Publisher Letter to Employees

From: Johnson, Jeff
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2006 3:03 PM
To: zzAll LATimes Employees
Subject: UPDATE

(Managers and supervisors: Please share this information with your employees who do not have e-mail. Thank you.)

Dear Colleague -

Since last Thursday, there has been considerable media attention given to the Los Angeles Times, Tribune Company, and our future. While it's awkward to see one's internal deliberations covered so broadly, the issues are important and I believe warrant further comment to bolster your confidence in our resolve to work through these issues together.

Yesterday, Scott Smith and I met in Chicago to discuss recent developments, including the letter from community leaders and Dennis FitzSimons' response, the media coverage and, most importantly, our plans to move forward constructively. We affirmed our fundamental objectives to effectively serve readers, advertisers, our communities and shareholders. We also talked about how the Los Angeles Times has to play a leadership role, both in Southern California and in Tribune initiatives.

All media organizations are facing unprecedented changes that challenge us immensely. The changing media landscape also provides important opportunities for new products, new readers and new revenue. Scott and I both believe we have a talented team here in Los Angeles to tackle these challenges. Tribune's company-wide resources and scale are also key advantages.

Earlier this year, we laid out our vision for growth. It is focused on Reconnecting with Southern California, Owning Entertainment and Winning in Local Online. We have a number of great initiatives underway, from the redesign of the core paper's news sections to the relaunch of The Envelope.com in print and online. We will continue to accelerate our pace of innovation across all areas to keep up with the region and world we cover.

Yesterday, I also reiterated our commitment to build a credible financial plan in the coming weeks that is grounded in actions and initiatives that efficiently build readership and revenue.

Ultimately, both the Los Angeles Times and Tribune need to grow to be a healthy organization -- through great newspapers and launching more offerings than we have today. That is the challenge before us, and we need everyone engaged, working together to meet that challenge. Thank you all for your dedication to achieving our shared goals as we start the next 125 years.

Jeff