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Impairment of Assets
6 Months Ended
Jun. 24, 2012
Goodwill and Intangible Asset Impairment [Abstract]  
Asset Impairment Charges
IMPAIRMENT OF ASSETS

About Group

Goodwill is not amortized but tested for impairment annually or in an interim period if certain circumstances indicate a possible impairment may exist. Our policy is to perform our annual goodwill impairment test in the fourth quarter of our fiscal year. However, due to certain impairment indicators at the About Group, we performed an interim impairment test as of June 24, 2012.

The interim impairment test resulted in a $194.7 million estimated non-cash charge in the second quarter of 2012 for the impairment of goodwill at the About Group. Any change to the estimate of the impairment charge will be recorded in the third quarter of 2012 when we complete the impairment test.

While we saw improvements in total advertising trends for the About Group in the second quarter of 2012 compared with first-quarter 2012 levels, our expectations for future operating results and cash flows in the long-term are lower than our previous estimates primarily driven by a reassessment of the sustainability of our estimated long-term growth rate for display advertising. The reduction in our estimated long-term growth rate resulted in the carrying value of the net assets being greater than their fair value, and therefore a write-down of goodwill to its fair value was required.

The fair value of the About Group’s goodwill was the residual fair value after allocating the total fair value of the About Group to its other assets, net of liabilities. See Note 9 for information regarding the fair value of goodwill.

Assets Held for Sale

In the second quarter of 2011, we classified certain assets as held for sale at The New York Times Media Group, primarily of Baseline, a leading online subscription database and research service for information on the film and television industries and a provider of premium film and television data to Web sites, which was part of the News Media Group reportable segment. The carrying value of these assets was greater than their fair value, less cost to sell, resulting in an impairment of certain intangible assets and property totaling $9.2 million. The impairment charge reduced the carrying value of intangible assets to $0 and the property to a nominal value. In October 2011, we completed the sale of Baseline, which resulted in a nominal gain.