Sam Zell at a press conference in Chicago on Thursday, Dec. 20, 2007. Tribune Co. completed an $8.2 billion buyout led by investor Sam Zell, ending the newspaper publisher's 24 years as a publicly traded company. Zell, who becomes chairman and chief executive officer, is investing $315 million by buying a note and a warrant to purchase as much as 40 percent of Tribune's common stock, the company said. The Tribune Tower and Tribune delivery trucks parked at the Tribune’s printing plant, the Freedom Center, are seen below.