Newspaper chain that owns The News-Tribune, other Puget Sound papers files for bankruptcy

The publisher of the The News-Tribune, The Olympian and dozens of other newspapers nationwide is filing for bankruptcy protection.

McClatchy said Thursday it will continue to run normally as it pursues approval of its restructuring plan under Chapter 11.

Its 30 newsrooms, including The News-Tribune in Tacoma, The Olympian in Olympia, The Bellingham Herald and the Tri-City Herald in Kennewick, will continue to operate as usual. The company also owns major newspapers including The Miami Herald and The Kansas City-Star.

The News-Tribune and The Olympian stopped printing Saturday editions this year.

McClatchy expects fourth-quarter revenue of $183.9 million, down 14% from a year earlier. Its 2019 revenue is anticipated to slide 12.1% from the previous year.

The publisher's origins date to 1857 when it first began publishing a four-page paper in Sacramento, California, following the California Gold Rush. That paper became The Sacramento Bee.