On a day that saw Mediaworks call in receivers, it emerged that tabloid newspaper The Truth will cease publishing after more than 125 years.



Staff at the national weekly have been told it will not publish a print edition on Thursday, and may never publish one again.



Truth, which first published 1887, was thought to have lost a major advertiser last week, prompting its owners to pull the plug.



Truth Weekender general manager Russell Beaumont told Fairfax Media "the owners and shareholders have said we should pause for a cup of tea".



"We're having a break, we're not in receivership, we're just pausing."



All creditors and contributors would be paid, he said.



Editor Cameron Slater had done an outstanding job since taking over last year, but attracting advertisers had proved difficult, Beaumont said.



Slater, who also operates the controversial Right-wing blog, Whale Oil, would not confirm the closure when contacted, referring all media inquiries to Dermott Malley, who co-owns the paper.



Malley said only "You want the truth from Truth? You'll get the truth", before ending the call.

Slater eventually wrote on his blog, that the "gig is over" - blaming the tabloid's demise on those that went before him.



"Some time in the future I will tell my story of the wild ride the last six months have been…in the meantime I want to thank the editorial and production staff I worked with, you were great.



"Bottom line is that Truth was too far gone, a legacy of the mayhem caused by David and Steve Crow. Again I will leave that story for later."

The newspaper's other owner, Matthew Horton, was not available for comment as he was on a flight from Australia.



Slater, who made a name for himself baiting Left-wing pundits on his controversial blog, was brought on as editor in October last year.



At the time he promised to reshape the "tired old business model" that had led the newspaper industry into deep decline, and planned to ditch the paper's seedier advertising format in favour of main street advertisers.