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With the purchase of the Southam newspaper chain and the creation in 1998 of the National Post, Conrad Black single-handedly changed the tenor of the debate in the country.

Before this time, right-side views tended to be marginalized in our liberal-leaning media culture. Bombastically, Conrad Black made them mainstream.

That could change. The Post appears to be up for sale and a contender for the national paper is a group headed by Liberal Senator Jerry Grafstein.

If his bid succeeds, if Liberals get their hands on the Post, down would go the Conservative Party's media flagship, its ideological promo sheet. It would be like the Liberals losing the Toronto Star.

Although the increasingly Toronto-centric Post has withdrawn from some markets and faces declining circulation, it is still read by Ottawa's political elites each morning.

In October, it marks its 10th birthday - an occasion that might well be dubbed its crimson anniversary celebration given all the red ink it has bled. (Latest estimates are annual losses of $10-million.) The asking price from the current owners, CanWest's Asper family, is in the neighbourhood of $30-million. That's not a lot of swag given the influence the paper can wield. It is a lot, given the stresses of its present-day balance sheet.

Mr. Grafstein, a former communications lawyer and a founder of Toronto's Citytv, isn't divulging any details of his negotiations. He spoke in an interview of his experience in putting together media deals and of his dismay at how much of the business, in the 24/7 news cycle, has descended into infotainment and how it has to change. While some see Mr. Grafstein as more of a conservative-oriented liberal in that, like the Aspers, he is heavily pro-American and pro-Israel, he was quick to rebut that, saying he was a bona fide liberal democrat, or "Louis St. Laurent Liberal," the suggestion being the Post would have a different look if he became a majority owner.

His bid would appear to be a long shot. A more likely scenario would be for the Aspers, if they do sell, to find a more conservative-friendly buyer. That said, no one expected the moderate Southam family to sell their newspapers to Mr. Black in the mid-1990s. As in many other businesses, in this one, money talks.

The Post, which drove prime minister Jean Chrétien up the wall, was a leading voice in the movement to unify the political right. In the early days, it brought to the fore issues such as the alleged brain drain and over-taxation, although it hasn't added much to the national debate lately and has been an adoring supporter of Israel and the United States. The colourful war-boosting paper attacks Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion on a daily basis and gives the Harper government the benefit of the doubt on every issue imaginable. Most recently, it stood with the Conservatives in their decision to support the Guantanamo judicial regime in the prosecution of Canadian Omar Khadr.

To its credit, the Post publishes an often illuminating column from Mr. Black, written from his cellblock in a Florida jail. For the Post founder to see his paper fold up or be sold off to Liberals in the same year of his incarceration would be the ultimate indignity.

Facing a debt load of more than $3-billion, Mr. Black sold half his interest in the Post as well as his entire Southam chain to the Aspers in 2000 for a princely profit. Now it is the Aspers who face a similarly staggering debt and may have to unload big media titles as well.

Although it would be a daunting task, a new proprietor could conceivably retool the Post to make it more viable in today's difficult newspaper market. The Post's Texas-styled ideology has been a nice fit for Alberta, but it has had trouble finding a growing audience east of Moose Jaw. Its difficulties were compounded by its inability to keep star performers such as Mark Steyn, Andrew Coyne, Christie Blatchford and Paul Wells.

For the Liberals, the sale or death of the Post, which is also possible, would have the result of saving them untold millions in adverse publicity. They have seen their media clout dwindle over time with the creation of the Sun chain, the sale of Southam, the birth of the Post and an ideological makeover at Maclean's.

For years, there have been predictions of the National Post's demise or sale. The rumours never panned out - and the same could be the case on this occasion. But if the Post does go, which could in turn see other CanWest titles follow, it would substantially alter the face of journalism in the country.