Global digital media firm Ziff Davis has reportedly submitted an initial bid between $90 million to $100 million.
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Gawker Media, the gossip and news company that lost a high-profile court case in which it was ordered to pay $140 million over a violation of Hulk Hogan’s privacy, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from its creditors. Gawker plans to appeal the jury’s ruling and notes in its filing that the money owed to the former wrestler is “disputed”.
Although the move was widely expected as necessary protection against the threat of a big payout in the Hogan lawsuit, prompted by Gawker’s 2012 publication of excerpts from his sex tape, it still brings a cloud of uncertainty over the company. The besieged media company filed for bankruptcy on Friday after years of protracted legal battles at least partially orchestrated by tech billionaire Peter Thiel.
The filing came on Friday in the federal bankruptcy court in Manhattan. Commentators at The New York Times and The Washington Post said Thiel’s hidden assault on Gawker was an attack on the broader press.
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Gawker is putting itself up for sale and now has an offer from tech publisher Ziff Davis, according to people familiar with the situation.
