Gawker files for bankruptcy and puts itself up for sale

Peter Thiel is getting his wish.

Gawker Media, the publisher behind popular websites like Gizmodo, LifeHacker, Jezebel and Gawker, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Friday. The move essentially guarantees that Gawker will be sold. 

The bankruptcy filing, rumored in recent weeks, comes after wrestler Hulk Hogan won $140 million in a lawsuit against Gawker over publishing a sex tape. 

The lawsuit later turned out to be financially backed by Thiel, a billionaire venture capitalist and Facebook board member, who has clashed with Gawker over its tech coverage in the past. 

Denton declined to comment but posted a tweet noting that they'll be back — under new owners. 

Gawker has long said it expects to reverse or significantly reduce that settlement in appeals. By seeking bankruptcy protection, however, Gawker may insulate itself from having to pay out vast sums of money to Hogan (or others) as it re-structures. The move could also allow the company to get out of a costly office lease.

Through the bankruptcy process, Gawker has also put itself up for sale and already attracted a suitor — Ziff Davis, a media conglomerate that operates a variety of digital media websites. 

The two companies noted the move in a press release sent out shortly after the news broke. The price tag that Ziff Davis agreed to is around $100 million, according to Recode and The Wall Street Journal. 

That's just the start. Gawker will now be up for bidding in an auction overseen by a bankruptcy court, meaning other companies could come in to buy the company. 

Still, the $100 million price shows the damage done to Gawker by the Hogan lawsuit (among others), making a major decline from earlier in 2016 when the company was projected to be valued at as much as $400 million. 

Gawker will continue operations during this process.

Gawker was founded by Nick Denton in 2002 and established itself as a destination for a mix of salacious and hard-hitting coverage. In recent years, Denton has worked on rehabilitating the company's image and steering it toward a more mainstream sensibility, once saying that Gawker should be "20 percent nicer."

The bankruptcy petition first emerged online early Friday afternoon.

Gawker also won a small victory in a Florida courtroom on Friday, when a judge granted the company's motion to postpone the $140 million judgement. Denton and former Gawker staffer A.J. Daulerio each put up shares in Gawker to be held as part of the stay.

If there is any doubt that the bankruptcy was filed in relation to the Hogan case, the documents put it to rest. Terry Bollea, the legal name of Hulk Hogan, is listed first among the company's list of creditors.

Ziff Davis, Gawker's potential acquirer, operates a variety of media publications including PC Magazine, IGN, AskMen.com and Geek.com.

In a memo to employees first acquired by Recode, Ziff Davis CEO Vivek Shah said that the company had entered the bidding process for the company. 

He noted that several of the verticals would fit well within Ziff Davis, but notably left out Gawker's namesake website. 

"In the event we become the acquirer, the additions of Gizmodo, Lifehacker and Kotaku would fortify our position in consumer tech and gaming. With the addition of Jalopnik, Deadspin and Jezebel, we would broaden our position as a lifestyle publisher," he wrote.

That quickly led to speculation that a Ziff Davis-owned Gawker Media could shutter Gawker.com.

Ziff Davis is just one of many possible suitors. Penske Media and Vox Media have both been rumored to have expressed some interest. The open bidding process also means that theoretically anybody could buy Gawker — even Peter Thiel.