September 20, 2007

(Chicago, IL) - The International Brotherhood of Teamsters today testified at the Federal Communications Commission’s hearing on media ownership and urged the Commission to protect diversity and other issues of public interest in considering change of ownership applications, specifically when private equity is involved. 

“The proposed Tribune [NYSE:  TRB] buyout is an example of why the FCC must concern itself with the ownership structure of media companies–particularly when waivers of cross-broadcast ownership rules have been sought–in order to fulfill its mission to protect localism, viewpoint diversity, media access and other issues of vital importance,” said James P. Hoffa, General President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in testimony presented at the hearing. 

In the proposed Tribune buyout, the ownership of the company and its 16 newspapers and 23 television stations will be transferred to an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) but will be controlled by one individual, Sam Zell, who will serve as its Chairman of the Board.  Despite being owners, employees will have no voice in the governance of the ESOP or the operating company. 

“The structure proposed in the Tribune application provides insight into the potential dangers of approving an ownership structure that insulates an individual with total control of a company from the owners of that company as well as the diverse interests of the communities that company serves.  This is a critical difference between private and public ownership,” Hoffa said.

An ESOP-ownership structure at media companies that allows for employee input and oversight would be better able to reflect true local and diverse viewpoints.  The employee owners at Tribune, for example, represent not only the different geographic communities served by the company but also the different races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, and professions within those communities. 

“This diverse perspective would better serve the Tribune and the public interest and would re-emphasize the central role of licensee responsibility in the Commission’s regulatory scheme,” said Hoffa.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.4 million hardworking men and women in the U.S. and Canada including approximately 2,000 who work for The Tribune Company.