Tribune Co

NEW YORK -- Tribune Co. is inviting at least three potential buyers who submitted bids for the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field near or above $1 billion to participate in a second round of proposals, according to a person involved in the process.

Two New York commercial real estate brokerages have been selected by Tribune Co. to market the Los Angeles Times' main office downtown and Tribune Tower in Chicago to potential buyers, the company said Tuesday. Cushman & Wakefield will look for buyers for The Times' historic headquarters at 1st and Spring streets, and Eastdil Secured will try to sell the landmark Tribune building overlooking the Chicago River, said Stephanie Pater, director of real estate for Tribune.

Tribune Co., publisher of the Los Angeles Times, reported a second-quarter net loss of $4.53 billion after writing down the value of its publications. The loss compared with a profit of $36.3 million a year earlier and included a $3.83-billion expense to reflect the falling value of its newspapers, the Chicago-based company said. Sales fell 5.7% to $1.11 billion. Newspaper advertising sales tumbled 15%, Tribune said. The worsening advertising slump has made it harder for investor Sam Zell, who took Tribune private in December, to manage $12.5 billion in debt after the buyout.

Several former and current Los Angeles Times employees filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the newspaper's corporate parent, Tribune Co., and its chief executive, Sam Zell, contending that reckless management is destroying the value of the company. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, alleges that Zell and former Tribune CEO Dennis J. FitzSimons devised a plan to take the company private to enrich themselves to the detriment of employees.

Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and other media properties as well as the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field, said Monday that it lost $121.6 million in the third quarter as newspaper advertising revenue fell. The privately held company's net income a year earlier was $152.8 million. Revenue fell 10.5% to $1.04 billion from $1.16 billion, the company said.

The company that owns the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and Chicago Cubs baseball team is preparing for a possible bankruptcy filing as it attempts to renegotiate $12 billion in debt with banks and other creditors, a Tribune Co. executive said Sunday. The Chicago media conglomerate hired Lazard Ltd. a little more than a week ago for advice on a possible Chapter 11 filing, though people familiar with internal talks said the company was exploring several options.

Dear Reader, As you may already know, the Los Angeles Times' parent company, Tribune, has filed to restructure its debt obligations under the protection of Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. What does all this mean for our readers and advertisers? As a practical matter, very little. Tribune Co. is continuing to operate its media businesses, including its newspapers, television stations and websites. And at the Los Angeles Times and latimes.com, we remain dedicated to providing you with the level of service and 24/7 news coverage you've come to expect from us. The decision to restructure Tribune Co.'s debt was brought on by the dramatic and unexpected operating conditions of this year.

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.

I've seen my colleagues plunge into rioting mobs, drive into the hills as they exploded with fire and -- on days when the earth shook -- leave their anxious families to rush to crumpled buildings. You think a little bankruptcy scares this crew? You think Chapter 11 has us down? You think we fear the future? Well, yes. Yes. And hell yes. In the ragtag old Los Angeles Times newsroom, emotions run as threadbare as the quarter-century-old carpet.

With a bidding deadline for Tribune Co. set for Jan. 17, the charitable foundation that is the media company's second-largest shareholder said Thursday that it had hired Blackstone Group as an advisor on courses of action that could include selling its 12% stake or joining in a bid for the parent of the Los Angeles Times.