US DOJ says closed probe of Hearst, MediaNews deal

NEW YORK, Oct 25 (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust division said on Thursday it closed its investigation of Hearst Corp's proposed acquisition of a newly created "tracking stock" of MediaNews Group Inc.

The acquisition, which was revised in response to antitrust concerns raised by the department, would give Hearst about a 30 percent stake in MediaNews's newspaper businesses outside of the San Francisco Bay area.

In exchange, MediaNews would pick up papers that Hearst bought from McClatchy Co (MNI.N).