Financial Accounting

Financial Statement Restatement Paper

Financial Accounting

A.H. Belo Corporation (NYSE: AHC) is a distinguished newspaper publishing, local news and information company that owns and operates four daily newspapers (The Dallas Morning News, The Providence Journal, The Press-Enterprise, and the Denton Record-Chronicle) and a diverse group of websites.

During the company’s regular audit of its financial statement year-end December 31, 2009. It has come to their attention that a potential misapplication of generally accepted accounting principles was identified. The findings was found under the employee matters agreement in the selection of the accounting principle, which is used to account for its contractual obligation to Belo corp. The company decided it should follow the multiemployer pension plan accounting principle, rather than the multiemployer plan which indicated that the result of contractual obligation was incorrect. A. H. Belo agreed to reimburse Belo for 60 percent of Belo's future contributions to The G. B. Dealey Retirement Pension Plan.

Robert W. Decherd, chairman, president and Chief Executive Officer, said, "This change in pension accounting policy results from a thorough review of the Company's contractual obligation to its former parent. We have been very deliberative in addressing this matter since there are no directly comparable situations in accounting literature reviewed by the Company and its auditors." As a result, A. H. Belo has adopted the multiemployer pension plan provisions of ASC No. 715 "Compensation-Retirement Benefits" under which it recognizes as net pension cost the required contribution for each period and recognizes as a liability any reimbursement obligation due and unpaid. No contributions were required for the years ended December 31, 2009 or 2008. (News Release, April 7, 2010)

A.H. Belo will restate its consolidated financial statements to correct the error in the selection of the accounting principle. The...