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As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 22, 2003

Registration No. 333- ________

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM S-8

REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

GANNETT CO., INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware
(State or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization)

16-0442930
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

     
7950 Jones Branch Drive, McLean, VA
(Address of registrant’s principal executive offices)		   22107
(Zip Code)

Gannett Co., Inc. Deferred Compensation Plan
(Full title of the Plan)

Thomas L. Chapple, Esq.
Senior Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel
Gannett Co., Inc.
7950 Jones Branch Drive
McLean, VA 22107
(Name and address of agent for service)

(703) 854-6000
(Telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

Copy to:
James E. Showen, Esq.
Hogan & Hartson L.L.P.
555 Thirteenth Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20004-1109
(202) 637-5600

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

                                 
    Amount   Proposed maximum   Proposed maximum   Amount of
Title of securities   to be   offering price   aggregate offering   registration
to be registered   Registered   per share   price   fee
 
 
 
 
Common Stock, par value $1.00 per share
     50,000 (1)   $ 76.99 (2)   $ 3,849,500     $ 312  
Deferred Compensation Obligations (3)
   $ 70,000,000       100 %   $ 70,000,000     $ 5663  

(1)   Represents shares of common stock issuable under the Gannett Co., Inc. Deferred Compensation Plan, as amended.
 
(2)   Estimated pursuant to Rule 457(h) and (c) solely for purposes of calculating the registration fee based on the average of the high and low sales prices of the common stock on July 16, 2003, as reported on The New York Stock Exchange.
 
(3)   Represent unsecured obligations of Gannett Co., Inc. to pay deferred compensation in the future in accordance with the terms of the Gannett Co., Inc. Deferred Compensation Plan, as amended.

 

 

PART I

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS

     The documents containing the information specified in Part I will be sent or given to employees participating in the Plan, as specified by Rule 428(b)(1) promulgated under the Securities Act. In accordance with the instructions to Part I of Form S-8, such documents will not be filed with the Commission either as part of this registration statement or as prospectuses or prospectus supplements pursuant to Rule 424 promulgated under the Securities Act. These documents and the documents incorporated by reference pursuant to Item 3 of Part II of this registration statement, taken together, constitute the prospectus as required by Section 10(a) of the Securities Act.

PART II

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

Item 3. Incorporation of Documents by Reference.

     We hereby incorporate by reference into this registration statement the following documents filed with the Commission:

  (1)   Our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 29, 2002, which was filed on March 18, 2003, including information incorporated by reference in the Form 10-K from our definitive proxy statement for our 2003 annual meeting of stockholders, which was filed on the same date;
 
  (2)   our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended March 30, 2003, which was filed on May 6, 2003; and
 
  (3)   the description of our common stock contained in our Registration Statement on Form 8-B, filed under Section 12 of the Exchange Act, and all amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description.

     In addition, all documents and reports subsequently filed by us pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”), prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment which indicates that all securities offered have been sold or which deregisters all securities remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in this registration statement and to be part hereof from the date of filing of such documents or reports. Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded for purposes of this registration statement to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such statement. Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this registration statement.

Item 4. Description of Securities.

     The Common Stock of the Company is registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act.

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     This registration statement covers, among other things, $70,000,000 of Deferred Compensation Obligations that are being registered under this Registration Statement to be offered to directors of the Company and officers and employees of the Company and employees of participating affiliates of the Company who reside in the United States and who are designated as eligible by the Company. The following is a summary of the Plan as it relates to the Deferred Compensation Obligations. The Obligations are general unsecured obligations of the Company to pay deferred compensation in the future in accordance with the terms of the Plan from the general assets of the Company, and rank pari passu with other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness of the Company outstanding from time to time.

     The amount of compensation deferred by each participant (“Participant”) in the Plan is determined in accordance with the Plan based upon elections by each Participant. Obligations in an amount equal to each Participant’s deferral account under the Plan (consisting of deferred salary and bonus amounts, gain from stock incentive rights exercises, deferred shares of common stock issued pursuant to stock option exercises and restricted stock grants, and any appreciation or depreciation in value thereon) will be payable in accordance with the Participant’s deferral election and the terms of the Plan in a lump-sum distribution or in installments. Hardship distributions are also permitted. The Company may also make voluntary contributions to the Plan on behalf of the Participants.

     Plan participants may choose among a number of investment funds — a Company stock fund, a money market fund, a bond fund, three domestic equity funds, a balanced fund, an S&P 500 index fund and an international fund. Dividends payable on the Company stock fund will be automatically reinvested in common stock of the Company. The investment funds may be changed or others added as determined by the Plan administrator, the Benefit Plans Committee. However, any directors’ compensation payable in restricted stock deferred under the Plan and any stock option exercise gain deferred under the Plan will be invested in the Company stock fund and may not be reallocated to any of the other investment funds. Amounts representing deferred restricted stock or deferred stock option exercise gain will be paid to the Participant in the form of Company common stock. Amounts deferred under the Plan that do not represent deferred directors’ compensation payable in restricted stock or deferred stock option exercise gain are payable in cash or kind in the Company’s discretion.

     The benefits payable under the Plan to an employee or director of the Company will not revert to the Company or be subject to the Company’s creditors prior to the Company’s insolvency or bankruptcy, nor, except pursuant to will or the laws of descent and distribution, will they be subject in any way to anticipation, alienation, sale, transfer, assignment, pledge, encumbrance, charge, garnishment, execution or levy of any kind by the Participant, the Participant’s beneficiary or the creditors of either, including such liability as may arise from the Participant’s bankruptcy.

     The Company reserves the right to amend or terminate the Plan at any time, except that no such amendment or termination shall, without the consent of a Participant, adversely affect such Participant’s interest in the Plan, i.e., the Participant’s benefit accrued to the effective date of the amendment or termination. The Obligations are not convertible into any other security of the Company except that amounts deferred under the Plan as to which the Participant has elected the Company stock fund may be distributed at the election of the Participant in shares of Company common stock. The right of any Participant to receive future payments under the provisions of the Plan shall be a contractual obligation of the Company, but shall be subject to the claims of the creditors of the Company in the event of the Company’s insolvency or bankruptcy. Plan assets may, in the Company’s discretion, be placed in a trust but will nevertheless continue to be subject to the claims of the Company’s creditors in the event of the Company’s insolvency or bankruptcy as provided in the trust agreement. In any event, the Plan is intended to be unfunded under Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended.

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Item 5. Interests of Named Experts and Counsel.

     Not applicable.

Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

     Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”) permits the Company to indemnify any director or officer of the Company against expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement, incurred in defense of any action (other than an action by or in the right of the Company) arising by reason of the fact that he or she is or was an officer or director of the Company if he or she acted in good faith and in a manner reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Company and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe his or her conduct was unlawful. Section 145 also permits the Company to indemnify any such officer or director against expenses incurred in an action by or in the right of the Company if he or she acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Company, except in respect of any matter as to which such person is adjudged to be liable to the Company. This statute requires indemnification of such officers and directors against expenses to the extent they may be successful in defending any such action. The statute permits purchase of liability insurance by the Company on behalf of officers and directors, and the Company has purchased such insurance.

     Section 17 of Article II of the Company’s By-Laws requires indemnification to the fullest extent permitted under Delaware law of any person who is or was a director or officer of the Company who is or was involved or threatened to be made so involved in any action, suit or proceeding, whether criminal, civil, administrative or investigative, by reason of the fact that such person is or was serving as a director, officer or employee of the Company or any predecessor of the Company or was serving at the request of the Company as a director, officer or employee of any other enterprise.

     Section 102(b)(7) of the DGCL permits a provision in the certificate of incorporation of each corporation organized thereunder, such as the Company, eliminating or limiting, with certain exceptions, the personal liability of a director to the corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director. Article NINTH of the Certificate of Incorporation of the Company eliminates the liability of directors to the extent permitted by Section 102(b)(7) of the DGCL.

     The foregoing statements are subject to the detailed provisions of Sections 145 and 102(b)(7) of the DGCL, Section 17 of Article II of such By-Laws and Article NINTH of such Certificate of Incorporation, as applicable.

Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed.

     Not applicable.

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Item 8. Exhibits.

     In accordance with the terms of Item 8(a) of Form S-8, no opinion of counsel as to the legality of the securities has been provided because the shares of Common Stock to be issued pursuant to the Plan will be issued from our treasury or purchased in the open market.

             
Exhibit            
No.   Exhibit        
 
       
10.1   Gannett Co., Inc. Deferred Compensation Plan, as amended.
     
23.1   Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, independent accountants.
     
24.1   Power of Attorney (included on signature page hereto).

Item 9. Undertakings.

(a)   The Registrant hereby undertakes:

          (1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:

               (i)     To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;

               (ii)     To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement;

               (iii)     To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement;

provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in periodic reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in this registration statement.

          (2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

          (3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities

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being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.

(b)       The Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) that is incorporated by reference in this registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

(c)       Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to existing provisions or arrangements whereby the Registrant may indemnify a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant against liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that, in the opinion of the Commission, such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than for the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

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SIGNATURES

     The Registrant. Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of McLean, Commonwealth of Virginia on this 22nd day of July, 2003.

         
    GANNETT CO., INC.
         
    By:   /s/ Thomas L. Chapple
       
        Thomas L. Chapple
        Senior Vice President, Chief Administrative
        Officer and General Counsel

POWER OF ATTORNEY

     KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Douglas H. McCorkindale and Thomas L. Chapple, and each of them, his or her true and lawful attorney-in-fact and agent, with power of substitution and resubstitution, for him or her and in his or her name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any amendments to this Registration Statement, and to file the same, with all exhibits and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and purposes as he or she might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents, or any of them, or their, his or her substitutes or substitute, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities indicated on this 22nd day of July, 2003:

     
Signature   Title
 
/s/ Douglas H. McCorkindale
Douglas H. McCorkindale		   Chairman, President, Chief Executive Officer and
Director
 
/s/ Gracia C. Martore
Gracia C. Martore		   Senior Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer (Principal Financial and Accounting
Officer)
 
/s/ H. Jesse Arnelle
H. Jesse Arnelle		   Director
 
/s/ Louis D. Boccardi
Louis D. Boccardi		   Director

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Signature   Title
 
 
/s/ Meredith A. Brokaw
Meredith A. Brokaw		   Director
 
/s/ James A. Johnson
James A. Johnson		   Director
 
/s/ Stephen P. Munn
Stephen P. Munn		   Director
 
/s/ Donna E. Shalala
Donna E. Shalala		   Director
 
/s/ Solomon D. Trujillo
Solomon D. Trujillo		   Director
 
/s/ Karen Hastie Williams
Karen Hastie Williams		   Director

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     The Plan.     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the trustees (or other persons who administer the employee benefit plan) have duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of McLean, Commonwealth of Virginia on this 22nd day of July, 2003

         
    GANNETT CO., INC. DEFERRED
COMPENSATION PLAN
         
    By:   /s/ Thomas L. Chapple
        Thomas L. Chapple
        Senior Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer
        and General Counsel

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EXHIBIT INDEX

       
Exhibit      
No.   Exhibit  
 
 
10.1   Gannett Co., Inc. Deferred Compensation Plan, as amended.  
       
23.1   Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, independent accountants.  
       
24.1   Power of Attorney (included on signature page hereto).  

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exv10w1
 

Exhibit 10.1

GANNETT CO., INC.

DEFERRED COMPENSATION PLAN

Restatement dated February 1, 2003
(Reflecting all amendments through May 6, 2003)

 

 

GANNETT CO., INC.

DEFERRED COMPENSATION PLAN

Restatement dated February 1, 2003

(Reflecting all amendments through May 6, 2003)

Table of Contents

             
        Page
       
1.0   BACKGROUND     1  
       1.1     Introduction     1  
       1.2     Certain Definitions     1  
2.0   EXPLANATION OF PLAN     2  
       2.1     Effective Date     2  
       2.2     Eligibility     2  
       2.3     Interest in the Plan; Deferred Compensation Account     2  
       2.4     Amount of Deferral     2  
       2.5     Time of Election of Deferral     2  
       2.6     Accounts and Investments     3  
       2.7     Participant’s Option to Reallocate Amounts     5  
       2.8     Reinvestment of Income     5  
       2.9     Payment of Deferred Compensation     5  
       2.10   Manner of Electing Deferral, Choosing Investments and Choosing Payment Options     8  
       2.11   Company Contributions     8  
       2.12   Deferrals of Stock Option Compensation     9  
       2.13   Deferrals of Restricted Stock by Directors     9  
3.0   ADMINISTRATION OF THE PLAN     10  
       3.1     Statement of Account     10  
       3.2     Assignability     10  
       3.3     Business Days     11  
       3.4     Administration     11  
       3.5     Amendment     11  
       3.6     Liability     12  
       3.7     Change in Control     12  
       3.8     Claims     16  

 

 

             
        Page
       
       3.9     Successors     18  
       3.10   Governing Law     18  
4.0   EMPLOYEES OF PARTICIPATING AFFILIATES     18  
       4.1     Eligibility of Employees of Affiliated Companies     18  
       4.2     Compensation from Participating Affiliates     18  
       4.3     Rights Subject to Creditors     18  
       4.4     Certain Distributions     19  
       4.5     Assignability     19  

 

 

GANNETT CO., INC.
DEFERRED COMPENSATION PLAN

Restatement dated February 1, 2003
(Reflecting all amendments through May 6, 2003)

1.0 BACKGROUND

1.1.   Introduction
 
    The Gannett Co., Inc. Deferred Compensation Plan (“Plan”) was adopted to provide the opportunity for directors of the Company who are not also employees (“Directors”) to defer to future years all or part of their fees and key employees to defer to future years all or part of their salary, bonus and/or shares of Gannett common stock issued pursuant to Stock Incentive Rights (“SIRs”) under the Gannett Co., Inc. 1978 Long-Term Incentive Plan (“Compensation”) payable by Gannett Co., Inc. (“Company”) as part of their retirement and financial planning. The term “Compensation” also shall include (1) ordinary income that arises upon the exercise of a stock option as more fully described in Section 2.12; and (2) such other forms of taxable income derived from the performance of services for the Company as may be designated by the Committee and which may be deferred pursuant to such special terms and conditions as the Committee may establish. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, in the case of a Director, the term “Compensation” shall exclude ordinary income that arises upon the exercise of a stock option but shall include shares of restricted stock (“Restricted Stock”) granted to a Director under the Gannett Co., Inc. 2001 Omnibus Incentive Compensation Plan or any successor thereto.
 
1.2.   Certain Definitions
 
    This Plan shall apply to compensation earned under the 1978 Long-Term Incentive Plan, the 2001 Omnibus Incentive Compensation Plan, and successor plans. The term “SIRs” used in this Plan also includes restricted stock awards issued under any such plan. The term “Committee” used in this Plan mean the Benefit Plans Committee. The term “Company” means the Company as defined above in Section 1.1 and any successor to its business and/or assets which assumes the Plan by operation of law or otherwise. The term “Board” means the Board of Directors of the Company.

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2.0 EXPLANATION OF PLAN

2.1   Effective Date
 
    The Plan was initially effective July 1, 1987. This amendment and restatement is effective February 1, 2003 with respect to individuals who become Participants after January 31, 2003, and with respect to those Participants who were Participants on January 31, 2003, and who have consented in the time and manner prescribed by the Committee to the changes made to this Plan pursuant to Board action on December 3, 2002, in accordance with Section 3.5 hereof. The Plan as in effect on January 31, 2003 shall continue to apply to all Participants on that date who do not so consent.
 
2.2   Eligibility
 
    The Plan is available to (a) Directors of the Company and (b) officers and employees of the Company who reside in the United States and who are designated as eligible by the Committee. No employee may be designated as eligible unless the employee belongs to “a select group of management or highly compensated employees” as defined in Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”).
 
2.3   Interest in the Plan; Deferred Compensation Account
 
    For each eligible person who elects to defer Compensation (“Participant”), one or more Deferred Compensation Accounts shall be established in accordance with Section 2.6(a). A Participant’s interest in the Plan shall be the Participant’s right to receive payments under the terms of the Plan. A Participant’s payments from the Plan shall be based upon the value attributable to the Participant’s Deferred Compensation Accounts.
 
2.4   Amount of Deferral

  (a)   A Participant may elect to defer receipt of all or a part of his or her Compensation provided that the minimum deferral for any type of Compensation to be deferred must be $5,000 for the year of deferral or, in the case of deferred SIRs, such minimum number of shares as the Committee may determine. In any year in which the percentage selected for deferral amounts to less than $5,000 of the type of Compensation being deferred or fewer than the designated number of SIRs, there shall be no deferral of that type of Compensation for that year.
 
  (b)   Notwithstanding the foregoing, Compensation shall not be deferred to the extent that the deferral would cause the Participant to have insufficient funds available to provide for all withholdings he or she has authorized to be made, or are required by law to be made, from his or her Compensation.

2.5   Time of Election of Deferral

  (a)   An election to defer Compensation must be made before the Compensation is earned. In the case of salary and Directors’ fees, the election to defer must be made prior to the year

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      in which the services to which the salary or Directors’ fees relate will be performed, or, if deferred during the year in which the services are performed, at least six months prior to the month in which the services are performed. In the case of bonuses and SIRs, the election to defer must be made prior to the year in which the bonuses or SIRs will be paid.
 
      Notwithstanding the foregoing, in his or her first year of eligibility an employee or Director may make a deferral election within 30 days of first becoming eligible. This initial deferral may relate only to Compensation attributable to the period following the deferral election.
 
  (b)   Effective May 6, 2003, a new compensation arrangement for Directors was approved, and accordingly, in the case of Director’s fees, whether payable in cash, Restricted Stock, or any other form permitted to be deferred under the Plan, deferral elections under the Plan shall relate to one-year terms (each, a “Term”) beginning with each annual meeting of shareholders of the Company (“Annual Meeting”) and ending immediately prior to the next Annual Meeting. Any deferral election made by a Director prior to 2003 relating to fees earned by the Director in that year shall apply to fees earned under the prior compensation arrangement during the partial year beginning on January 1, 2003 and ending immediately prior to the Annual Meeting in May of 2003. In addition, Directors shall be given the opportunity to make a new deferral election prior to the 2003 Annual Meeting, which, pursuant to this provision, shall relate to fees earned under the new compensation arrangement during the Term beginning with the 2003 Annual Meeting and ending immediately prior to the 2004 Annual Meeting. With respect to subsequent Terms, deferral elections shall be required to be made no later than thirty (30) days prior to the commencement of the Term. The foregoing election requirements shall be subject to the rule regarding first year of eligibility set forth in the second paragraph of Section 2.5(a) above.
 
  (c)   Once made, an election to defer for a particular time period is irrevocable.

2.6   Accounts and Investments

  (a)   Effective for deferrals on and after January 1, 1997, all Participant records, reports and elections after an initial election shall be maintained on the basis of Payment Commencement Dates (as defined in Section 2.9(b)), i.e., all amounts that have been elected to be paid in full, or to commence payment, in a designated calendar year shall be aggregated in a single Deferred Compensation Account for a Participant for purposes of subsequent recordkeeping and for elections that may be available with respect to the deferred amounts, such as investment elections and payment method elections. Deferrals prior to January 1, 1997, shall be accounted for in accordance with the accounts in effect on December 31, 1996.
 
  (b)   The amount of Compensation deferred will be credited to the Participant’s Deferred Compensation Account or Accounts as soon as practicable after the Compensation would have been paid had there been no election to defer.

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      The amounts credited in a Deferred Compensation Account will be deemed invested in the fund or funds designated by the Participant from among funds selected by the Committee, which may include the following or any combination of the following:

  (i) money market funds;
 
  (ii) bond funds;
 
  (iii) equity funds; and
 
  (iv) the Gannett stock fund.

      Although the Plan is not subject to section 404(c) of ERISA, the funds available to Participants under the Plan shall, at all times, constitute a broad range of investment alternatives that would meet the standards pertaining to the range of investments set forth in regulations promulgated by the Department of Labor under section 404(c) of ERISA, or any successor provision, as if that provision were applicable to the Plan. In the discretion of the Committee, funds may be added, deleted or substituted from time to time, subject to the preceding sentence.
 
      Information on the specific funds permitted under the Plan shall be made available by the Committee to the Participants. If the Committee adds, deletes or substitutes a particular fund, the Committee shall notify Participants in advance of the change and provide Participants with the opportunity to change their allocations among funds in connection with such addition, deletion or substitution.
 
      A Participant may allocate contributions to his or her Deferred Compensation Accounts among the available funds pursuant to such procedures and requirements as may be specified by the Committee from time to time. Participants shall have the opportunity to give investment directions with respect to their Accounts at least once in any three-month period.
 
  (c)   All deferrals under this Plan and the earnings credited to them are fully vested at all times.
 
  (d)   The right of any Participant to receive future payments under the provisions of the Plan shall be a contractual obligation of the Company but shall be subject to the claims of the creditors of the Company in the event of the Company’s insolvency or bankruptcy as provided in the trust agreement described below.
 
      Plan assets may, in the Company’s discretion, be placed in a trust (the “Rabbi Trust”) (which Rabbi Trust may be a sub-trust maintained as a separate account within a larger trust that is also used to pay benefits under other Company- sponsored unfunded nonqualified plans) but will nevertheless continue to be subject to the claims of the Company’s creditors in the event of the Company’s insolvency or bankruptcy as provided in the trust agreement. In any event, the Plan is intended to be unfunded under Title I of ERISA.

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2.7   Participant’s Option to Reallocate Amounts
 
    A Participant may elect to reallocate amounts in his or her Deferred Compensation Accounts among the available funds pursuant to such procedures and requirements as may be specified by the Committee from time to time consistent with the final sentence of Section 2.6(b).
 
2.8   Reinvestment of Income
 
    Income from a hypothetical fund investment in a Deferred Compensation Account shall be deemed to be reinvested in that fund as soon as practicable under the terms of that fund.
 
2.9   Payment of Deferred Compensation

  (a)   No withdrawal may be made from the Participant’s Deferred Compensation Accounts except as provided in this Section.
 
  (b)   At the time a deferral election is made, the Participant shall choose the date on which payment of the amount credited to the Deferred Compensation Account is to commence, which date shall be either April 1 or October 1 of the year of the Participant’s retirement, the year next following the Participant’s retirement, or any other year specified by the Participant that is after the year for which the Participant is making the deferral (“Payment Commencement Date”). In the case of Director Participants, the Payment Commencement Date shall be no later than the first day of the month following the Participant’s retirement from the Board. In the case of key employee Participants, the Payment Commencement Date shall be no later than October 1 of the year following the year during which the key employee reaches age 65.
 
      Notwithstanding the foregoing paragraph: (i) for all elections to defer occurring on or after November 1, 1991, (ii) in the event that the Committee adds or substitutes a particular fund or funds, or (iii) if a Participant elects to reallocate amounts in his or her Deferred Compensation Accounts among available funds, the Committee shall have the right to fix Payment Commencement Dates and/or the date or dates upon which the value attributable to a Deferred Compensation Account is to be determined or paid, or modify such previously elected dates (but in no event to a date earlier than the date originally elected by the Participant) in order to comply with the requirements of the added, substituted or available fund or funds, pursuant to such procedures and requirements as may be specified by the Committee from time to time.
 
  (c)   At the time the election to defer is made, the Participant may choose to receive payments either (i) in a lump sum, or (ii) if the Payment Commencement Date is during a year in which the Participant could have retired under a retirement plan of the Company, in up to ten annual installments. The method of paying a Deferred Compensation Account is the “Method of Payment.” The amount of any payment under the Plan shall be the value attributable to the Deferred Compensation Account on the last day of the month preceding the month of the payment date, divided by the number of payments remaining to be made, including the payment for which the amount is being determined.

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  (d)   In the event of a Participant’s death or disability before the Participant has received any payments from a Deferred Compensation Account, the value of the Account shall be paid to the Participant’s designated beneficiary, in the case of death, or to the Participant, in the case of disability, at such time and in such form of payment as is set forth on the applicable deferral form signed by the Participant, or as the Committee determines, in its sole discretion. In the event of the Participant’s death or disability after installment payments from a Deferred Compensation Account have commenced, the remaining balance of the Account shall be paid to the Participant or designated beneficiary, as applicable, over the installments remaining to be paid.
 
      Beneficiary designations shall be submitted on the form specified by the Company. If a Participant so chooses, a separate beneficiary designation may be made for each Deferred Compensation Account. The filing of a new beneficiary designation shall automatically revoke any previous beneficiary designation. In the event a beneficiary designation has not been made, or the beneficiary was not properly designated (in the sole discretion of the Company), has died or cannot be found, all payments after death shall be paid to the Participant’s estate. In case of disputes over the proper beneficiary, the Company reserves the right to make any or all payments to the Participant’s estate.
 
  (e)   A Participant may not change an initial Payment Commencement Date or Method of Payment for a Deferred Compensation Account after an election has been made except as provided in this subsection (e) as follows:

  (i) The Method of Payment elected by a Participant may be changed by the Participant’s written election to the Committee at any time up to 36 months prior to the earlier of the Payment Commencement Date or the Participant’s termination of employment, or, if the Participant has elected the year of, or the year next following, his or her retirement as the Payment Commencement Date, at any time no later than 6 months prior to the Participant’s retirement and prior to the calendar year in which the retirement occurs. Any change of an earlier election that is made within 36 months of the earlier of the Payment Commencement Date or the Participant’s termination, or, if the Participant has elected the year of, or the year next following, his or her retirement as the Payment Commencement Date, within 6 months of the Participant’s retirement or in the year in which the Participant’s retirement occurs, shall be disregarded by the Committee;
 
  (ii) The year initially elected by the Participant as the Payment Commencement Date may never be changed. However, at any time prior to the December 31 preceding such year, the Participant may change the exact date of payment in the payment year to the first day of any month in such year, provided that the Participant gives the Committee notice of such change at least 90 days before the date benefit payments are to commence and provided that if the Participant has elected installment payments the total amount to be paid to the Participant during the payment commencement year shall be the same as the total amount that would have been paid in the absence of such election with each monthly installment in the Payment Commencement Year adjusted accordingly.

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    Restrictions on changing Payment Commencement Dates and Methods of Payment shall not prevent the Participant from choosing a different Payment Commencement Date and/or Method of Payment for amounts to be deferred in subsequent years.

  (f)   Notwithstanding any Payment Commencement Date or Method of Payment selected by a Participant, if:

  (i) an employee Participant’s employment with the Company terminates other than (1) at or after early or normal retirement pursuant to a retirement plan of the Company, (2) by reason of the Participant’s death, or (3) by reason of the Participant’s total disability, or
 
  (ii) a director Participant’s directorship terminates for any reason other than (1) at or after reaching the prescribed mandatory retirement age from the Board, (2) by reason of such Participant’s death, or (3) by reason of such Participant’s total disability,
 
    the Committee, in its sole discretion, shall determine whether to distribute such Participant’s benefits in the form of five annual installment payments or as a lump sum. In either case, such payment shall begin as soon as administratively practicable following the Participant’s termination of employment.

  (g)   If, in the discretion of the Committee, the Participant has a need for funds due to an unforeseeable emergency, benefits may be paid prior to the Participant’s Payment Commencement Date. For this purpose, an unforeseeable emergency means an unanticipated emergency that is caused by an event beyond the control of the Participant or the Participant’s beneficiary and that would result in severe financial hardship if early withdrawal were not permitted. A payment based upon financial hardship cannot exceed the amount required to meet the immediate financial need created by the hardship. The Participant requesting a hardship payment must supply the Committee with a statement indicating the nature of the need that created the financial hardship, the fact that all other reasonably available resources are insufficient to meet the need, and any other information which the Committee decides is necessary to evaluate whether a financial hardship exists.
 
      A Participant with a financial need that fails to meet the unforeseeable emergency standard may elect to withdraw funds from the Participant’s Deferred Compensation Account prior to the date specified in the Participant’s election form subject to the following conditions: (1) premature withdrawals may be made only in a lump sum and only in an amount in excess of $10,000; (2) only one premature withdrawal may be made in a calendar year; (3) the Participant must suspend further deferrals for the remainder of the calendar year of the withdrawal; and (4) ten percent of the amount withdrawn shall be irrevocably forfeited to the Company.
 
  (h)   In the Company’s discretion, payments from the Plan may be made in cash or in the kind of property represented by the fund or funds selected by the Participant.

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  (i)   All contributions to the Plan and all payments from the Plan, whether made by the Company or the Trustee, shall be subject to all taxes required to be withheld under applicable laws and regulations of any governmental authorities.

2.10   Manner of Electing Deferral, Choosing Investments and Choosing Payment Options

  (a)   In order to make any elections or choices permitted hereunder, the Participant must give written notice to the Committee. A notice electing to defer Compensation shall specify:

  (i) the percentage and type of Compensation to be deferred;
 
  (ii) the funds chosen by the Participant;
 
  (iii) the Method of Payment to the Participant and the Method of Payment to the Participant’s estate in the event of the Participant’s death; and
 
  (iv) the Payment Commencement Date.

  (b)   An election by a Participant to defer Compensation shall apply only to Compensation deferred in the calendar year for which the election is effective. However, the designation of the Payment Commencement Date for this year will require that all deferrals from all years with the same Payment Commencement Date shall constitute a single Deferred Compensation Account and any other Plan elections such as investments, will apply to all assets held in this Deferred Compensation Account regardless of the year of deferral.
 
  (c)   The Committee will provide election forms to permit Participants to defer Compensation to be earned during that calendar year.
 
  (d)   The last form received by the Committee directing an allocation of amounts in a Deferred Compensation Account among the funds available shall govern until changed by the receipt by the Committee of a subsequent allocation form.

2.11   Company Contributions
 
    The Company may, in its sole discretion, make direct cash contributions to the accounts or subaccounts on behalf of any eligible Participant. The amount and timing of such contributions shall be subject to the approval of the Executive Compensation Committee of the Board and that Committee may impose vesting or other requirements on such accounts.
 
    Except as otherwise provided in this Section, accounts so established shall be subject to the same terms, conditions, and elections as are applicable to other accounts under the Plan. The Company shall initially specify the time and method of payment of amounts from such accounts and may change the time and method of payment at any time, no later than twelve months before payments are scheduled to begin. The Company may accelerate payments at any time. The Company’s decisions as to the time and method of payment need not fall within the provisions of the Plan applicable to other deferred compensation accounts, but shall be subject to the approval of the Executive Compensation Committee.

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2.12   Deferrals of Stock Option Compensation
 
    A Participant, by authorization of, or pursuant to procedures established by, the Committee, may elect to defer ordinary income imputed to the Participant upon the exercise of a stock option issued pursuant to any Company-sponsored stock option plan in accordance with guidelines established by the Committee and the general terms of this Plan except as such general terms are modified as follows:

      * an election to defer stock option income shall be effective only if made at least six months prior to the exercise date of the option and in the calendar year preceding the year of the exercise date. An election to defer stock option income shall constitute an amendment of the exercise date of the option so that the option may not be exercised prior to the date six months subsequent to the date of the notice of deferral. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a Participant may elect to defer income on the exercise of any option in calendar year 1999 provided that such election is made within 30 days after the adoption of this Section 2.12 and is effective only with respect to option exercises that are made at least four months after the date of a participant’s deferral election. An election to defer option income in 1999 shall constitute an amendment of the Stock Option Agreement related to such option so that the option may not be exercised prior to the date four months subsequent to the date of the notice of deferral.
 
      * a deferral election with respect to any shares received upon a stock option exercise shall require the deferral of all income with respect to that exercise.
 
      * an election to defer stock option income shall be deemed to constitute a direction by the Participant to have the Company defer to this Plan the number of shares (carried to the nearest one ten thousandth of a share) equal in value to the income that would otherwise have been realized by the Participant pursuant to his stock option exercise with the ultimate payment of such deferred shares to be made in accordance with the terms of this Plan. All such deferrals shall be invested in the Gannett stock fund during the entire deferral period and shall be paid out in kind on the Payment Commencement Date.
 
      * if payments of deferred shares are made in installments, each installment payment shall be rounded as necessary to provide payment only of a whole number of shares except that any fractional shares payable in the final installment shall be paid in cash.

2.13   Deferrals of Restricted Stock by Directors
 
    A Director who has elected to receive all or some of his or her fees for a Term, including, as applicable, the Director’s annual retainer, chair retainer, meeting fees or long-term award, in the form of Restricted Stock, may elect to defer such Restricted Stock in accordance with such guidelines and restrictions as may be established by the Committee and in accordance with the general terms of this Plan, subject to the following:

  (a)   An election to defer Restricted Stock must be made at the time the Director elects to receive all or some of his or her fees for the applicable Term, as described above, in the form of Restricted Stock, and in accordance with Section 2.5(b) of the Plan. If a Director

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      makes such a deferral election, the election must apply to all fees for the applicable Term that the Director has elected to receive in the form of Restricted Stock.
 
  (b)   An election to defer Restricted Stock shall constitute a direction by the Director to have the Company, in lieu of currently issuing shares of Restricted Stock, defer under this Plan an amount equal to the value of the Restricted Stock subject to the election as determined at the time of the award. The Restricted Stock deferred by a Director under this Plan for a Term shall be credited as units of stock to a separate sub-account within the Director’s Deferred Compensation Account. Notwithstanding Section 2.6(c) of the Plan, any vesting restrictions applicable to an award of Restricted Stock deferred under the Plan shall apply to the sub-account attributable to such award until such restrictions lapse in accordance with the original terms of the award.
 
  (c)   Restricted Stock deferred under the Plan shall be deemed invested in the Gannett stock fund during the entire deferral period and the Director shall not have the right to reallocate such deemed investment to any of the other investment options otherwise available under the Plan.
 
  (d)   At the time an election to defer Restricted Stock is made, the Director shall elect the time and form of payment of such deferral and earnings thereon in accordance with Section 2.9 of the Plan, provided, however, that payment of such amounts shall commence in the year the Director leaves the Board. Payments shall be made in shares of Company common stock.
 
  (e)   Any portion of a Director’s Deferred Compensation Account attributable to deferred Restricted Stock, whether or not vested, shall not be available for early withdrawal pursuant to Section 2.9(g) of the Plan.

3.0 ADMINISTRATION OF THE PLAN

3.1   Statement of Account
 
    Statements setting forth the values of the funds deemed to be held in a Participant’s Deferred Compensation Accounts will be sent to each Participant quarterly or more often as the Committee may elect. A Participant shall have two years from the date a statement has been sent to question the accuracy of the statement. If no objection is made to the statement, it shall be deemed to be accurate and thereafter binding on the Participant for all purposes.
 
3.2   Assignability
 
    The benefits payable under this Plan shall not revert to the Company or be subject to the Company’s creditors prior to the Company’s insolvency or bankruptcy, nor, except pursuant to will or the laws of descent and distribution, shall they be subject in any way to anticipation, alienation, sale, transfer, assignment, pledge, encumbrance, charge, garnishment, execution or levy of any kind by the Participant, the Participant’s beneficiary or the creditors of either, including such liability as may arise from the Participant’s bankruptcy.

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3.3   Business Days
 
    In the event any date specified herein falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, such date shall be deemed to refer to the next business day thereafter or such other date as may be determined by the Committee in the reasonable exercise of its discretion.
 
3.4   Administration
 
    This Plan shall be administered by the Committee. The Committee has sole discretion to interpret the Plan and to determine all questions arising in the administration, interpretation, and application of the Plan. The Committee’s powers include the power, in its sole discretion and consistent with the terms of the Plan, to determine who is eligible to participate in this Plan, to determine the eligibility for and the amount of benefits payable under the Plan, to determine when and how amounts are allocated to a Participant’s Deferred Compensation Account, to establish rules for determining when and how elections can be made, to adopt any rules relating to administering the Plan and to take any other action it deems appropriate to administer the Plan. The Committee may delegate its authority hereunder to one or more persons. Whenever the value of a Deferred Compensation Account is to be determined under this Plan as of a particular date, the Committee may determine such value using any method that is reasonable, in its discretion. Whenever payments are to be made under this Plan, such payments shall begin within a reasonable period of time, as determined by the Committee, and no interest shall be paid on such amounts for any reasonable delay in making the payments.
 
3.5   Amendment

  (a)   This Plan may at any time and from time to time be amended or terminated by the Board or the Compensation Committee of the Board. No amendment shall, without the consent of a Participant, adversely affect such Participant’s interest in the Plan, i.e., the Participant’s benefit accrued to the effective date of the amendment (hereinafter referred to as the “Protected Interest”), as determined by the Committee in its sole discretion.
 
  (b)   An amendment shall be considered to adversely affect a Participant’s interest in the Plan if it has the effect of:

  (i) reducing the Participant’s Protected Interest in his or Deferred Compensation Accounts;
 
  (ii) eliminating or restricting a Participant’s right to give investment directions with respect to the Participant’s Protected Interest in his or her Deferred Compensation Accounts under Sections 2.6 and 2.7 of the Plan, except that a change in the number or type of funds available shall not be considered an amendment of the Plan as long as the funds available to Participants following such change constitute a broad range of investment alternatives under the standards pertaining to the range of investments set forth in regulations promulgated by the Department of Labor under section 404(c) of ERISA or any successor provision;
 
  (iii) eliminating or restricting any timing or payment option available with respect to the Participant’s Protected Interest in his or her Deferred Compensation Accounts,

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    or the Participant’s right to make and change payment elections with respect to such Protected Interest, under Section 2.9, 2.10 or any other provision of the Plan;
 
  (iv) reducing or diminishing any of the change in control protections provided to the Participant under Section 3.7 or any other provision of the Plan; or
 
  (v) reducing or diminishing the rights of the Participant under this Section 3.5 with respect to any amendment or termination of the Plan.

  (c)   Notwithstanding any in the foregoing to the contrary, any amendment made for the purpose of protecting the favorable tax treatment of amounts deferred under the Plan following a change in applicable law, including for this purpose a change in statute, regulation or other agency guidance, shall not be considered to adversely affect a Participant’s interest in the Plan.
 
  (d)   If the Plan is terminated, compensation shall prospectively cease to be deferred as of the date of the termination. Each Participant will be paid the value of his or her Deferred Compensation Accounts, including earnings credited through the payment date based on the Participant’s investment allocations, at the time and in the manner provided for in Sections 2.9 and 2.10.

3.6   Liability

  (a)   Except in the case of willful misconduct, no Director or employee of the Company, or person acting as the independent fiduciary provided for in Section 3.7, shall be personally liable for any act done or omitted to be done by such person with respect to this Plan.
 
  (b)   The Company shall indemnify, to the fullest extent permitted by law, members of the Committee, persons acting as the independent fiduciary and Directors and employees of the Company, both past and present, to whom are or were delegated duties, responsibilities and authority with respect to the Plan, against any and all claims, losses, liabilities, fines, penalties and expenses (including, but not limited to, all legal fees relating thereto), reasonably incurred by or imposed upon such persons, arising out of any act or omission in connection with the operation and administration of the Plan, other than willful misconduct.

3.7   Change in Control

  (a)   Participation. If a change in control occurs, each eligible person who is participating in the Plan on the date of the change in control shall be entitled to continue participating in the Plan and to make additional deferrals under its terms following the change in control, until he or she ceases to meet the criteria for an “eligible person” specified in Section 2.2 hereof (without regard to designation by the Committee) or the Plan is terminated pursuant to Section 3.5. No new persons may be designated as eligible to participate in the Plan on or after a change in control.
 
  (b)   Legal Expense. If, with respect to any alleged failure by the Company to comply with any of the terms of this Plan subsequent to a change in control, other than any alleged failure relating to a matter within the control of the independent fiduciary and with respect to

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      which the Company is acting pursuant to a determination or direction of the independent fiduciary, a Participant or beneficiary hires legal counsel or institutes any negotiations or institutes or responds to legal action to assert or defend the validity of, enforce his rights under, obtain benefits promised under or recover damages for breach of the terms of this Plan, then, regardless of the outcome, the Company shall pay, as they are incurred, a Participant’s or beneficiary’s actual expenses for attorneys’ fees and disbursements, together with such additional payments, if any, as may be necessary so that the net after-tax payments to the Participant or beneficiary equal such fees and disbursements.
 
  (c)   Mandatory Contributions to Rabbi Trust. If a change in control occurs, the Company shall make mandatory contributions to a Rabbi Trust established pursuant to Section 2.6(d), to the extent required by the provisions of such Rabbi Trust.
 
  (d)   Powers of Independent Fiduciary. Following a change in control, the Plan shall be administered by the independent fiduciary. The independent fiduciary shall assume the following powers and responsibilities from the Committee and the Company:

  (i) The independent fiduciary shall assume all powers and responsibilities assigned to the Committee under Section 3.4 and all other provisions of the Plan, including, without limitation, the sole power and discretion to:

  (1)   determine all questions arising in the administration and interpretation of the Plan, including factual questions and questions of eligibility to participate and eligibility for benefits;
 
  (2)   adjudicate disputes and claims for benefits;
 
  (3)   adopt rules relating to the administration of the Plan;
 
  (4)   select the investment funds available to Participants under Section 2.6 of the Plan (subject to the requirement that, at all times, such funds constitute a broad range of investment alternatives under the standards pertaining to the range of investments set forth in regulations promulgated by the Department of Labor under section 404(c) of ERISA or any successor provision);
 
  (5)   determine the amount, timing and form of benefit payments;
 
  (6)   direct the Company and the trustee of the Rabbi Trust on matters relating to benefit payments;
 
  (7)   engage attorneys, accountants, actuaries and other professional advisors (whose fees shall be paid by the Company), to assist it in performing its responsibilities under the Plan; and
 
  (8)   delegate to one or more persons selected by it, including outside vendors, responsibility for fulfilling some or all of its responsibilities under the Plan.

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  (ii) The independent fiduciary, and not the Company or the Executive Compensation Committee, shall have the sole authority to determine the time and method of payment of amounts attributable to contributions made by the Company prior to the change in control under Section 2.11, provided that the independent fiduciary may not accelerate the payment of such amounts to a Participant without the Participant’s consent.
 
  (iii) The independent fiduciary shall have the sole power and discretion to (1) direct the investment of assets held in the Rabbi Trust, including the authority to appoint one or more investment managers to manage any such assets and (2) remove the trustee of the Rabbi Trust and appoint a successor trustee in accordance with the terms of the trust agreement.

  (e)   Review of Decisions.

  (i) Notwithstanding any provision in the Plan to the contrary, following a change of control, any act, determination or decision of the Company (including its Board or any committee of its Board) with regard to the administration, interpretation and application of the Plan must be reasonable, as viewed from the perspective of an unrelated party and with no deference paid to the actual act, determination or decision of the Company. Furthermore, following a change in control, any decision by the Company shall not be final and binding on a Participant. Instead, following a change in control, if a Participant disputes a decision of the Company relating to the Plan and pursues legal action, the court shall review the decision under a “de novo” standard of review.
 
  (ii) Following a change in control, any act, determination or decision of the independent fiduciary with regard to the administration, interpretation and application of the Plan shall be final, binding, and conclusive on all parties.

  (f)   Company’s Duty to Cooperate. Following a change in control, the Company shall cooperate with the independent fiduciary as may be necessary to enable the independent fiduciary to carry out its powers and responsibilities under the Plan and Rabbi Trust, including, without limitation, by promptly furnishing all information relating to Participants’ benefits as the independent fiduciary may reasonably request.
 
  (g)   Appointment of Independent Fiduciary. The independent fiduciary responsible for the administration of the Plan following a change in control shall be a committee composed of the individuals who constituted the Company’s Benefit Plans Committee immediately prior to the change in control and the Company’s chief executive officer immediately prior to the change in control.
 
      If, following a change in control, any individual serving on such committee resigns, dies or becomes disabled, the remaining members of the committee shall continue to serve as the committee without interruption. A successor member shall be required only if there are less than three remaining members on the committee. If a successor member is required, the successor shall be an individual appointed by the remaining member or

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      members of the committee who (i) is eligible to be paid benefits from the assets of the Rabbi Trust or the larger trust of which it is a part and (ii) agrees to serve on such committee.
 
      If at any time there are no remaining members on the committee (including any successor members appointed to the committee following the change in control), the Trustee shall promptly submit the appointment of the successor members to an arbiter, the costs of which shall be borne fully by the Company, to be decided in accordance with the American Arbitration Association Commercial Arbitration Rules then in effect. The arbiter shall appoint three successor members to the committee who each meet the criteria for membership set forth above. Following such appointments by the arbiter, such successor members shall appoint any future successor members to the committee to the extent required above (i.e., if, at any time, there are less than three remaining members on the committee) and subject to the criteria set forth above.
 
      If one or more successor members are required and there are no individuals remaining who satisfy the criteria for membership on the committee, the remaining committee members or, if none, the Trustee, shall promptly submit the appointment of the successor member or members to an arbiter, and the Company shall bear the costs of arbitration, as provided for in the preceding paragraph.
 
  (h)   Change in Control Definition. As used in this Plan, a “change in control” means the first to occur of the following:

  (i) The acquisition by any individual, entity or group (within the meaning of Section 13(d)(3) or 14(d)(2) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”)) (a “Person”) of beneficial ownership (within the meaning of Rule 13d-3 promulgated under the Exchange Act) of 20% or more of either (1) the then-outstanding shares of common stock of the Company (the “Outstanding Company Common Stock”) or (2) the combined voting power of the then-outstanding voting securities of the Company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors (the “Outstanding Company Voting Securities”); provided, however, that, for purposes of this Section, the following acquisitions shall not constitute a change in control: (A) any acquisition directly from the Company, (B) any acquisition by the Company, (C) any acquisition by any employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or maintained by the Company or one of its affiliates or (D) any acquisition pursuant to a transaction that complies with clauses (1), (2) and (3) of Section 3.7(h)(iii) below;
 
  (ii) Individuals who, as of January 1, 2003, constitute the Board (the “Incumbent Board”) cease for any reason to constitute at least a majority of the Board; provided, however, that any individual becoming a director subsequent to such date whose election or nomination for election by the Company’s stockholders was approved by a vote of at least a majority of the directors then comprising the Incumbent Board shall be considered as though such individual were a member of the Incumbent Board, but excluding, for this purpose, any such individual whose initial assumption of office occurs as a result of an actual or threatened election contest with respect to the election or removal of directors or other actual or

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    threatened solicitation of proxies or consents by or on behalf of a Person other than the Board;
 
  (iii) Consummation of a reorganization, merger, statutory share exchange or consolidation or similar corporate transaction involving the Company or any of its subsidiaries, a sale or other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company, or the acquisition of assets or stock of another entity by the Company or any of its subsidiaries (each, a “Business Combination”), in each case, unless, following such Business Combination, (1) all or substantially all of the individuals and entities that were the beneficial owners of the Outstanding Company Common Stock and the Outstanding Company Voting Securities immediately prior to such Business Combination beneficially own, directly or indirectly, more than 50% of the then-outstanding shares of common stock and the combined voting power of the then- outstanding voting securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, as the case may be, of the corporation or entity resulting from such Business Combination (including, without limitation, a corporation or entity that, as a result of such transaction, owns the Company or all or substantially all of the Company’s assets either directly or through one or more subsidiaries) in substantially the same proportions as their ownership immediately prior to such Business Combination of the Outstanding Company Common Stock and the Outstanding Company Voting Securities, as the case may be, (2) no Person (excluding any employee benefit plan (or related trust) of the Company or any corporation or entity resulting from such Business Combination) beneficially owns, directly or indirectly, 20% or more of, respectively, the then-outstanding shares of common stock of the corporation or entity resulting from such Business Combination or the combined voting power of the then-outstanding voting securities of such corporation or entity, except to the extent that such ownership existed prior to the Business Combination, and (3) at least a majority of the members of the board of directors of the corporation or entity resulting from such Business Combination were members of the Incumbent Board at the time of the execution of the initial agreement or of the action of the Board providing for such Business Combination; or
 
  (iv) Approval by the stockholders of the Company of a complete liquidation or dissolution of the Company.
 
3.8   Claims

  (a)   Claim Denials. The Committee shall maintain procedures with respect to the filing of claims for benefits under the Plan. Pursuant to such procedures, any Participant or beneficiary (hereinafter called “claimant”) whose claim for benefits under the Plan is denied shall receive written notice of such denial. The notice shall set forth:

  (i) the specific reasons for the denial of the claim;
 
  (ii) a reference to the specific provisions of the Plan on which the denial is based;

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  (3) any additional material or information necessary to perfect the claim and an explanation why such material or information is necessary; and
 
  (4) a description of the procedures for review of the denial of the claim and the time limits applicable to such procedures, including a statement of the claimant’s right to bring a civil action under ERISA following a denial on review.

      Such notice shall be furnished to the claimant within a reasonable period of time, but no later than 90 days after receipt of the claim by the Plan, unless the Committee determines that special circumstances require an extension of time for processing the claim. In no event shall such an extension exceed a period of 90 days from the end of the initial 90-day period. If such an extension is required, written notice thereof shall be furnished to the claimant before the end of the initial 90-day period, which shall indicate the special circumstances requiring an extension of time and the date by which the Committee expects to render a decision.
 
  (b)   Right to a Review of the Denial. Every claimant whose claim for benefits under the Plan is denied in whole or in part by the Committee shall have the right to request a review of the denial. Review shall be granted if it is requested in writing by the claimant no later than 60 days after the claimant receives written notice of the denial. The review shall be conducted by the Committee.
 
  (c)   Decision of the Committee on Appeal. At any hearing of the Committee to review the denial of a claim, the claimant, in person or by duly authorized representative, shall have reasonable notice, shall have an opportunity to be present and be heard, may submit written comments, documents, records and other information relating to the claim, and may review documents, records and other information relevant to the claim under the applicable standards under ERISA. The Committee shall render its decision as soon as practicable. Ordinarily decisions shall be rendered within 60 days following receipt of the request for review. If the need to hold a hearing or other special circumstances require additional processing time, the decision shall be rendered as soon as possible, but not later than 120 days following receipt of the request for review. If additional processing time is required, the Committee shall provide the claimant with written notice thereof, which shall indicate the special circumstances requiring the additional time and the date by which the Committee expects to render a decision. If the Committee denies the claim on review, it shall provide the claimant with written notice of its decision, which shall set forth (i) the specific reasons for the decision, (ii) reference to the specific provisions of the Plan on which the decision is based, (iii) a statement of the claimant’s right to reasonable access to, and copies of, all documents, records and other information relevant to the claim under the applicable standards under ERISA, and (iv) and a statement of the claimant’s right to bring a civil action under ERISA. The Committee’s decision shall be final and binding on the claimant, and the claimant’s heirs, assigns, administrator, executor, and any other person claiming through the claimant.
 
  (d)   Notwithstanding the foregoing, following a change in control, the independent fiduciary shall be responsible for deciding claims and appeals pursuant to the procedures described above. Any decision on a claim by the independent fiduciary shall be final and binding on the claimant, and the claimant’s heirs, assigns, administrator, executor, and any other person claiming through the claimant.

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3.9   Successors
 
    The Company will require any successor (whether direct or indirect, by purchase, merger, consolidation or otherwise) to all or substantially all of the business and/or assets of the Company to expressly assume and agree to perform the Plan in the same manner and to the same extent that the Company would be required to perform it if no such succession had taken place.
 
3.10   Governing Law
 
    To the extent not preempted by federal law, all questions pertaining to the construction, regulation, validity and effect of the provisions of the Plan shall be determined in accordance with the laws of the State of Illinois without regard to the conflict of laws principles thereof.

4.0 EMPLOYEES OF PARTICIPATING AFFILIATES

4.1   Eligibility of Employees of Affiliated Companies
 
    If the Committee allows it in any individual case, this Plan is also available to officers and employees of a corporation, partnership or other entity that is directly or indirectly controlled by the Company, provided that such officer or employee resides in the United States and is specifically designated as eligible by the Committee. An entity that is directly or indirectly controlled by the Company and employs an individual who is a Participant is hereinafter referred to as a “Participating Affiliate”.
 
4.2   Compensation from Participating Affiliates
 
    With respect to Participants who are employed by Participating Affiliates, “Compensation” as used in this Plan shall include all or part of their salary, bonus and/or shares of Gannett common stock issued pursuant to “SIRs”, ordinary income that arises upon the exercise of a stock option as more fully described in Section 2.12, and such other forms of taxable income derived from the performance of services for the Company or any Participating Affiliate (as defined in Section 4.1) as may be designated by the Committee and which may be deferred pursuant to such special terms and conditions as the Committee may establish.
 
4.3   Rights Subject to Creditors
 
    The right of any Participant who is employed by a Participating Affiliate to receive future payments under the provisions of the Plan shall be a contractual obligation of the Company and the Participating Affiliate at the time the Participant elects to defer compensation. Such a Participant’s right to receive future payments is subject to the claims of the creditors of the Company and the Participating Affiliates in the event of the Company’s or any Participating Affiliate’s insolvency or bankruptcy as provided in the trust agreement. Plan assets may, in the Committee’s discretion, be placed in a trust but will nevertheless continue to be subject to the claims of the Company’s and the Participating Affiliates’ creditors in the event of the Company’s or any Participating Affiliate’s insolvency or bankruptcy as provided in the trust agreement. In any event, the Plan is intended to be unfunded under Title I of ERISA. If the Committee so permits, Participating Affiliates may also contribute assets to the Rabbi Trust in connection with their Plan obligations under this Article. If, at the election of the Committee, such contributions are not separately accounted for through subtrusts, segregated accounts, or similar arrangements,

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    Plan assets held by the Rabbi Trust will be subject to the claims of the Participating Affiliates’ creditors in the event of any Participating Affiliate’s insolvency or bankruptcy as provided in the trust agreement.
 
4.4   Certain Distributions
 
    Notwithstanding any Payment Commencement Date or Method of Payment selected by a Participant employed by a Participating Affiliate, if such a Participant ceases to be employed by the Company or a Participating Affiliate other than (i) at or after early or normal retirement pursuant to a retirement plan of the Company, (ii) by reason of the Participant’s death, or (iii) by reason of the Participant’s total disability, the Committee, in its sole discretion, shall determine whether to distribute such Participant’s benefits in the form of five annual installment payments, or as a lump sum. In either case, such payment shall begin within a reasonable period of time following the termination of employment.
 
4.5   Assignability
 
    The benefits payable under this Plan to an employee of a Participating Affiliate shall not revert to the Company or Participating Affiliate or be subject to the Company’s or Participating Affiliate’s creditors prior to the Company’s or Participating Affiliate’s insolvency or bankruptcy, nor, except pursuant to will or the laws of descent and distribution, shall they be subject in any way to anticipation, alienation, sale, transfer, assignment, pledge, encumbrance, charge, garnishment, execution or levy of any kind by the Participant, the Participant’s beneficiary or the creditors of either, including such liability as may arise from the Participant’s bankruptcy.

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exv23w1
 

EXHIBIT 23.1

CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS

We hereby consent to the incorporation by reference in this Registration Statement on Form S-8 of our report dated February 6, 2003 relating to the financial statements and financial statement schedule of Gannett Co., Inc., which appears in Gannett Co., Inc.’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 29, 2002.

/s/ PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

McLean, VA
July 22, 2003