Valuing the Sun-Times

By The Beachwood Newspaper Valuation Desk

Just five years ago, what is now known as the Sun-Times Media Group fetched an offer of $900 million. Today Chicago businessman Jim Tyree is in line to buy the STMG for $26 million. Frankly, that's kind of pathetic. For comparison's sake:

* Amount Tribune Co. wants to pay top executives bonuses: $66 million.

* Amount the city is giving to United Airlines to move into Willis Tower: $50 million.

* Amount the Cubs signed Milton Bradley to a three-year contract for: $30 million.

* Amount Chicago 2016 raised: $72 million.

* Amount Creative Loafing paid for the Reader and the Washington City Paper in 2007: $30 million. (Hedge fund Atalaya acquired Creative Loafing in turn for $5 million earlier this year.)

* Amount Tribune Company paid for Chicago magazine in 2002: $35 million.

* Amount Sun-Times Media Group owes the IRS: $600 million.

* Amount the U.S. will spend on Spanish census forms: $26 million.

* Amount U.S. Department of Education gave to school districts to strengthen their emergency management plans: $26 million.

* Amount a company paid for five Boulder, Colorado, properties with nearly 250,000 square-feet of self-storage space: $26 million.

* Amount Intel was fined for violating South Korean antitrust laws: $26 million.

* Amount Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod is selling its classical music station in St. Louis for: $26 million.

* State of Maryland's snow removal budget this year: $26 million.