The publisher of the Star Tribune on Sunday denied a New York Post report that the paper is on the brink of bankruptcy. In addition to declining advertising revenue, the Star Tribune reported last week that its weekday circulation fell 6.74 percent to 321,984 in the six-month period that ended March 31. The Pioneer Press reports that Avista Capital Partners, owner of the Star Tribune, has hired Blackstone Group to analyze the company's finances. "But that hardly merits a conclusion that we are near bankruptcy," Publisher Chris Harte reportedly said.