Par Ridder

Par Ridder, who was removed from his job as publisher of the Minneapolis Star Tribune by a judge in a legal dispute with MediaNews Group, today was named branch president of Clear Channel Outdoor’s Chicago Office.

Ridder, the son of former Knight Ridder CEO Tony Ridder of Woodside, was called a “proven manager and strategic thinker” in a CC news release.

The release says that Ridder, 41, served as publisher of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, St Paul Pioneer Press and San Luis Obispo Tribune.

No mention was made of the 2007 lawsuit that MediaNews Group’s Dean Singleton filed after Par quit MNG’s St. Paul Pioneer Press (a paper owned for generations by Par’s family) to jump to the rival Star Tribune.

The suit accused Par of taking a laptop full of confidential data when he quit. Par admitted to taking the laptop, but the heart of the case was whether he violated his non-compete agreement with MNG. The dispute went to trial and a Minnesota judge removed Par from his job as publisher in September 2007. The Star Tribune settled with MNG for $5 million and paid another $11 million in legal fees.