Corridor Business Journal: The labor unions at 12 Lee Enterprises newspapers claim the newspaper publisher will be left “in ashes” if it is taken over by hedge fund Alden Global Capital. Union officials sent an open letter to Lee’s board of directors on Monday, urging the company to reject the Alden offer. “They will take this proud company, built over decades of hard work, and leave it in ashes,” the letter reads. “Thousands of us will lose our jobs, and the communities we serve will never recover. Cities with weakened or shuttered newspapers have lower turnout, higher taxes, more corruption and increased polarization. Our democracy suffers, and Alden reaps the rewards.” The unions represent some of the largest newspapers within Lee, including the Omaha World-Herald, The Buffalo News and the Richmond-Times Dispatch.