Eli Broad, Who Wants Tribune Co., Calls Newspapers 'Civic Trust'

By: Billionaire Eli Broad, who is part of a bid to buy Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times, described newspapers Thursday as a "civic trust" and said a locally owned paper is vital to the health of the world-class city he considers Los Angeles to be.

"I do believe there is a role for local ownership," Broad said in a wide-ranging interview with The Associated Press.

"Can a newspaper do a good job being owned by someone at a distance? You know what the record is as well as I do," he said.

Broad, whose wealth is estimated at $5.5 billion, declined to discuss specifics of his joint bid with supermarket magnate Ron Burkle for Chicago-based Tribune Co. The pair offered to buy the entire media conglomerate, which owns 11 newspapers around the country as well as television stations and the Chicago Cubs baseball team.

It is believed they are interested mainly in returning the Times to local ownership and would sell or otherwise dispose of Tribune's other properties.

Tribune's ownership of the Times has been rocky. Disputes between the paper's leaders and its corporate owners over costs and profits has led to the dismissal of two Times publishers and two editors. The latest to leave was editor Dean Baquet.

A call to the Times seeking comment was not immediately returned Thursday.

Earlier this year, under pressure from shareholders, Tribune said it would consider strategic options, including a sale of the entire company or individual assets. This week, Tribune said it had attracted serious interest and would extend its review of proposals with the hope of reaching a decision by early next year.

Broad said foundations or families that recognize the greater role of a newspaper in the life of a city might be better owners than publicly owned corporations that answer to shareholders.

"I believe a newspaper is a civic asset, a civic trust," he said. "I see a role for foundations that are not totally bottom-line oriented somehow being involved in the newspaper industry and, or, civic-minded families or others," Broad said.

The 73-year-old billionaire philanthropist said a strong, independent Los Angeles Times has a role to play in giving the city the recognition it deserves.

"It's important that they be considered one of the four most important newspapers in America and that we as Angelinos ought to have a paper of that quality," he said.

Broad said the Times needs to give readers better coverage of local communities and attract young readers, as well as provide coverage of national and world affairs.

"You've got to serve your public here and get people interested and give them things they can't find elsewhere, whether its the New York Times, or they can't find on TV," he said. "That's a real challenge."

Broad reaffirmed earlier comments that he does not intend to assume an active role in management if the paper is acquired.

"I don't plan to be a publisher," he said.

"I would hope they would have a publisher and editor and editorial staff that does a great job not only winning Pulitzers but doing right by this great city and putting on their masthead something like, 'A newspaper for a great city,'" he said.

The son of Lithuanian immigrants, Broad co-founded a business in 1957 to build starter homes for first-time buyers eager to claim their slice of the American Dream. The company eventually became KB Home, one of the most successful home developers in the nation.

In 1976, he bought a life insurance company and transformed it into the retirement savings giant SunAmerica. He sold the company in 1988 to American International Group for $16.5 billion.

In recent years, Broad has concentrated on philanthropic activities. He gave $60 million to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and was a founder of the Museum of Contemporary Art.

He resuscitated efforts to build a new home for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, leading a fundraising effort for the Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Not all of his efforts have succeeded. Broad backed a plan to bring a professional football team to the city and once made a failed bid to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team.