McClatchy Washington Bureau

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Creative Loafing's parent company, saddled with debt from new acquisitions and struggling amid the worst advertising recession in memory, filed for bankruptcy protection Monday.

In addition to the Charlotte edition, which was launched in 1987, Creative Loafing Inc. publishes weekly free tabloids serving Atlanta, Tampa and Sarasota, Fla. It also publishes the alternative weeklies Chicago Reader and Washington City Paper, which were acquired in 2007.

Ben Eason, Creative Loafing's Tampa-based CEO, said the company had a debt load of more than $40 million and was facing a Wednesday deadline for an interest payment.

"The company owed more money than it can pay back right now," he said in a statement. "This will give us a fresh start. It is a reorganization, not a liquidation. Everybody gets paid."

Read the complete story at charlotteobserver.com