Media General’s dual classes of stock, in...

Media General’s dual classes of stock, in which the Bryan family controls about two-thirds of the newspaper publishing company’s board through the relatively small Class B stock, has been attacked as “grossly unfair” in a class action filed lawsuit in federal court in New York by two Class A shareholders from New York and Florida. On Feb. 29, Hollywood producer Burt Sugarman made a $1.8-billion offer to merge with Richmond, Va.-based Media General. The suit accused the firm’s directors of violating their legal duty by refusing to consider the offer after the family of Chairman D. Tennant Bryan said it would not sell its Class B stock.