Tribune CEO Randy Michaels could be out of a job tomorrow

The firestorm surrounding Tribune Co. CEO Randy Michaels in recent days is what happens when your days are numbered and your supposed friends and colleagues become sources for a piece like this.

Whatever one thinks of the New York Times story that portrayed the Tribune executive suite as a low-rent frat house full of aging radio execs who think locker room chat is a form of creative enterprise, it should come as no surprise that Michaels would soon be shown the door. After all, little of the information in the story was new - its just that no insiders had felt the need to help the Times connect the dots. Until now.

And so the other shoe drops:

The board of directors of the Tribune Company is expected to ask Tuesday for the resignation of Randy Michaels, the controversial chief executive of the company, according to a person directly involved in the matter.

The individual, who spoke on the condition of not being identified, said the board had lost confidence in the ability of Mr. Michaels to lead the troubled company. 

Mr. Michael’s resignation would follow by days the exit of another top executive at the media company, Lee Abrams, Tribune’s chief innovation officer, who resigned on Friday after sending a sexually explicit memo to the entire company. 

All of this comes ahead of Tribune's expected emergence from nearly two years of often contentious bankruptcy proceedings. Michaels, who was brought in by company owner Sam Zell, would likely be out of a job even if it weren't for the bad press; especially since Zell himself will probably lose his stake in the company as part of the bankruptcy deal. The bad press about Michaels just adds momentum.