Chicago Tribune would cut standalone biz section under redesign

David Roeder of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that competitor Chicago Tribune would drop its standalone business section under a redesign proposal posted at the newspaper earlier this week.

Roeder writes, “Prototypes of new pages and sections were posted Thursday in Tribune Tower for review by employees. Sources said the space devoted to news will be significantly reduced, with the paper’s front section including national and international news, the local and business reports and the editorial page. Currently, the Tribune publishes freestanding sections for metro and business news.

“The redesigned paper would have a three-section format, Tribune employees said. They said the other sections would be for features, with a working title of Live, and Sports.

“Sam Zell, chairman of Tribune Co., has ordered cost cuts at all its newspapers to combat steep declines in advertising. Properties such as the Orlando Sentinel and the Baltimore Sun have completed the process, with the flagship Tribune targeting the end of September for the debut of its design.”

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