Tribune Co

Tribune Co. has disclosed that the U.S. Department of Labor has opened an investigation into the company's employee stock ownership plan, or ESOP. The Labor Department sent a subpoena March 2 to the Chicago-based media company seeking "an extensive range of documents," Tribune Co. said in a filing made Thursday as part of its bankruptcy case. The company said it produced documents that its lawyers say "substantially complied" with the subpoena.

About 300 labor union members and other activists staged a demonstration to protest the potential sale of the Los Angeles Times to the politically conservative Koch brothers. Demonstrators marched outside the downtown L.A. headquarters of Oaktree Capital Management, an investment firm that holds a roughly 20% stake in Tribune Co., which owns The Times. Protesters alleged that Charles and David Koch, billionaire siblings who fund conservative causes, want to buy The Times in order to skew the paper's coverage to favor anti-union objectives.

Tribune Co. will have to mount some persuasive arguments why regulators should allow real estate mogul Sam Zell to take the media company private, Federal Communications Commissioner Michael J. Copps said. "This is a multifaceted proceeding, so I am not going to prejudge it. I will look at it in terms of the world we live in," Copps said on the sidelines of the National Assn. of Broadcasters' annual conference.

WASHINGTON - Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr. on Tuesday strongly defended the criminal investigation into the leak of classified details about a successful U.S. undercover operation, calling it "within the top two or three most serious leaks" of government-protected information since he became a federal prosecutor more than 35 years ago. The attorney general said he had recused himself earlier from overseeing the investigation into who told the...

The South Florida Sun Sentinel was awarded the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for public service journalism Monday for its investigation of off-duty police officers who endangered the lives of citizens by speeding. The newspaper, owned by Tribune Co., started its investigation after an off-duty Miami police officer was pulled over by a Florida state trooper for driving 120 mph in fall 2011. The resulting three-part series, "Above the Law," found that accidents caused by officers driving at high speeds - in many cases when off duty - caused at least 320 crashes since 2004, killing or maiming 21 people.

About 300 labor union members and other activists staged a demonstration to protest the potential sale of the Los Angeles Times to the politically conservative Koch brothers. Demonstrators marched outside the downtown L.A. headquarters of Oaktree Capital Management, an investment firm that holds a roughly 20% stake in Tribune Co., which owns The Times. Protesters alleged that Charles and David Koch, billionaire siblings who fund conservative causes, want to buy The Times in order to skew the paper's coverage to favor anti-union objectives.

A boardroom split over Tribune Co.'s stock buyback plan had investors wondering Wednesday whether the disagreement was the first move toward putting the media giant into play for a possible takeover, or simply a negotiation between the company's most powerful players. Tribune's stock rose 31 cents Wednesday to $30.31 -- its highest close in more than two months -- a day after the company said that three of its directors had opposed the refinancing announced May 30.

Tribune Co. agreed to sell its suburban shopper, the Penny Saver, to SEI Shoppers Corp. The sale was expected to be completed late this month, Tribune Community Publications said. Terms were not disclosed. The Penny Saver is published and distributed in portions of Du Page, Will and Cook counties in the Chicago area. Tribune Co. publishes the Chicago Tribune and New York's Daily News.

Tribune Co. acknowledged Thursday that it had been subpoenaed in the federal criminal case against Illinois' governor, Democrat Rod R. Blagojevich, and sources confirmed that the FBI had interviewed a close associate of company Chairman Sam Zell. The associate, Nils Larsen, is the financial advisor who allegedly was asked to help get Chicago Tribune editorial writers fired. (None were fired.) Larsen, a Tribune Co.

A deadline Tribune Co. set to announce the results of its six-month-long strategic review passed without the media giant revealing a decision about its future. Members of Tribune's board of directors met to consider two offers to buy the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher by circulation. The company's properties include the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times and KTLA.

SACRAMENTO - California legislative leaders and 10 public employee unions announced opposition Wednesday to any sale of the Los Angeles Times and other Tribune Co. newspapers to a pair of wealthy brothers who fund conservative causes. In a letter dated Tuesday to Bruce Karsh, president of Oaktree Capital Management, the largest shareholder in Tribune Co., and chairman of its board of directors, the unions said David and Charles Koch are "anti-labor, anti-environment, anti-public education and anti-immigrant.

News agency Reuters has fired deputy social media editor Matthew Keys after he was indicted on federal charges of conspiring with the hacking group Anonymous to breach a Tribune Co. website, changing a Los Angeles Times online story. Matthew Keys, 26, said on his Twitter account Monday morning that he “Just got off the phone. Reuters has fired me, effective today. Our union will be filing a grievance. More soon.” Reuters spokesman David Girardin confirmed the firing. Keys was charged last month with three hacking-related counts in the December 2010 incident.

The South Florida Sun Sentinel was awarded the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for public service journalism Monday for its investigation of off-duty police officers who endangered the lives of citizens by speeding. The newspaper, owned by Tribune Co., started its investigation after an off-duty Miami police officer was pulled over by a Florida state trooper for driving 120 mph in fall 2011. The resulting three-part series, "Above the Law," found that accidents caused by officers driving at high speeds - in many cases when off duty - caused at least 320 crashes since 2004, killing or maiming 21 people.

Tribune Co. has promoted Kathy Thomson, president and chief operating officer of the Los Angeles Times, to the newly created position of chief operating officer of Tribune's publishing division. In her new role, Thomson will oversee efforts to expand digital products and the use of video at The Times, Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun and Tribune's five other daily newspapers. Thomson will assume the new role immediately and maintain her current responsibilities at The Times, the company said Tuesday.

Tribune Co. has hired investment bankers to advise the media company on the sale of its newspaper publishing unit, according to a source familiar with the matter. The company has retained JPMorgan Chase & Co. to oversee a potential sale of the division that includes the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, according to the person. Evercore Partners, a boutique investment bank, reportedly also has been hired. There has been widespread speculation that Tribune would attempt to unload the newspaper business to focus on its more promising television operations.

The new owners of Tribune Co. are betting that television is the key to its future. With 23 local TV stations in 19 cities, including KTLA-TV Channel 5 in Los Angeles, and a national cable network, Tribune has an array of potentially strong properties that will be the foundation of the newly constituted company. Its television station group has been valued at close to $3 billion. In 2011, Tribune's broadcasting operations had revenue of $1.1 billion. "Those stations are great properties in wonderful markets," said Alan Bell, a veteran broadcast industry executive.

Tribune Co. said operating earnings from continuing operations rose 6% to $124.4 million, or 36 cents a share, in its fourth quarter, from $117.9 million, or 44 cents, a year ago, when there were fewer shares outstanding. The results exclude charges related to the acquisition of Los Angeles Times publisher Times Mirror Co. Operating revenue jumped 96% to $1.5 billion, while revenue on a pro forma basis, which includes Times Mirror, edged up 2%.

Nils Larsen, chairman of Tribune Co.'s broadcast division since October, has been named chief executive of Tribune Broadcasting, which is streamlining its upper management. Effective immediately, Larsen, 40, will take on duties that previously belonged to Jerry Kersting, 61, who exits as broadcasting president, a position that is being eliminated. Larsen remains chief investment officer of Tribune, parent of the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, KTLA-Channel 5 and other media outlets across the country.