Major Jewish newspaper posts a loss

The New York Times Company has reported a second-quarter loss because of a write-down in the value of About.com and continuing declines in print and digital advertising revenue. The net loss was $88.1 million, or 60 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $119.7 million, or 79 cents a share, in the period a year earlier, when the company wrote down the value of its regional newspapers, which it later sold. The Times Company had an operating loss of $143.6 million in the quarter ended June 24, 2012 compared with an operating profit of $31.5 million in the period a year earlier. Advertising revenue at the company’s News Media Group, which includes The Times, The International Herald Tribune and The Boston Globe, fell 6.6%, to $220 million. Print advertising revenue fell 8%, in part because of continued weakness in real estate advertising. Online advertising revenue at the news media group declined 1.6%, to $52.6 million, despite a push in video and other efforts to bring new advertisers to NYTimes.com.