How bad is the business outlook for Tribune Co.'s newspapers? Bad enough for the company to take a $3.8 billion goodwill write-down on the value of its newspaper assets, which include the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun and Orlando Sentinel.

In all, Tribune is reporting a $4.5 billion loss in its second-quarter, according to figures released Wednesday. The red ink was fueled by the newspaper write-down, costs associated with its sale of the Long Island-based newspaper Newsday to Cablevision, and an 11% decline in revenues in its publishing division, or an $83 million drop from the same period last year to $701 million.

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Tribune's TV stations fared better than the newspapers, but the overall market woes were a drag on stations as well. Revenue at its 23 stations was up 2% from the same period in 2007 to $292 million. However, TV operating expenses climbed 7%, which cut into the stations' operating cash flow. In that important measure, operating cash flow dropped 8% to $92 million.