Univision is going to buy Gawker Media

The bankrupt news outlet was recently sued by Hulk Hogan and Peter Thiel over privacy issues

Nick Denton has been offered half the amount he had been hoping for (AP)

Univision has won the auction to buy Gawker Media.

The predominantly Spanish-speaking news channel offered $135 million to buy the bankrupt news website and has outbid Ziff Davis’ offer of $90 million, according to reports.

Gawker Media filed for bankruptcy in June after reality television star Hulk Hogan and Peter Thiel won $140 million in an alleged case of privacy invasion.

The US bankruptcy court is required to sign off on the deal, which could end Gawker's 14-year run as an independent company.

In the meantime, Gawker will appeal its court case.

Ziff Davis, the publisher of PCMag and other technology-focused outlets, was the only other bidder.

Nick Denton, who founded the company in 2002, said last year that Gawker was worth at least $250 million.

Univision has been expanding its reach among a younger readership as it acquired The Onion and The Root, a publication aimed at African Americans.

Earlier this year it acquired a full stake in Fusion, a network aimed at millennials, which it launched in partnership with Disney in 2013.

Mr Denton sold a minority stake in the company in January, but otherwise maintained independent ownership.

The media outlet struggled in several legal battles over the years, including arguing that an article about a sex tape featuring Hulk Hogan was protected under the First Amendment.

It was later discovered that PayPal founder Peter Thiel secretly funded the wrestler's lawsuit in an attempt to bankrupt Gawker.

Mr Thiel was outed as gay by a 2007 Gawker article.

The billionaire wrote in a New York Times op-ed this week that he was proud of his actions, but he has alarmed journalists who fear other billionaires could fund legal battles to silence the media outlets they dislike.