Media General, Inc. today completed the previously announced sale of 63 daily and weekly newspapers to World Media Enterprises, Inc., a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., for $142 million in cash, subject to adjustment for working capital and other items.  After transaction fees and the repayment of funds drawn on the revolving credit facility,  Media General will use the net proceeds from the newspaper sale to offer to repay on a pro rata basis existing senior secured notes at par and a term loan with no prepayment penalty.

Media General is also in discussions with prospective buyers for its Tampa, Florida, print properties and associated websites.

“Selling our newspapers represents a monumental change for us – we’ve been in the newspaper business for more than 160 years. However, our model has been shifting more toward Broadcast and Digital in recent years,” said Marshall N. Morton, president and chief executive officer of Media General. Broadcast television accounted for 77 percent of total Platform Cash Flow for the full year 2011 and for 87 percent in the first quarter of this Political year.