NUMEROUS POSSIBLE BUYERS SHOW INTREST IN U.P.I.

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000403200003-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 11, 2012
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: September 17, 1985
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/11: CIA-RDP90-00965R000403200003-3
NEW YORK TIMES I
???1 4,Z,1' September 1985
Numerous Possible Buyers Show Interest in .P.I. i
By ALEX S. JONES
Several prospective buyers have sub-
mitted nonbinding "expressions of in.
terest" in acquiring United Press In.
te,fl*tional, U. P. 1. executives said yes-
terday.
Sources close to the situation who
asked not to be identified said that
ar>y Og those submitting tentative pro.
posa s were major communication
companies, some significant financial
and venture capital concerns, U.P.I.'s
uUQn, a rival news agency, at least two
individuals with former ties to the Cen-
tral Intelligence Agency, and some for-
eign publishing companies.
:Qe financially troubled news serv-
ice had set yesterday as a deadline for
expressions of interest, and it
to seek firm bids for the company
iwt ly October. Those who indicated
{ttsie interest are not obliged to submit
Ilodial bids.
- A bankruptcy judge must approve
M)i nal sale as part of the reorganiza-
tlq* K the company, and it could be
seal months before the situation is
val as News Service Sought
rs under Chapter 11 of the
States Bankruptcy Code last
and has been seeking a buyer
wbr-vould assure the survival of the
a as a general news service.
COGWar-y officials said yesterday's re-
spia~es from prospective buyers, al-
thgqp they were not firm offers, were
a ftl indication that U.P.I. would be
a to attract such a buyer.
U.I. had been circulating a pro-
sp Wtus on the company for several
waW and those submitting expres
f interest were asked to include a
pbftninary estimate of how much
i. I. was worth, the buyer's financial
gttifications and plan for financing,
st4 general description of how the
rami& planned to operate the news
age cy, according to a U.P.I. spokes-
man.
Ray Wechsler, president of U.P.!.,
said at U.P.I. would not rule out con-
tion of other companies that
indicate serious interest in
in the next few days, even
the deadline has passed.
".:? Tbose Indicating Interest
ti Of any of the parties who indicated
interest yesterday, but a partial list,
cot>9yiled through sources who asked
nof1g be identified, includes these con-
'Wulf and Western Industries,
WA among other things, is one of the
nal is leading book publishers and
fiabtial information companies. Its
hrA"gs include Simon & Schuster,
Paramount Pictures and Madison
Square Garden. The company did not
return calls seeking confirmation yes.
terdav.
I alTiurner Broadcasting System Inc.,
tbe, Atlanta-based communication
conspany owned by Ted Turner, whose
qul CBS Inc. but was rebuffed. Ac.
coding to Arthur Sando, vice president
of corporate communications of
r Broadcasting, the company is
"renewing" the U.P.I. prospectus and
hasaot decided whether an expression
of rest will be submitted.
ate Russo Companies
a Houston
,
headed by Joe E. Russo that has
is in real _estate development,
pony, the investment banking
tafanies. Mr. Russo said the group
wvt~ maintain U.P.I. as a general
netaiirservice, but did not say how much
it h offered.
qMsurt SerVaas, chairman of the
Cut1 Publishing Company, of Indian-
apailis, and his wife, Cory, editor and
pubfther of The Saturday Evening
Pest' which was once owned by Curtis
Pushing but is now owned by the
andVs wife were part of a growp he
woVA not identify that offered $13.9
mifNOn to $17.9 million for U.P.I.
eat4r this summer, an offer that was
alboRed to expire. The new proposal,
ma& on behalf of the same group, is
ess~ljlally the same, he said. He would
41 not Qsclose the identities of the others
in com that owns several
fr see to mar et mobile celTular
te ones, an an`urTdiseTos6f group
Q tors.
r. ug Vsaid were-in-
lof
vo inn telecomunications. Mr.
H a Tottner d-e
was ty director for
o Lions oo the entraTTntelligence
Ag w_ho an adviser to Presi.
d IT a an's re-election campaign,
worked in the I.A. for for six months
n 1i~Tn-a- o- -that included supervi-
ion of clandestine operations. He re-
s~giw after being accused of having
i11_ 1 provided insider information
to stock ro leis in the early s.
Mr. Hu el sued the stockbrokers or
detion. an was away dam-
ages of 1,000 last ear.
1VIr. ugel
sal t would be"absolutelridicu-
lo _thirifi thj hisconnection with 'VI . the CJ . would color a decision on his
offeL U.P.I..executivea-who asked not
to be identified said that such a connec-
tion mfg t suggest that U.P.I. had
inappropriate links to the intelligence
organization, Dut ey 1d-not say that
Mr. f'fu t ws't ruTeU out_a-s a 1?~-
sible-6_uyer.
QRobert Cunnin am former owner
of te7aiW merican. an 1 ngIi h-lan-
gtla~ge_newsoa er in Rome From 1951
to 1964 he was an employee of the Cen-
Pix el, chairman of a Wash.
I
tral Intellijence Agency, at one point
supervisinngccTan~_ estme operations.
Mr. Curds 2ham, whois retired and
li in Pawey island; intends
to coq rep U. P.I. with a ne~_wsppappeer sub
plement tentatHe T ay s
Wor t at woo d cati?yntTc national adver-
tisin
iWe wire Service Guild, the union
representing 750 U.P.I. employees.
Last Thursday guild officials and
U.P.I. management agreed to cooper-
ate in seeking a buyer. Dan Carmi-
chael, the union's secretary-treasurer,
said that the union's proposal opened
the door to a possible partership be-
tween the union and a buyer, but added
that the union would consider other
proposals and its expression of interest
did not mean it would fight any offer
other than its own.
qReuters, the British news agency
that has made several tentative efforts
to acquire U.P.I. but has been re-
buffed, according to confidential U. P. 1.
sources, because its offer included
changing U.P.I. from a general agency
into a more specialized one. A Reuters
spokesman said that the company
would have no comment.
qAlan Patrikof Associates Inc., a
New York venture capital company.
No one at the company could be
reached for confirmation.
cThomas H. Lee Company, a Boston
investment banking concern. A spokes-
man said that the company's policy I
cGolder, rhoma & Cressey, a Chi-
cago venture capital company. All
company officials were out of town and
could not be reached, according to an
employee.
q Vasquez Rana, a Mexican publisher
whose Sol chain of newspapers is one of
the !argest in Mexico. Mr. Rana could
not be reached for comment.
4EFE. Spain's national news agen-
cy..lccordirng to confidential sources,
EFE is representing a group of banks
and communication companies in its
potential bid. No representative of the
company could be reached for com-
ment.
SComtex Scientific Corporation, a
joint venture with U.P.I. that owns the
right to use U. P.I.'s news report as a
data base for electronic publishing. No
company representatives could be
reached for comment.
cPedro Lopez, chief operating offi-
cer and chief shareholder of Central
Federal Savings and Loan Company of
Miami, who had expressed an interest
in acquiring U.P.I. last spring. Mr.
Lopez could not be reached for com-
ment.
gTe!e-Communications Inc., of Den-
ver, one of the nation's largest cable
television companies. No one at the
company could be reached for com-
ment.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/11: CIA-RDP90-00965R000403200003-3