PAPER CUTS: Did Chicago Tribune Owner Cut Deal to Fire His Editor?

December 9, 2008— -- Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich believed the billionaire owner of the troubled Tribune Co. news empire agreed to fire a top editor at his Chicago paper in exchange for a tax break worth over $100 million, federal prosecutors alleged Tuesday.

Executives at the Chicago Tribune did not fire the editor, John P. McCormick, whom prosecutors believe Blagojevich had targeted. In fact, during the alleged machinations between the governor and the paper's owner, the paper's editorial staff was actually cooperating with the federal probe into the governor which resulted in his arrest Tuesday, by holding from print an exclusive story that FBI agents had secretly recorded the governor's conversations.

In a statement released Tuesday afternoon, the Tribune Co. said "the actions of the company, its executives and advisors working on the disposition of Wrigley Field have been appropriate at all times," and that "no one working for the company or on its behalf has ever attempted to influence staffing decisions at the Chicago Tribune or any aspect of the newspaper's editorial coverage as a result of conversations with officials in the governor's administration."

The Tribune Co. did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Calls to Blagojevich's offices were not returned. A statement released by his office did not address the allegations about his alleged deal with the Tribune, but assured Illinois residents that the charges against the governor "do nothing to impact the services, duties or function of the State."

In the criminal complaint against Blagojevich, federal prosecutors charged the governor attempted to use financial perks, including a lucrative "tax mitigation scheme," to convince Tribune owner Sam Zell to fire key editorial staff at the Chicago Tribune, including McCormick.

Zell is not named in the complaint, which identifies him as "Tribune Owner." The alleged scheme involved transfering the title to the historic Wrigley Field ballpark, owned by the Tribune Co., to a state agency. John Harris, an aide to Blagojevich, valued the deal "in the neighborhood of $100 million," according to the complaint.

Blagojevich's alleged pitch – to tell Zell, "maybe we can't do this now [indicating the tax scheme]. Fire those [expletive]s" – was handled by Harris, according to the complaint. Harris was also arrested Tuesday and charged in the affair.

According to the complaint, investigators secretly recorded a phone call in late November in which Harris told the governor that he had spoken with a senior Tribune executive – identified only as Tribune Financial Advisor in the complaint – regarding the deal.