When a group of wealthy, politically connected local businessmen bought The Philadelphia Inquirer in April 2012, there were concerns that they would use its influence to further their own interests, ruining what was left of a once remarkable American newspaper.

Then they rehired William K. Marimow, a former Inquirer reporter who has won two Pulitzer Prizes, as editor in chief. Mr. Marimow had served as the newspaper’s editor until he was dismissed in 2010 by one of an ever-changing roster of owners. He has an excellent reputation as a defender of newsroom integrity and the new owners appeared serious about maintaining the journalistic rigor of the enterprise.

But the promise of an ownership group with deep pockets and an agenda driven by civic purpose collapsed in an unsightly heap last week. Mr. Marimow was fired, and a raucous war among the owners broke out into full view. Two of them, Lewis Katz, the former owner of the New Jersey Nets, and H. F. Lenfest, a former cable TV mogul, filed suit against the newspaper, as well as its publisher, Robert J. Hall, claiming that Mr. Marimow’s firing was a breach of contract. They and Mr. Marimow claim he was dismissed at the behest of their partner George E. Norcross III, a businessman and power broker in Democratic politics, as part of a pattern of interference.

While the battle may seem like one more bit of denouement for an industry on the wane, it is less a business story than a fight for the soul of not just an institution, but of a city as well. Philadelphia deserves better.