Commitments, Contingencies and Other Matters

9 Months Ended

Sep. 25, 2011

Commitments, Contingencies and Other Matters

NOTE 14 – Commitments, Contingencies and Other Matters

The Company and a number of its subsidiaries are defendants in judicial and administrative proceedings involving matters incidental to their business. The Company’s management does not believe that any material liability will be imposed as a result of these matters.

During the third quarter of 2011, the Company signed a non-binding letter of intent with The Columbus Dispatch for the possible printing of The Cincinnati Enquirer and The Kentucky Enquirer at the Columbus printing facilities. The final decision to implement this change to the Company’s Cincinnati operations is dependent upon reaching a definitive agreement with the Columbus Dispatch. If this agreement is reached, the Company will incur charges for the partial withdrawal from multi-employer pension plans which will be negotiated with the representatives of those pension plans. The Company will also incur severance related costs for the reduction of its workforce in Cincinnati and it will begin recognizing accelerated depreciation charges on its printing facilities there. If a definitive agreement is reached, it is expected that a complete transition of operations could take approximately 12 months to complete. Total special charges to be taken for severance, depreciation and pension are estimated to be less than $60 million. The severance and pension costs would be taken in the quarter in which a definitive agreement is reached; however, the accelerated depreciation would be recognized over the period leading up to implementation of the production shift to Columbus. The pension liability determinations are not likely to be finalized for a considerable period of time, possibly in 2013, and therefore current estimates are subject to the likelihood of considerable change due to interest rates, investment returns and other factors affecting the plans’ funded status.

On October 6, 2011, the Company announced that Craig A. Dubow, formerly the Company’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, resigned due to disability. Mr. Dubow had taken a leave of absence on September 15 to address continuing issues related to prior medical conditions. During the fourth quarter of 2011, the Company will record a charge of approximately $16 million in connection with the retirement of Mr. Dubow.