Local publishers eye Arizona?

Folks at the Tucson Citizen are understandably on edge: Gannett had warned in January that it would close down the paper on March 21 if no buyer were found. That day came and went and the place is still publishing, with Gannett announcing that "very serious" parties had come forward with bids. One of those parties appears to be Stephen Hadland, publisher of the Culver City Observer, who has signed a confidentiality agreement with Gannett. Hadland also placed an ad on Craigslist looking for "highly motivated" ad salespeople to work in Tucson (not exactly a ringing endorsement if you happen to work in the advertising department). But wait, the story gets funkier. The Citizen is reporting that David Ganezer, who publishes the Santa Monica Observer, also signed a confidentiality agreement with Gannett. Maybe there's a newspaper out there that will be saved. Here's the Tucson Citizen story (via Romenesko)