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Tribune Appoints Executives to Lead
Broadcasting Division
John
Reardon Named President & CEO
John Vitanovec Promoted To Executive Vice President
CHICAGO,
November 10, 2005 -- Tribune Company
(NYSE:TRB) today announced the appointment of John
Reardon as president/chief executive officer of its
broadcast group, overseeing the company’s 26
television stations, Superstation WGN, WGN Radio, and
Tribune Entertainment. The company also announced the
promotion of John Vitanovec to executive vice president.
The appointments are effective immediately.
Reardon and Vitanovec had been serving as group vice presidents
since March 2004. Both executives have been with Tribune
for more than 20 years.
"John Reardon’s background in sales
management at WGN-TV, his experience as general manager of
KTLA, and most recently his role as regional vice president
make him particularly well qualified to lead our broadcasting
group," said
Dennis FitzSimons, Tribune’s chairman and chief executive
officer. "John Vitanovec has served as general manager
at Tribune stations in two of the country’s largest
markets, Boston and Chicago, and has overseen tremendous
growth at Superstation WGN. Tribune is fortunate to have
these two talented and experienced leaders as part of its
management team."
Reardon had been responsible for the
company’s television
stations in the Western and Southern regions. Previously
he served as general manager of KTLA from 1996 to 2004 and
station manager from 1992 to 1996. Prior to KTLA, Reardon
was director of sales for WGN-TV from 1989 to 1992. He began
his career with Tribune as an account executive at WGN-TV
in 1985.
"We have talented people and managers
at each of Tribune’s
26 television stations and across Tribune Broadcasting,"
said Reardon. "The success of our stations is based
on localism, and I look forward to helping them serve viewers
and advertisers in all our markets."
Vitanovec has had responsibility for
overseeing the division’s
television stations in the Central and Eastern regions and
Superstation WGN. Previously, Vitanovec served as general
manager of WLVI-TV in Boston from 1995 to 1997, and later
at WGN-TV from 1999 to 2004. He began his career with Tribune
in 1984.
"Our television station group along with
the national reach of Superstation WGN provides a great platform
for serving advertisers and viewers," said Vitanovec. "I
look forward to working with John and our station management
teams to capitalize on our unique position in the evolving
media landscape."
Brief Biographies of Reardon and Vitanovec
A Chicago native, born January 26, 1954,
John Reardon holds a bachelor’s degree from Loyola
University Chicago. He is a board member of the Television
Bureau of Advertising and also serves on the board of the
Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago.
A Chicago native, born March 8, 1957,
John Vitanovec holds a bachelor’s degree from DePaul University and an MBA
from the University of Chicago. He serves on the DePaul University
board of trustees and as an advisory council member for the
College of Commerce, and is an advisory board member for
the Northwestern University Media Management Center. He is
a member of the board of directors of the Peggy Notebaert
Nature Museum and is a member of the Executives’ Club
of Chicago.
(Complete profiles and photos of Reardon and Vitanovec are
available on request.)
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TRIBUNE (NYSE: TRB) is
one of the country’s top media companies, operating
businesses in publishing and broadcasting. It reaches more
than 80 percent of U.S. households and is the only media
organization with newspapers, television stations and websites
in the nation’s top three markets. In publishing, Tribune
operates 11 leading daily newspapers including the Los Angeles
Times, Chicago Tribune and Newsday, plus a wide range of
targeted publications such as Spanish-language Hoy. The company’s
broadcasting group operates 26 television stations, Superstation
WGN on national cable, Chicago’s WGN-AM and the Chicago
Cubs baseball team. Popular news and information websites
complement Tribune’s print and broadcast properties
and extend the company’s nationwide audience. |
