Chicago Tribune

When the White House sent a last-minute invitation for Asif Ali Zardari to attend the two-day NATO summit, they were taking a highly public gamble. Would sharing the spotlight with President Obama and other global leaders induce the Pakistani president to allow vital supplies to reach alliance troops fighting in Afghanistan? But long before the summit ended Monday, the answer was clear: No deal. Zardari's refusal to reopen the supply routes left a diplomatic blot on a summit that NATO sought to cast as the beginning of the end of the conflict in Afghanistan.

Five years after his partnership lost a bid to buy Tribune Co.and the Los Angeles Times, billionaire businessman Eli Broad said he remains interested in joining with others to restore local ownership to The Times. The issue arose this week with the pending release of Broad's book, "The Art of Being Unreasonable: Lessons in Unconventional Thinking," in which the onetime home builder and investment services magnate speculates that the newspaper will be sold after the resolution of the bankruptcy of its owner, Tribune.

Lamar Odom is done playing for the Dallas Mavericks. Will any other NBA team take a chance on the enigmatic 6-foot-10 forward who is less than a year removed from winning the league's sixth man of the year award? Or perhaps the better question is, should someone give him another shot? Odom was known for his inconsistency during his seven seasons with the Lakers. But, by definition, that means there were good and bad times on the court for Odom in L.A. And particularly in the last few years, there seemed to be more good than bad, with Odom appearing to pull it all together last season by being named the league's best player off the bench.

When: 5 p.m. Where: Staples Center. On the air: TV: FS West. Radio: 1150. Records: Kings 27-22-12; Blackhawks 33-22-7 Update: Rookie defenseman Slava Voynov returns to the Kings after a short stint with their minor league affiliate in Manchester, N.H. Voynov's emergence was one of the reasons the Kings were able to move defenseman Jack Johnson in the Jeff Carter deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets. "If Slava is going to become a top-four guy, it doesn't do him any good to be in and out of the lineup," Kings Coach Darryl Sutter said.

The Chicago Tribune said Friday it has agreed to a settlement involving cash buyouts and lifetime annuities for union members who walked out more than three years ago. When the strike began, 240 printers walked out over company moves to gain greater control over hiring and assignments in the composing room. Under the agreement, 119 printers who have remained on strike will have the option of a buyout or a lifetime annuity, as well as company-paid medical insurance.

Newspaper publisher Tribune Co. said it would pull most stock-price listings from the Chicago Tribune, citing rising newsprint costs and increasing use of the Internet to track stocks. The paper said it would run condensed listings for the most active stocks and mutual funds Tuesday through Friday, publishing an extensive report on Saturdays. Readers will be able to get complete stock and fund prices by visiting the paper's website or by calling a new toll-free number.

The Chicago Tribune will join others in the struggling newspaper industry in selling front-page advertisements, the paper said Monday. The Tribune also will run the 1 1/2 -inch strip ads on the front of its sports and Tempo sections as part of an effort to generate more revenue, spokesman Mike Dizon said. He said the ads would be unobtrusive and emphasized that the news would continue to be edited and presented independent of the advertising. It's not yet known when the ads will begin.

Clayton Kirkpatrick, the former editor of the Chicago Tribune who was credited with overseeing vast improvements in the paper in the 1970s, has died. He was 89. Kirkpatrick, editor of the Tribune from 1969 through 1979, died Saturday of congestive heart failure at his home in the Chicago suburb of Glen Ellyn, his family said.

Angered by Chicago Tribune editorials, Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich tried to get members of the newspaper's editorial board fired, promising in exchange to support lucrative state financial assistance in the sale of Wrigley Field -- part of the cash-strapped parent company's efforts to sell the Chicago Cubs, authorities charged Tuesday.

The Chicago Tribune has sent a handful of reporters and production workers to the strikebound San Francisco Chronicle, a Tribune spokeswoman confirmed Friday. Other newspapers have also been asked to help the Chronicle since 2,600 reporters, salespeople, printers and delivery drivers went on strike against the paper, as well as the San Francisco Examiner, on Nov. 1, Tribune spokeswoman Faith Brown said.

Tribune Co. agreed to pay former chief executive Randy Michaels $675,000 in a settlement stemming from his abrupt resignation from the company Oct. 22, 2010. The company, which owns the Los Angeles Times, KTLA-TV Channel 5, the Chicago Tribune and other media properties, will also cover $50,000 in Michaels' legal fees, according to documents filed Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. Michaels, who resigned under pressure after news reports alleging he created a sexually charged "frat house" atmosphere in the corporate suite of the bankrupt media company, had demanded that he receive $900,000, the prorated potion of his planned 2010 management incentive bonus.

Tony Hunter, Chicago Tribune Media Group's publisher and chief executive, has added the title of CEO of parent Tribune Co.'s publishing division. The move, announced Monday by Tribune Co. Chief Executive Eddy Hartenstein, is part of the media conglomerate's effort to restructure and streamline its publishing division. Tribune operates the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune and other media properties. Hunter will oversee day-to-day operations of seven Tribune Co. daily newspapers and their digital operations.

Tribune Co. said Wednesday that operating cash flow at its two largest publishing units ? the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune ? was essentially flat in 2010 compared to 2009, while overall operating cash flow increased $140 million to $635 million. "The past year showed substantial improvement over 2009," Chandler Bigelow, Tribune's chief financial officer, said in a statement. The increase was attributed largely to the performance of Tribune's television stations across the country, which benefited from expansion of local programming and a surge in fourth-quarter political advertising.

Under pressure from its creditors and unions, bankrupt Tribune Co. agreed to cut back on the bonuses it would pay under its proposed 2010 management incentive plan. The move comes as the Chicago media company seeks to win approval from creditors for a reorganization plan that would allow it to exit a bankruptcy case that has dragged on for almost 20 months. Management bonuses have been a flash point in the Tribune case since the company entered Chapter 11 proceedings in December 2008.

Fresh from striking a hard-won compromise with many of its key creditor constituencies, Chicago-based Tribune Co. took one step forward and another step back at a hearing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Tuesday. Presiding over a courtroom packed with almost 100 lawyers and associates, Judge Kevin Carey blessed Tribune's exclusive right to press ahead with its recently filed settlement plan, rejecting a request to file a competing plan from several disgruntled creditors led by bond investor Oaktree Capital Management.

Tribune Co. has brokered an agreement with its major creditors that will allow it to file its reorganization plan with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware by Tuesday. The agreement, announced Thursday, would give a contentious group of junior creditors, led by distressed-debt investor Centerbridge Partners, a 7.4% slice of the company. The agreement also is supported by the unsecured creditors committee, which is expected to drop its previously filed motion asking for permission to sue the company over the propriety of Tribune's 2007 leveraged buyout.

Illinois state records outline a series of private contacts between Tribune Co. and since-ousted Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich even as investigators prepared to arrest him on federal corruption charges late last year. The ex-governor's e-mails, telephone logs and calendars, recently released to the Chicago Tribune under the state's Freedom of Information Act, provide new details about the urgency of Tribune Co.'s efforts to get a financial bailout by selling Wrigley Field to the state. Tribune Co.

Five years after his partnership lost a bid to buy Tribune Co.and the Los Angeles Times, billionaire businessman Eli Broad said he remains interested in joining with others to restore local ownership to The Times. The issue arose this week with the pending release of Broad's book, "The Art of Being Unreasonable: Lessons in Unconventional Thinking," in which the onetime home builder and investment services magnate speculates that the newspaper will be sold after the resolution of the bankruptcy of its owner, Tribune.

Dear Amy: I work in a cubicle across a narrow hall from the water cooler, restrooms and kitchen. Co-workers tend to congregate in this area. As you can imagine, the noise level is high. I'd like to post a sign reminding people to kindly keep it down. Humor seems to work with this crowd. Do you have any suggestions? Reluctant Eavesdropper Dear Eavesdropper: "We all know we don't really work around here, but let's keep this secret from our clients and customers.

Dear Amy: We recently learned that my husband would likely be laid off within a month. My husband is devastated; in addition to the impact this has had on his professional ego, he feels he's letting his family down by not being able to support us until he finds another job. I have tried to reassure him that this is a chance to get a job he will love. His paycheck is not what makes him the amazing father and husband he is. Is there anything else I could do? Concerned Wife Dear Wife: One unfortunate aspect of the current unemployment situation is that men are losing their jobs at a disproportionally high rate.