The San Francisco Examiner
For 35 years starting in 1965, the "San Francisco Chronicle and Examiner" operated under a Joint Operating Agreement whereby the "Chronicle" published a morning paper and the "Examiner" published in the afternoon. The "Examiner" published the Sunday paper's news sections and glossy magazine, and the "Chronicle" contributed the features. Circulation was approximately 100,000 on weekdays and 500,000 on Sundays. By 1995, discussion was already brewing in print media about the possible shuttering of the "Examiner" due to low circulation and an extremely disadvantageous revenue sharing agreement for the "Chronicle".
San Francisco Independent
The following August, the Hearst Corporation, owners of the "San Francisco Examiner" and the largest private publishers in the world, announced their purchase of the morning daily "San Francisco Chronicle". They also claimed the "San Francisco Examiner" was not a viable business operation and planned to shut it down. "The Independent" led an effort to keep the "Examiner" open, and ultimately the U.S. Department of Justice under Attorney General Janet Reno forced the Hearst’s to sell the "SF Examiner" to the Fang family in 2000.