Bid for Sun-Times by ex-politician, labor unions advances

An investor group headed by a former Chicago city council member that includes labor unions says it has secured enough money to buy and operate the Chicago Sun-Times.

Edwin Eisendrath told the Sun-Times on Monday that the group met a U.S. Department of Justice deadline to prove it has funds to operate the newspaper. Bob Reiter of the Chicago Federation of Labor said investors raised "in excess of $11.2 million."

Eisendrath pushed the bid after Sun-Times' owner Wrapports LLC announced it was in discussions with Tronc — which owns the rival Chicago Tribune and several other major newspapers — to acquire the newspaper.

The Justice Department's Antitrust Division is involved in the sale because of its opposition to a single entity controlling multiple media operations in the same market.

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Information from: Chicago Sun-Times, http://chicago.suntimes.com/