Paper Losses

by Bryan Gruley

Paper Losses is the story of the twenty-five-year struggle between the Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press, two proud, family-owned newspapers that became pawns in the hands of the largest newspaper chains of our time, Gannett and Knight-Ridder. It is a story of personal ambition and corporate greed, of Wall Street and the courts - but, above all, it is a compelling cautionary tale about American journalism over the last three decades. Between them, the News and the Free Press claimed more readers per capita than any newspaper in any other major American city, but by the late 1980s both were losing millions of dollars a year. With Wall Street looking over their shoulders, Gannett and knight-Ridder sought a peculiar form of government relief that would allow the papers to continue in artificial competition - while promising their parent companies tens of millions of dollars in profits. But the simple solution soon becomes a complicated test of wits and wills between two long-time rivals: Alvah Chapman, Jr., the steely, Bible-reading chairman of Knight-Ridder, and Al Neuharth, the flamboyant leader of Gannett and the founder of USA Today. A battle that begins in Detroit rages across the land, from union halls and corporate boardrooms to the offices of legal legend Clark Clifford and Attorney General Edwin Meese. In the end, what Neuharth and Chapman believed could be settled in a polite chat winds up on the docket of the United States Supreme Court. Bryan Gruley weaves this many-layered and complex story into a fast-paced narrative filled with unforgettable characters and bitter conflicts. As riveting as Barbarians at the Gate, as incisive in its insights into the media business as The Powers That Be, this consummately reported and passionately told tale is one that has repercussions for all of us.

448 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1993

About the author

Bryan Gruley's seventh novel, RIVER DEEP, tells the story of Catriona Dulaney, a mother accused of drowning her twin infant sons; Devyn Payne, the attorney who winds up in the middle of Dulaney's case; and Garth Klimmek, the detective investigating the boys' death. William Kent Krueger calls RIVER DEEP "a spellbinding tale of the chaos that engulfs a small Michigan town in the wake of a terrible tragedy. A master of suspense and brilliant architect of the unexpected, Gruley has given readers a topnotch thriller, complete with hockey mania and a glimpse of the best and worst faces of humanity."

Gruley is also the author of the Starvation Lake trilogy, including his Edgar-nominated debut, STARVATION LAKE, as well as two novels set in Bleake Harbor, Michigan. A lifelong journalist, he shared in The Wall Street Journal's Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He lives in northern Michigan with his wife, Pam.

Reviews

[Billie Rae Bates · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent chronicle and analysis.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up in Detroit, and was very interested in this story about the struggle between the Freep and News. Bryan did a very good job of keeping this story interesting. Great job.