Standard & Poor’s has lowered its corporate credit rating of MediaNews Group from “B” to “BB-minus,” the Denver Business Journal reports. The owner of the Mercury News, Contra Costa Times, Oakland Tribune and other Northern California newspapers has “heavy debt levels” and “limited cushion in bank covenants.” On Nov. 14, MediaNews reported a $1 million loss for the quarter ending Sept. 30, compared to a $13 million profit during the same period a year earlier.