OFF THE TICKER : McDonnell Douglas Becomes Paper Tiger

McDonnell Douglas has declared newspapers to be contraband, forbidding possession of newsprint inside its C-17 cargo jet plant in Long Beach, effective Monday.

“Security has been instructed to confiscate newspapers at the gate,” according to a memo Thursday from a Douglas business manager. “This effort is required to eliminate the clutter of newspaper trash that has affected housekeeping.”

McDonnell’s new policy may be a first in aerospace. “We usually check employees when they leave the plant, not when they come in,” said a spokesman for another defense contractor.