Edgar to Succeed Berger as McClatchy Corporate Controller

Edgar to Succeed Berger as McClatchy Corporate Controller

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Dec. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Corporate Controller Robert Berger has announced his retirement next year after 20 years in that post and 26 years with The McClatchy Company (NYSE:MNI). Lawrence (Larry) Edgar, assistant controller in the corporate Finance Department, will be promoted to controller upon Berger's retirement in August 2005.

Berger, 58, served at McClatchy during a time of tremendous growth that saw the company expand from its original holdings in California into Alaska, the Northwest, the Carolinas and Minneapolis. McClatchy was a privately held company when Berger was named controller in 1985. Today, it's a public company with revenues just under $1.1 billion and 10,000 employees.

Berger and his wife, Janine, will remain in Sacramento where the couple has lived since Berger joined McClatchy as an auditor in 1979 and where the couple raised two children, Brian Berger and Jennifer Berger Lane. Berger has four grandsons who also live in the Sacramento area.

"I congratulate Bob on his retirement. He has dedicated his career to helping The McClatchy Company become the company that it is today," said Pat Talamantes, vice president, finance, and chief financial officer at McClatchy. "Bob has worked tirelessly to ensure that our financial information has the utmost degree of accuracy and integrity. I wish him well in his retirement."

Prior to McClatchy, Berger worked for Touche Ross, an accounting firm, and a chemical manufacturing company. Berger received his bachelor's degree in accounting from California State University, Fresno.

Edgar, 33, first joined McClatchy's Finance Department in 1998 as an accounting supervisor after working for four years as a senior accountant with Gilbert Accountancy Corp. in Sacramento. He became an accounting manager in 1999 and was promoted to assistant controller in 2000.

"I'm excited to see Larry become corporate controller of McClatchy," said Talamantes. "Larry has proven himself to be adept at working well with our newspapers as well as handling corporate matters, including Securities and Exchange Commission work. I look forward to a long and rewarding working relationship."

Edgar lives with his wife, Stacey, and their 10-month-old son, Nicholas, in Elk Grove. Edgar holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from California State University, Sacramento, and is a certified public accountant.

The McClatchy Company, headquartered in Sacramento, California, is a leading newspaper and Internet publisher. It publishes 12 daily and 18 non- daily newspapers located in western coastal states, North and South Carolina, and the Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul. McClatchy has daily circulation of 1.4 million and Sunday circulation of 1.8 million. McClatchy's newspapers include, among others, the Star Tribune in Minneapolis, The Sacramento Bee, The Fresno Bee and The Modesto Bee in California, The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC), The News Tribune (Tacoma, WA) and the Anchorage Daily News.

McClatchy also operates leading local websites in each of its daily newspaper markets, offering users information, comprehensive news, advertising, e-commerce and other services, and owns and operates Nando Media, an interactive operation that provides newspapers with content, publishing tools and software development. McClatchy is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol MNI.


Source: The McClatchy Company

CONTACT: Elaine Lintecum, Treasurer of The McClatchy Company,
+1-916-321-1846, or elintecum@mcclatchy.com

Web site: http://www.mcclatchy.com/


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