By: E&P Staff Two employment agencies have decided to drop their claims against the Star Tribune in Minneapolis under a settlement agreement with the paper. Masterson Personnel Inc. and Alternative Staffing Inc. filed suit against the Star Tribune for allegedly falsifying its circulation.
"When the plaintiffs approached us to settle the suit, we felt an obligation to explore a way to end this matter that we have said from the outset had no merit," Keith Moyer, president and publisher of the Star Tribune, said in a statement released today.
In the agreement, the Star Tribune will pay the attorneys representing the two agencies $40,000 for "out of pocket expenses."
Additionally, the Star Tribune will pay $7,500 to each firm in 2007 if, in 2006, their advertising spend with the paper matches 2005 levels, said Ben Taylor, senior vice president of communications for the paper. Both Masterson Personnel and Alternative Staffing have been advertising with the paper since they filed their case against the Star Tribune last June. Taylor declined to say how much.
A motion to dismiss the entire litigation is pending in federal court in Minneapolis.
In a statement, Duane Hendrickson, vice president of Masterson Personnel, said, "We did not believe that it was in the interest of Masterson Personnel Inc. as an advertiser to continue to pursue the allegations. Because of recent developments and the costly, time-consuming nature of the process, we decided to move on."
The Audit Bureau of Circulations verified the Star Tribune's circulation numbers when the organization conducted its regularly scheduled audit of the paper. Additionally, two other advertisers who were also plaintiffs in the case dropped their suit against the paper in November.
The Star Tribune reported that advertising revenue for the month of November was down 1.6% compared to the same period last year. Year to date as of November, ad revenue at the paper was flat.
The Star Tribune is still involved with another lawsuit concerning Hendrickson as an independent newspaper distributor.
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