Letters: Tastykakes news wasn't the big business story

Posted: April 14, 2011

I am a huge fan of The Inquirer, especially the investigative reporting of the last few years, but I have to say that you blew it on Tuesday.

The big news that day was that a homegrown, cutting-edge success story, Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc., announced that it had reached a megadeal to acquire a Minnesota-based company, American Medical Systems, for $2.9 billion. This is one of several major acquisitions by Endo in the last two years.

So, does The Inquirer lead its front page with this growth story?

Of course not.

Instead we are treated to a special about a $34 million deal - almost 100 times smaller than the Endo acquisition - in which a long-suffering local baker of junk food, Tasty Baking Co., agreed to merge with a large bakery from the South ("Tasty sold to Ga. baker").

The Inquirer also listed local companies that have been taken over by outsiders in recent years.

No list of local growth-and-success firms accompanied the Endo story ("Endo to buy Minn. firm for $2.9B") on Page C1 in the Business section.

Michael Homans

Swarthmore