Knight Ridder Sale Completed

McClatchy Co. said Tuesday that it had completed its acquisition of Knight Ridder Inc., making it the second-largest newspaper publisher in the country in terms of circulation.

The news came a day after Knight Ridder shareholders overwhelmingly approved the transaction in an emotional shareholder meeting in San Jose, where the company was based.

McClatchy has received notice of regulatory approval for the deal on the condition that it completes its sale of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The Sacramento-based company already owns the Star Tribune in neighboring Minneapolis, and owning both would have raised antitrust concerns.

McClatchy also announced Tuesday that it had completed the previously announced sales of four Knight Ridder newspapers: the Duluth News Tribune in Minnesota; the Grand Forks Herald in North Dakota; the Aberdeen American News in South Dakota; and the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel in Indiana and a 75% interest in the Fort Wayne Joint Operating Agency.

In all, McClatchy has reached deals to sell 12 of Knight Ridder’s 32 papers, which it has said it wanted to sell largely because they did not fit McClatchy’s criteria of being located in rapidly growing markets.

Knight Ridder’s shares ended down 62 cents at $60, and McClatchy’s fell $1.42 to $39.03, making the deal worth $59.98 a share of Knight Ridder.