Media conglomerate Tribune Co., buried in $13 billion in debt and with a bleak outlook for generating cash through advertising, on Monday became the first major newspaper publisher to seek bankruptcy protection during the current economic crisis. The Tribune owns the Chicago Cubs baseball team, as well as the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, The Sun of Baltimore, The Hartford Courant, and six other daily newspapers and 23 television stations. Most of the company's debt comes from the complex transaction in which the company was taken private, with employee ownership, by the wealthy Sam Zell last year. However, he took on lots of debt to make the deal happen and is now struggling to make payments. To make a payment this year, Tribune sold the Long Island daily Newsday to Cablevision Systems Corp. for $650 million. To generate additional cash, the Chicago-based company has been looking to sell the Cubs, Chicago's storied Wrigley Field and the company's 25 percent stake in a regional sports cable channel. But a tight credit market has made it tougher for potential buyers to obtain loans.
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