Philadelphia Daily News began publishing on March 31, 1925, under founding editor Lee Ellmaker.

Circulation dropped over the years, and by 1954, the money-losing paper was sold to Matthew McCloskey, a contractor and treasurer of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party.

In December 1956, the paper's financial condition was so bad that McCloskey got permission from the unions for a 90 percent cut in the workforce.

Annenberg killed off the Daily News' Sunday edition and made the tabloid into an afternoon paper.

However, in May, before the sale was finalized, it was announced that the Inquirer and Daily News would be re-sold to Philadelphia Media Holdings L.L.C., a local group led by advertising executive Brian Tierney and co-founder of the Toll Brothers homebuilding firm, Bruce Toll.

The group intended to strengthen the online presence of both papers, and began an extensive ad campaign.

[4] On April 14, 2010, Brian Tierney announced that the Daily News would launch a weekend edition in October.

Philadelphia Media Holdings received support from most of the paper's unions and launched a public relations campaign to promote local ownership.