'Ad/PR Man' Wants to Buy Newspaper

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There are many bright ideas out there for the future of the 12 Knight-Ridder newspapers on the auction block, ideas that have generated discussion about the news media's responsibility to the public and democracy. O'Dwyer's PR Daily, however, reports that one group of investors wanting to buy the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News includes "ad/PR man" Brian Tierney, who "had a high-profile spat with the Inquirer during the late '90s over its coverage of then-Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua," O'Dwyer's reports. "Working on behalf of the Philadelphia Roman Catholic Archdiocese, Tierney successfully convinced the Inquirer editors to spike a story about Bevilacqua .... Editor & Publisher ran a feature about the squabble on Feb. 5, '01. It was headlined: 'Stop the Press: The Inside Philadelphia Story of How a Cardinal and his Publicity Agent Cowed a Great Newspaper.'"