THE McCLATCHY COMPANY AND STAR TRIBUNE RESPOND TO CIRCULATION COMPLAINT

Minneapolis/St. Paul - (June 28, 2005) - SACRAMENTO, Calif., - The McClatchy Company (NYSE - MNI) today forcefully denied allegations that circulation reports had been inflated at the company’s Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis, MN. The charges were raised in a lawsuit filed June 28.

Elaine Lintecum, McClatchy’s treasurer, said, “This suit is without merit. We stand by our circulation practices at the Star Tribune and at all of our newspapers. Our internal reviews as well as audits by the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) have consistently verified that our reporting practices are sound.”

“We have complete confidence in our circulation numbers and we believe our reported circulation will stand up to examination. We’re looking forward to vigorously and successfully demonstrating that,” said Star Tribune Publisher and President Keith Moyer. “We’ve had regular ABC audits throughout the period of this complaint, and none has ever required any adjustment to our reported circulation.”

The McClatchy Company, headquartered in Sacramento, California, is a leading newspaper and internet publisher. It publishes 12 daily and 17 non-daily newspapers located in western coastal states, North and South Carolina, and the Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul. McClatchy has daily circulation of 1.4 million and Sunday circulation of 1.8 million. McClatchy’s newspapers include, among others, the Star Tribune in Minneapolis, The Sacramento Bee, The Fresno Bee and The Modesto Bee in California, The News&Observer (Raleigh, NC), The News Tribune (Tacoma, WA) and the Anchorage Daily News.

McClatchy also operates leading local websites in each of its daily newspaper markets, offering readers information, comprehensive news, advertising, e-commerce and other services, and owns and operates McClatchy Interactive, an interactive operation that provides websites with content, publishing tools and software development. McClatchy is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol MNI.

Contact: Elaine Lintecum
Treasurer
916-321-1846
elintecum@mcclatchy.com

Contact Ben Taylor
Phone: (612) 673-7457
Email: btaylor@startribune.com