Hearst eyeing to buy a chunk of Tribune Publishing

Media giant Hearst is gearing up to buy a chunk of Tribune Publishing, the newspaper publisher that owns Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun, New York Daily News and others. According to a source, Hearst, which in addition to glossy monthlies like Cosmopolitan and Esquire, has already owned a slew of daily newspapers, including Houston Chronicle and San Francisco Chronicle, and not seemed to be interested in Tribune’s biggest papers. According to a source, Hearst instead is mainly eyeing smaller outfits like Orlando Sentinel, South Florida’s Sun Sentinel, The (Allentown, Pa.) Morning Call and The Virginian-Pilot.

Hearst likewise appears interested in buying Tribune’s Hartford Courant, although a source has flagged possible antitrust worries, as Hearst already owns Connecticut Post, Stamford Advocate and New Haven Register. Although less likely, a source says there’s a chance Hearst also could be interested in Chicago Tribune, as the publisher already owns a number of papers in Illinois and Michigan.