That year, it began a process of shrinking the company, selling many of its small papers to the private equity firm Leonard Green & Partners, who formed Liberty Group Publishing.
That year, Hollinger International bought the Chicago-area publications of Copley Press (The Herald News, The Beacon-News, The Courier-News, and Lake County News-Sun, along with several smaller papers).
CanWest Global Communications, Canada's biggest media concern, announced it has agreed to take a 50 percent stake in The Jerusalem Post after Mirkaei buys the property.
Industry analysts have repeatedly pointed to the group's failure to craft a competitive online product as evidence of continued decline.
Later in December 2011, Chicago investment group Wrapports, L.L.C., led by Chairman Michael W. Ferro Jr. & CEO Timothy Knight, bought the properties of Sun-Times Media Holdings.
The group, Sun-Times Investment Holdings LLC, was backed by prominent Chicago investors Michael Sacks and Rocky Wirtz.