US Media giant files for ‘prepackaged’ bankruptcy. Another major US media group has finally gone bust, this time deliberately. The restructuring of the holding company for MediaNews Group, which claims to be the second biggest US newspaper group by circulation, is being described as a “pre-packaged’ revamp.

The company is the latest in a string of newspaper publishers to succumb to an advertising drought that has plagued media companies. The filing by the MediaNews parent, follows Chicago Tribune publisher Tribune Co, Philadelphia Inquirer publisher Philadelphia Newspapers and Orange County Register publisher Freedom Communications Holdings Inc into bankruptcy. Journal Register Co. and the Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis had a short time in bankruptcy and emerged owned largely by banks that held the company’s debt.

While it sounds good, it’s a pretty cynical deal in that the company owes the US Government’s Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp more than $US70 million for pension liability, making the US pension protection agency one of its largest creditors. Other lenders also get stiffed: they are owed around $US935 million; that will fall to around $US165 million under the plan.

The current controllers of the company, will continue to control the restructured company through a special class of stock. That’s even though they drove the company to over borrow which made it vulnerable to the credit crunch, recession and slump in ad revenues. Prepackaged bankruptcies see companies and their creditors agreeing on a reorganisation plan prior to the filing. Affiliated could be out of Chapter 11 in as little as a month. – Glenn Dyer

The Guardian puts the case against paywalls. It may be right for the Times of London and New York, but not for everyone. It may be right at some point for everybody in the future, but not yet. There is probably general agreement that we may all want to charge for specialist, highly-targeted, hard-to-replicate content. It’s the “universal” bit that is uncertain. — The Guardian

Twitter growth stagnates. It was the upstart rock star of the Internet in early 2009, roaring out of relative obscurity to become one of the most exposed — some would say overexposed — services on the Web. But since the middle of last year, the number of Twitter users has flatlined. — CNN

Harper’s Magazine editor Fired. Roger D. Hodge, who has been the editor of Harper’s Magazine since 2006, will be stepping down effective next Monday. Mr. Hodge was not given a specific reason for his dismissal, this person said, just the general weakness of the magazine’s newsstand sales and circulation figures. — The New York Times

Foxtel pays SBS to run new arts channel. The new channel, called Studio, will go to air on April 1 on Foxtel and regionally on Austar with a brief to connect to Australia’s arts scene and build on Ovation’s audience of over-55s. — The Australian

Google Street view goes off-road. In an Australian first, Google will take its Street View product off-road and into pedestrian-only places such as shopping centres, parks and other landmarks, and has announced its first partnership with Sydney’s Taronga Zoo. — B&T