Posted on 05/03/2005 9:35:25 PM PDT by Land_of_Lincoln_John
May 3, 2005 — Shareholders have filed a federal class-action lawsuit against Tribune Co. and some of its officers, alleging circulation fraud that affected the Chicago-based media company's financial results, attorneys announced Tuesday.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago, contends Tribune violated the Securities and Exchange Act by intentionally overstating circulation at "numerous" newspapers, including Newsday and Tribune's Spanish-language newspaper Hoy, which meant the papers could charge more for advertising.
Also named as defendants were Tribune chairman Dennis J. FitzSimons, senior vice president for finance Donald C. Grenesko and retired president of Tribune Publishing Jack Fuller, according to the law firm Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP.
A Tribune spokeswoman did not immediately return a telephone call for comment Tuesday night.
The inflated circulation numbers at the two newspapers were first revealed by the company in June, and their publishers were replaced a month later. In September, Tribune Publishing again lowered circulation figures for Newsday and Hoy, saying Newsday's daily circulation had been misstated by as many as 100,000 copies.
The company took a $55 million charge last year to pay advertisers for the inflated circulation totals, and adopted stringent circulation reporting controls.
Another Chicago-based newspaper company also announced last June that it overstated circulation numbers.
Executives in charge of circulation for the Chicago Sun-Times left their jobs two weeks after parent company Hollinger International Inc. announced it had inflated circulation numbers "for several years."
Advertisers filed two lawsuits against the Sun-Times and Hollinger International in response to the company's announcement.
(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Hope the lawsuit bankrupts the "Libune".
The inflated circulation numbers at the two newspapers were first revealed by the company in June, and their publishers were replaced a month later. In September, Tribune Publishing again lowered circulation figures for Newsday and Hoy, saying Newsday's daily circulation had been misstated by as many as 100,000 copies.
Where are the Feds? This is worse than Martha Stewart.
And while this fraud was going on for years, what were these rags saying about Enron?
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