Gates Foundation Lent Money for Newspaper Purchase

Several organizations, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, lent a total of $350-million to MediaNews Group for its purchase of four newspapers: the Contra Costa Times; The Herald, in Monterey County; the San Jose Mercury News; and the Pioneer Press, in St. Paul, reports the Associated Press.

According to a filing by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the foundation lent MediaNews an undisclosed amount. The purchase made MediaNews the largest newspaper publisher in the San Francisco Bay Area.