Creative Loafing
Encyclopedia
CL Inc. is the Tampa, Florida
-based publisher of three city newsweeklies and their associated websites. Each of the papers focuses on local news, politics, arts and entertainment, and restaurants. The papers include Chicago Reader, Creative Loafing Atlanta and Washington City Paper.
Members of the management team include VP/Group Publisher Alison Draper, former publisher of the Dallas Observer and a senior sales executive at the Dallas Morning News; VP/CFP Tammy Bailey; Washington City Paper Publisher, Amy Austin; and Creative Loafing Atlanta Publisher, Sharry Smith.
Before September 2006, the Tampa and Sarasota editions were published under the name Weekly Planet. The company also acquired the Chicago Reader and the Washington City Paper
in 2007. After filing for bankruptcy in 2008, the company was sold to Atalaya Capital Management on August 25, 2009. Creative Loafing Charlotte and Creative Loafing Tampa were sold to SouthComm Inc. on Oct. 10, 2011.
is the oldest of the four original Creative Loafing newspapers. Creative Loafing Atlanta and the Chicago Reader each has a circulation of 100,000, making them two of the top twenty alternative weeklies in the United States, as indexed by the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies
. Founders Deborah and Elton "Chick" Eason established Creative Loafing Charlotte in 1987, and Creative Loafing Tampa in 1988. The company once owned another paper, Creative Loafing Savannah , which later became Connect Savannah. It also owned Spectator Magazine in Raleigh, NC, which it sold to The Independent Weekly in 2002. The paper was promptly closed.
. Two years later, in September 2000, he led a group of investors to purchase a controlling interest in the entire Creative Loafing chain, and subsequently brought the Planet papers into the fold. After a false start during which the May 31, 2006 edition of Tampa's Planet was prematurely published with a Creative Loafing banner, the Tampa paper officially reverted to its former name and the Sarasota paper became Creative Loafing Sarasota.
purchased a 25% minority share of the company for approximately US$
5 million. In the process, Cox executives filled two seats on Creative Loafing's eight-member board. An uneasy four-year relationship between the two companies followed, as Cox also owns Atlanta's only daily, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
, as well as television and radio outlets in the Atlanta area. After the Journal-Constitution in April 2003 quietly launched its own free entertainment weekly named Access Atlanta, in direct competition with Creative Loafing, the Easons and Creative Loafing board members voted to censure the two Cox executives for unethical conduct, and by June 2004 both companies agreed to allow the chain to repurchase its shares from Cox.
On July 24, 2007, Creative Loafing announced the purchase of the Washington City Paper
and the Chicago Reader, along with the Readers properties The Straight Dope and the SDMB, the associated message board. According to CL executives, the papers will receive neither name changes nor major content adjustments.
In order to accomplish the acquisitions, the company borrowed $40 million. The ensuing economic slump hurt ad sales and their ability to pay down this debt.
CL Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on September 29, 2008. As a result the company was sold at a bankruptcy auction to its largest creditor, Atalaya Capital Management, on August 25, 2009 for $5 million. (This exceeded a bid of $2.3 million by the Easons. Ben Eason was removed as CEO).
Creative Loafing Sarasota was closed in December 2010.
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
-based publisher of three city newsweeklies and their associated websites. Each of the papers focuses on local news, politics, arts and entertainment, and restaurants. The papers include Chicago Reader, Creative Loafing Atlanta and Washington City Paper.
Members of the management team include VP/Group Publisher Alison Draper, former publisher of the Dallas Observer and a senior sales executive at the Dallas Morning News; VP/CFP Tammy Bailey; Washington City Paper Publisher, Amy Austin; and Creative Loafing Atlanta Publisher, Sharry Smith.
Before September 2006, the Tampa and Sarasota editions were published under the name Weekly Planet. The company also acquired the Chicago Reader and the Washington City Paper
Washington City Paper
The Washington City Paper is a U.S. alternative weekly newspaper serving the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.Founded in 1981, and published for its first year under the masthead 1981, taking the City Paper name in volume 2, by Russ Smith, it shared ownership with the Chicago Reader from 1982...
in 2007. After filing for bankruptcy in 2008, the company was sold to Atalaya Capital Management on August 25, 2009. Creative Loafing Charlotte and Creative Loafing Tampa were sold to SouthComm Inc. on Oct. 10, 2011.
Original editions
First published in 1972, Creative Loafing AtlantaCreative Loafing Atlanta
Creative Loafing is a U.S. city newsweekly serving the Atlanta metropolitan area covering local news, politics, arts, entertainment, food, music and events. Its weekly print circulation is 100,000, and its cumulative readership over a four-week period is 608,636 according to the Dec. 2009...
is the oldest of the four original Creative Loafing newspapers. Creative Loafing Atlanta and the Chicago Reader each has a circulation of 100,000, making them two of the top twenty alternative weeklies in the United States, as indexed by the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies
Association of Alternative Newsweeklies
The Association of Alternative Newsmedia is a diverse group of covering every major metropolitan area and other less-populated regions of North America. AAN members have a combined weekly circulation of over 6.5 million as well as a print readership of nearly 17 million active, educated and...
. Founders Deborah and Elton "Chick" Eason established Creative Loafing Charlotte in 1987, and Creative Loafing Tampa in 1988. The company once owned another paper, Creative Loafing Savannah , which later became Connect Savannah. It also owned Spectator Magazine in Raleigh, NC, which it sold to The Independent Weekly in 2002. The paper was promptly closed.
Weekly Planet
Ben Eason, son of Deborah and Elton, purchased the Tampa paper from his parents in 1994 and changed its name to the Weekly Planet. In 1998 he expanded the paper and launched a second Weekly Planet in Sarasota, FloridaSarasota, Florida
Sarasota is a city located in Sarasota County on the southwestern coast of the U.S. state of Florida. It is south of the Tampa Bay Area and north of Fort Myers...
. Two years later, in September 2000, he led a group of investors to purchase a controlling interest in the entire Creative Loafing chain, and subsequently brought the Planet papers into the fold. After a false start during which the May 31, 2006 edition of Tampa's Planet was prematurely published with a Creative Loafing banner, the Tampa paper officially reverted to its former name and the Sarasota paper became Creative Loafing Sarasota.
Partnership with Cox Enterprises
To help finance the 2000 deal transferring ownership to Ben Eason's group, media conglomerate Cox EnterprisesCox Enterprises
Cox Enterprises is the successor to the publishing company founded in Dayton, Ohio, United States, by James Middleton Cox, who began with the Dayton Daily News. He was the Democratic candidate for the President of the United States in the election of 1920...
purchased a 25% minority share of the company for approximately US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
5 million. In the process, Cox executives filled two seats on Creative Loafing's eight-member board. An uneasy four-year relationship between the two companies followed, as Cox also owns Atlanta's only daily, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is the only major daily newspaper in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, and its suburbs. The AJC, as it is called, is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is the result of the merger between The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta...
, as well as television and radio outlets in the Atlanta area. After the Journal-Constitution in April 2003 quietly launched its own free entertainment weekly named Access Atlanta, in direct competition with Creative Loafing, the Easons and Creative Loafing board members voted to censure the two Cox executives for unethical conduct, and by June 2004 both companies agreed to allow the chain to repurchase its shares from Cox.
Acquisitions; Bankruptcy
On Oct. 10, 2011, the Board of Director’s of CL, Inc. announced the sale of Creative Loafing Tampa and Creative Loafing Charlotte to SouthComm Inc., parent company to Nashville Scene and Kansas City Pitch.On July 24, 2007, Creative Loafing announced the purchase of the Washington City Paper
Washington City Paper
The Washington City Paper is a U.S. alternative weekly newspaper serving the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.Founded in 1981, and published for its first year under the masthead 1981, taking the City Paper name in volume 2, by Russ Smith, it shared ownership with the Chicago Reader from 1982...
and the Chicago Reader, along with the Readers properties The Straight Dope and the SDMB, the associated message board. According to CL executives, the papers will receive neither name changes nor major content adjustments.
In order to accomplish the acquisitions, the company borrowed $40 million. The ensuing economic slump hurt ad sales and their ability to pay down this debt.
CL Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on September 29, 2008. As a result the company was sold at a bankruptcy auction to its largest creditor, Atalaya Capital Management, on August 25, 2009 for $5 million. (This exceeded a bid of $2.3 million by the Easons. Ben Eason was removed as CEO).
Creative Loafing Sarasota was closed in December 2010.