Paper Gives Up After 213 Years

The Hearst Corp. announced that today’s edition of the Baltimore News-American will be the last in the history of the 213-year-old afternoon newspaper--leaving the city with only one major newspaper, the Baltimore Sun.

Nearly six months of efforts failed to turn up a buyer for the ailing daily, which employed about 500 people.

The newspaper’s circulation had plummeted from 170,000 in the 1960s to less than 90,000 in recent months. Hearst Corp. officials would not divulge exactly how much money the News American was losing, but a spokeswoman said it had “suffered heavy financial losses for several years.”

Hearst currently publishes 14 other daily newspapers, including the Los Angeles Herald Examiner.

In a terse two-page statement, Hearst officials said the News-American is suspending publication because it has been unable to find a buyer.

“More than 50 prospective buyers were contacted; only a few showed any interest,” said the Hearst Corp., which has owned the newspaper since 1923. “Harbor Newspapers Inc., the buyer of last resort, withdrew from negotiations last week.”

Some potential buyers had been interested chiefly in the valuable downtown property where the newsroom, business offices and printing presses are located. But the statement said Hearst had been unwilling to sell the property unless continued publication of the News-American was guaranteed.