Wheaton's Ritchie Capital may bid for Newsweek

Ritchie Capital Management LLC Chief Executive Officer Thane Ritchie, who sought to buy Sun-Times Media Group Inc. last year, said he is considering bidding on Newsweek magazine.

Ritchie, who founded the Wheaton-based asset management firm, didn't provide details of his possible bid in an e-mail today. He would join OpenGate Capital LLC, a private- equity firm that said it is interested in the magazine.

Washington Post Co. said this month it hired Allen & Co. to help with a sale of the weekly general news publication it has owned since 1961. Washington Post's magazine division, including Newsweek, last year reported a $29.3 million operating loss.

"We are interested," OpenGate managing partner Andrew Nikou said today in an interview. He declined to provide details of the process, including how much the firm intends to bid.

OpenGate, with offices in Los Angeles and Paris, bought TV Guide in 2008 for $1. The New York Post reported its possible bid earlier.

Ritchie said he would make any offer personally, not on behalf of his firm. In 2009, Ritchie sought to reopen bidding for newspaper publisher Sun-Times Media, eventually ceding to Mesirow Financial Inc. CEO Jim Tyree.

Frank De Maria, a spokesman for Newsweek in New York, didn't return a phone call or e-mail message seeking comment.

Washington Post fell $4.27 to $465.73 at 4:05 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The stock has risen 5.9 percent this year.