Lorenzo Won’t Censor Unflattering ‘Fortune’

Texas Air Chairman Frank Lorenzo on Monday ordered Eastern Airlines to return copies of Fortune magazine containing an unflattering profile of him back onto its planes.

Eastern had ordered the Feb. 27 issue of the biweekly business magazine pulled from its fleet of more than 200 planes because it contains a cover story calling Lorenzo, chairman of Eastern’s parent company, one of “America’s Toughest Bosses.”

“Lorenzo personally instructed that Fortune be put back on the planes,” Eastern spokesman Robin Matell said. “He knew nothing about the original decision to remove it.

“He said we had no business taking it off in the first place,” Matell said. “Lorenzo is saying we’re not in the business of censorship.”

The order pulling the magazine came from middle managers in Eastern’s aircraft services support department, Matell said.

In a directive to aircraft service managers around the country last week Eastern said: “It’s imperative that the current issue of Fortune magazine be removed immediately from all Eastern aircraft. Dispose of all copies locally. Have a member of management audit all aircraft to ensure compliance.”

Lorenzo’s picture appears on the issue’s cover. A caption says Lorenzo “likes managers to work 14 hours a day, six days a week.” The story, part of a article on “tough” corporate heads, called Lorenzo a loose cannon, union-buster and showboater.