| 
Lozano Enterprises Acquires Equity
Investment in La Opinion from Tribune Company
Agreement Formally
Dissolves Partnership
LOS ANGELES and CHICAGO, January 15,
2004 -- The
management of La Opinión, the nation’s largest
Spanish language daily newspaper, announced they acquired
Tribune Company’s equity investment in La Opinión.
The transaction formally dissolves the companies’ partnership.
The partnership began between La Opinion and the Times Mirror
Company in 1990. Tribune Company acquired the Times Mirror
Company in June 2000.
The Lozano family,
patriarchs of the newspaper, had retained UBS Investment
Bank, a leading global securities and investment banking
firm, as their advisor in seeking financing for a re-purchase
of Tribune equity in La Opinión.
"The time
is right for La Opinión to operate as an independent
newspaper," said
José Ignacio Lozano, Publisher and CEO of La Opinión. "We
appreciate and respect our nearly 14-year partnership with the former Times
Mirror Company and Tribune Company; and look forward to continuing our service
to the Spanish-speaking communities of Southern California as we have for
more than seven decades."
"We support the Lozano family’s
decision to operate as an independent newspaper," said
Jack Fuller, Tribune Publishing president, "and
we have worked together to help them achieve their goal."
La Opinión was established in Los Angeles in 1926. Through 77 years of
serving its readers and advertisers, La Opinión has continued to grow
and evolve into one of the most influential newspapers in the Hispanic community.
From 1926 through 2003, La Opinión's growth has mirrored the rise of the
Hispanic population in Los Angeles and the state of California. It is now the
largest Spanish language daily newspaper in the nation with over 427,800 daily
readers throughout the Southern California area. La Opinión also has a
high brand presence within the Hispanic community with a 99% recognition level. :: :: ::
Tribune Publishing is the leading U.S.
major-market newspaper group, with the third-largest total
circulation. The company operates 13 leading daily newspapers:
Los Angeles Times; Chicago Tribune; Newsday (Long Island,
N.Y.); The Sun (Baltimore); South Florida Sun-Sentinel; Orlando
Sentinel; Hartford Courant; The Morning Call (Allentown,
Pa.); Daily Press (Newport News, Va.); The Advocate (Stamford,
Conn.); Greenwich Time (Greenwich, Conn.); and Hoy, a Spanish-language
newspaper published in New York and Chicago. Additional newspapers
for Hispanic consumers, each published weekly, are El Sentinel
in Orlando and el Sentinel in South Florida. Tribune Publishing
includes Tribune Media Services, a leading provider of entertainment
listings and content syndication to print and electronic
media; Tribune Interactive, a top source of online news and
information; and CLTV, the Chicago region’s only 24-hour
cable news channel. Investments include CareerBuilder (33%
owned) and Classified Ventures (29%). |
