Newspaper Owner Details Last-Ditch Effort to Save the Blade

Following the startling announcement on Monday that Window Media had filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, with properties including the Washington Blade facing certain liquidation, a northern Virginia newspaper owner has stepped forward with an account of his eleventh-hour attempt to save the venerable D.C.-based gay publication.

"We had a conference call that said, 'You win,'" he said. "The attitude at the time was, 'How can we get this done?' There was essentially agreement on the broader parameters."

As October wore on, Benton said, his lawyer attempted to iron out the specifics of the purchase and sale agreement. The attorney expected that Window Media would first file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with a separate agreement worked out to rescue the Blade before liquidation of other properties began. But according to Benton, Window Media copresident and chief financial officer Steve Myers said that some "very minor things" remained before he could close the deal.

"We never actually would up seeing what those 'minor things' were," Benton said.

On Monday, Benton learned along with the public that the SBA had shuttered all publications owned by Avalon through Window Media and its sibling entity, Unite Media. SBA spokesman Mike Kamler told Keen News Service on Monday that it wasn't his organization's decision to shut down the newspapers and that it had "solicited offers for some potential new owners to take over the Blade and forwarded those offers" to Window Media.

Window Media executives have not returned calls from The Advocate requesting comment.