O.C. Register owner files for bankruptcy

Freedom Communications Inc., owner of the Orange County Register, filed for bankruptcy protection Sunday, and its chief executive said he plans to lead a bid to acquire the troubled newspaper company.
The Santa Ana-based newspaper firm, which also owns the Riverside Press-Enterprise, filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in U.S. Bankruptcy Court’s Central District of California.
The move is the latest episode in the turmoil that has beset the newspaper market in Southern California, where civic leaders have urged a return to local control at the Los Angeles Times after its Chicago-based owner fired Times publisher Austin Beutner in September.
In announcing the bankruptcy filing Sunday, Freedom said its chief executive and Register Publisher Rich Mirman, along with other local investors, plan to reorganize the company’s finances and assume ownership.
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