Tribune's CEO is not ruling out much of anything for the company, now in bankruptcy protection. When asked by Bloomberg Television whether that includes asset sales, Zell said Tribune is looking at all options. Translation: Everything, including the LAT, is on the table. Whether anyone is interested is another matter. "I don't think there's a long list of people who want to buy newspaper companies today," he said.

We're looking at every option at the Tribune Co. It's very obvious that the newspaper model in its current form does not work and the sooner we all acknowledge that the better. Whether it be home delivery whether it be giving content away for free -- these are critical issues.

Asked if the Tribune purchase was a mistake, Zell put it this way: "If you bought something and now it's worth a great deal less, you made a mistake. And I'm more than willing to say that I made a mistake. I was too optimistic in terms of the newspaper's ability to preserve its position."