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other television stations, in connection with the station’s broadcast of an allegedly indecent scene in an episode of the drama
“NYPD Blue.” Finding that there was “no significant distinction” between its Fox decision and the material that the FCC found
indecent in ABC, the Court held the forfeiture against KSAT invalid. The FCC has requested that the Second Circuit
reconsider its Fox decision. This matter may be taken up again by the Supreme Court in 2011.
Sponsorship Identification. The FCC’s rules require that broadcast stations make announcements in connection with
certain broadcasts for which they have received payment or other consideration. During 2006 and 2007, three PNS
stations responded to FCC complaints alleging that they, along with numerous other television stations and cable
networks, violated this requirement by broadcasting material in their newscasts without disclosing its source. The stations
responded to these complaints by asserting that they did not receive any consideration in exchange for the relevant
broadcasts and that the broadcasts did not violate FCC rules. Although the FCC took enforcement action in 2007
against a cable operator in connection with the same set of complaints, it has not taken any action with respect to the
affected PNS stations.
The FCC is conducting proceedings concerning various matters in addition to those described in this section. The outcome
of these FCC proceedings and other matters described in this section could adversely affect the profitability of PNS’s
television broadcasting operations.
Other Activities
Avenue100 Media Solutions Inc.
Avenue100 Media Solutions Inc. (“Avenue100”) is a digital marketing company headquartered in Woburn, MA, that
sources leads for academic institutions and recruiting organizations. Avenue100 operates as an independent subsidiary of
the Company.
Bowater Mersey Paper Company
The Company owns 49% of the common stock of Bowater Mersey Paper Company Limited (“Bowater Mersey”), the
majority interest in which is held by a subsidiary of AbitibiBowater, Inc. Bowater Mersey is engaged in the manufacture
and sale of newsprint and lumber, as well as the production of electricity in Nova Scotia, Canada.
Classified Ventures, LLC
The Company holds a 16.5% interest in Classified Ventures, LLC. Classified Ventures owns and operates several leading
businesses in the online classified advertising space.
Production and Raw Materials
The Washington Post and El Tiempo Latino are produced at the printing plant of WP Company in Fairfax County, VA.
The Herald, The Enterprise Newspapers, the SCBJ and La Raza del Noroeste are produced at The Daily Herald
Company’s plant in Everett, WA, while The Gazette Newspapers, Southern Maryland Newspapers,Express and the
Fairfax County Times are printed at the commercial printing facilities owned by Post–Newsweek Media, Inc. Nine military
papers, one free weekly and one paid weekly from Southern Maryland are printed at Chesapeake Publishing in Easton,
MD. Greater Washington Publishing’s periodicals are produced by independent contract printers.
In 2010, The Washington Post and El Tiempo Latino consumed about 80,000 tons* of newsprint in WP Company’s
printing plant in Fairfax County, VA. Such newsprint was purchased from a number of suppliers, including AbitibiBowater,
Inc., which supplied approximately 55% of the 2010 newsprint requirements for these newspapers.
The price of newsprint has historically been volatile. The RISI East Coast Newsprint Price Index, which provides monthly
single-price estimates based on marketplace surveys of both buyers and sellers, for 27.7 lb. newsprint (the kind of news-
print used by The Washington Post and most of the newspapers published by Post–Newsweek Media, Inc.), began
2010 at $526 per short ton and rose to $617 by August. From December 2009 through January 2010, The
Washington Post transitioned from 30-lb. newsprint to 27.7-lb newsprint. (Because of quantity discounts and other factors,
the RISI Index prices do not necessarily correspond with the prices actually paid for newsprint by the Company’s
subsidiaries.) The Company believes that adequate supplies of newsprint are available to The Washington Post and the
other newspapers published by the Company’s subsidiaries through contracts with various suppliers. More than 90% of
the newsprint consumed by WP Company’s printing plant includes recycled content. In 2010, the Company reduced its
ownership to 20% of the stock of Capitol Fiber Inc., which handles and sells to recycling industries old newspapers,
paper and other recyclable materials collected in Washington, DC, Maryland and northern Virginia.
* All references in this report to newsprint tonnage and prices refer to short tons (2,000 pounds) and not to metric tons (2,204.6 pounds), which are often used
in newsprint quotations.
2010 FORM 10-K 25