Is David Unger, the force behind the majority owner of Southern Voice and David Atlanta, looking to ditch his media properties before a federal receivership does it for him?
That’s the spin on a post from Queerty, which has been tracking the executive level troubles at the companies for some time. The website is now reporting that Unger has sent letters to 30 companies and individuals to gauge their interest in all or part of the companies, which include the two Atlanta pubs along with the Washington Blade, 411, Express Gay News and New York Blade.
We’re hearing from a source who delivered accurate information in the past — that Unger’s camp initially disputed but turned out to be true — that some 30 companies and individuals have been sent query letters to see if they’re interested in buying all of Window Media or pieces of it.
There’s a two-week timeframe for bidders, we’re told. The news follows previous reports of a cash crunch at the company and major departures, all of which Queerty was the first to tell you about, including how Unger (pictured, right, with former Genre publisher Bill Kapfer) was facing questions from the U.S. Department of Labor and how his Avalon Equity Fund being placed into receivership for failing to meet the Small Business Association’s loan requirements.
Queerty says Regent Media, owner of Out, the Advocate and here! TV network, might be interested. But that company is having financial difficulties of its own since its acquisition of PlanetOut earlier this year.
SoVo and David Atlanta, which lost another publisher in April, are under the umbrella of Avalon Equity Fund. The New York-based investment company owns a majority stake in the publishers of SoVo and David, is in federal receivership—a form of bankruptcy—and being sued by the Small Business Administration.
Unger is under investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor. Freelancers have filed suit over not being paid for their work and staffers have complained of delays in receiving their paychecks. The publications are also in the midst of an industry-wide advertising slump that has slashed page counts.
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