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Newspaper Guild-CWA Applauds Federal Court Ruling That Bars Shutdown of Honolulu's Star-Bulletin
The Newspaper Guild-CWA hailed the federal court ruling which blocks the shutdown of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, calling the decision a major victory for the Honolulu community and for responsible journalism.
In a lawsuit brought by the state attorney general, U.S. District Judge Alan Kay issued a preliminary injunction that prohibits Gannett Corp. and Liberty Newspapers from taking steps to close or undermine the Star-Bulletin, one of Honolulu's two daily newspapers. Gannett, which owns the Honolulu Advertiser, wanted to pay Liberty some $26 million in exchange for closing the Star-Bulletin and ending the Joint Operating Agreement that had been in place since 1962.
This is the first time a federal judge has blocked a newspaper from buying off its Joint Operating Agreement partner.
TNG-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.
The preliminary injunction was granted in response to a filing by Hawaii Attorney General Earl Anzai; a citizens' group in Honolulu, Save Our Star-Bulletin, also sought action against the planned shutdown, and TNG-CWA is supporting these efforts.
Donald Baker, counsel for the group, said: "This is a cricially important first step. It also gives the U.S. Department of Justice, which is investigating the transaction, time to get into the game before it's over- and thus to serve warning to Gannett and other chains that the Newspaper Preservation Act does not protect such blatant attempts to eliminate local newspaper competition."
Hawaii Gov. Ben Cayetano called the deal between the newspapers a "perversion" of the 1970 Newspaper Preservation Act, which provided newspapers with some anti-trust exemptions in order to maintain the diversity and competitiveness of news, editorial and advertising voice in communities. The state holds that the closure violates federal and state anti-trust laws and charges that the two owners are conspiring to eliminate the Star-Bulletin and allow Gannett 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 the closure of the paper would make it "virtually impossible" for the Star-Bulletin to reopen.
Deputy Attorney General Rodney Kimura stressed that "you just cannot pay a competitor to get out of town. We think that's wrong, especially when it deals with something as important and vital a public forum as a newspaper."
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In a lawsuit brought by the state attorney general, U.S. District Judge Alan Kay issued a preliminary injunction that prohibits Gannett Corp. and Liberty Newspapers from taking steps to close or undermine the Star-Bulletin, one of Honolulu's two daily newspapers. Gannett, which owns the Honolulu Advertiser, wanted to pay Liberty some $26 million in exchange for closing the Star-Bulletin and ending the Joint Operating Agreement that had been in place since 1962.
This is the first time a federal judge has blocked a newspaper from buying off its Joint Operating Agreement partner.
TNG-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.
The preliminary injunction was granted in response to a filing by Hawaii Attorney General Earl Anzai; a citizens' group in Honolulu, Save Our Star-Bulletin, also sought action against the planned shutdown, and TNG-CWA is supporting these efforts.
Donald Baker, counsel for the group, said: "This is a cricially important first step. It also gives the U.S. Department of Justice, which is investigating the transaction, time to get into the game before it's over- and thus to serve warning to Gannett and other chains that the Newspaper Preservation Act does not protect such blatant attempts to eliminate local newspaper competition."
Hawaii Gov. Ben Cayetano called the deal between the newspapers a "perversion" of the 1970 Newspaper Preservation Act, which provided newspapers with some anti-trust exemptions in order to maintain the diversity and competitiveness of news, editorial and advertising voice in communities. The state holds that the closure violates federal and state anti-trust laws and charges that the two owners are conspiring to eliminate the Star-Bulletin and allow Gannett 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 the closure of the paper would make it "virtually impossible" for the Star-Bulletin to reopen.
Deputy Attorney General Rodney Kimura stressed that "you just cannot pay a competitor to get out of town. We think that's wrong, especially when it deals with something as important and vital a public forum as a newspaper."
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