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Chicago Tribune Company to Acquire
Chicago Magazine
CHICAGO, July 31, 2002 -- Chicago
Tribune Co., a subsidiary of Tribune Company (NYSE:TRB),
announced today that it has agreed to acquire Chicago magazine
from Primedia, Inc., through an affiliate for $35 million
in cash. The transaction brings together the Midwest’s
best-read newspaper with Chicagoland’s leading monthly
magazine.
The magazine will operate as an independent
publication and continue to maintain its own editorial and
advertising staffs.
"Chicago magazine brings another
dynamic dimension to Tribune’s robust array of local
media choices. It is a clear leader in providing entertainment
and other helpful information to its loyal readers and delivering
excellent results for advertisers who target this very desirable
audience," said Scott Smith, president and CEO of Chicago
Tribune Co. and publisher of Chicago Tribune. "We look
forward to working with the management and staff of Chicago
magazine to continue to improve and grow the publication."
John Carroll, publisher of Chicago magazine,
and Richard Babcock, editor, will remain in their current
positions with the magazine. "We’re excited about
becoming part of the Chicago Tribune Company and see great
possibilities in joining forces and working together,"
said Carroll.
Babcock added, "This is an excellent opportunity
for us to gain a wider audience for our content and our talented
writers."
"While the acquisition of magazines is
not part of the corporate strategy of Tribune Company, Chicago
magazine is a particularly good local fit with Chicago Tribune,"
said Dennis FitzSimons, Tribune Company’s president
and chief operating officer. "This acquisition allows
Chicago Tribune to continue expanding the ways in which it
serves local readers and advertisers in Chicago, just as it
does through several other targeted publications it owns and
operates."
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Chicago magazine was established in 1952
and acquired by Primedia in 1995. It is one of the most popular
and successful city magazines in the nation, with a circulation
of 182,000 and readership of 1.5 million. Its entertainment
and dining listings have established the magazine as one of
the city’s leading reference guides, as have its guides
to shopping and real estate. The magazine supplements its
entertainment information with topical features and has won
several regional and national awards.
Chicago Tribune Company publishes the
Chicago Tribune, ¡Exito! and, through subsidiary Chicagoland
Publishing Company, creates and markets other niche publications
serving a variety of targeted audiences. Chicago Tribune is
the Midwest’s best-read newspaper, with daily readership
of 2 million and nearly 3 million each Sunday. Chicago
Tribune partners with Tribune Interactive to produce three
leading local Internet sites.
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