Federal Judge Bars Shutdown of Honolulu Newspaper

CWA-REPRESENTED NEWSPAPER WORKERS and residents of
Honolulu, Hawaii, won a big victory when a federal judge blocked the shutdown of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, one of two daily newspapers on Oahu. This is the first time
a federal judge has blocked a newspaper from buying off its Joint Operating Agreement partner.

U.S. District Judge Alan Kay issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting Gannett Corp. and Liberty Newspapers from closing or undermining the 117-year-old Star-Bulletin. Gannett, which owns the other daily newspaper, the Honolulu Advertiser, wanted to pay Liberty some $26 million in exchange for closing the Star-Bulletin and ending the JOA that had been in place since 1962.

The Newspaper Guild-CWA President Linda Foley praised the judge's decision, noting that it went beyond the state's request for a temporary restraining order. "This is a
real victory for the Honolulu community, employees and quality journalism," she said. "This paper will not close at the end of October, though we still have a fight ahead of us," she added. Both Gannett and Liberty are
expected to appeal the decision.

"It is inconceivable that one newspaper can simply pay a competitor to shut down. We believe this arrangement directly violates the intent of the Newspaper Preservation Act, which is to maintain quality and competitiveness in editorial voices and news in our communities," Foley added.

The preliminary injunction was granted in response to a
filing by Hawaii Attorney General Earl Anzai. A
TNG-CWA-supported citizens' group in Honolulu, Save Our
Star-Bulletin, also sought action against the planned
shutdown. SOS includes community leaders and activists,
former elected officials, advertisers and employees of
the newspaper.

Donald Baker, the former head of the U.S. Department of Justice antitrust division and counsel for the group, said the ruling serves "warning to Gannett and other chains that the Newspaper Preservation Act does not
protect such blatant attempts to eliminate local
newspaper competition." He called the Honolulu case the most outrageous example to date of a shutdown-for-pay agreement in the newspaper industry.

The state of Hawaii charged that the threatened closure violates federal and state antitrust laws and that the two owners are conspiring to eliminate the Star-Bulletin
and allow Gannett to monopolize the daily newspaper market in Honolulu.

The judge noted that Liberty made no effort to sell the Star-Bulletin, in effect, allowing Gannett to buy out the newspaper. Closing the Star-Bulletin is counter to the public interest, resulting in the loss of editorial and news diversity and jobs, he said, adding that closure of the paper would make it "virtually impossible" for the Star-Bulletin to reopen.

Also joining the protest was Hawaii's congressional delegation, which called on the Justice Department to step up its investigation into the threatened closing of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin.