A labor union representing newsroom employees at seven of Tribune Publishing Co. ’s nine newspapers is demanding the removal from the board of three representatives of a hedge fund that has offered to buy the company and take it private.
In a letter sent to Tribune’s chairman, Philip Franklin, the News Guild said that the hedge fund, Alden Global Capital LLC, had violated Securities and Exchange Commission rules by not informing shareholders of its buyout offer within the mandated 10 days after approaching the board.
The guild said that the three Alden-appointed directors—one of whom is the hedge fund’s co-founder, Randall Smith—represented “gross violations of their fiduciary responsibilities” and that a special meeting should be called to vote on removing them.
A spokesman for Alden challenged the union’s interpretation of events and said the fund had abided by the rules.
“The union has its facts wrong and has reached numerous important and incorrect factual and legal conclusions,” the spokesman said. “The offer is in conformance with legal requirements and fiduciary duties.”
