UPDATE: United Airlines Crashes--On Ancient Web Report

You probably read about the first report already but here is our man Mark Fitzgerald's update: Neither the South Florida Sun-Sentinel nor any other Tribune Co. posted the six-year-old Chicago Tribune story that triggered a panic over United Airlines stock, Tribune Co. said late Monday.  The story, from December 2002, reported on a bankruptcy filing that year by the troubled airliner. When it appeared on the Internet Monday, it sparked a sell-off in United stock, sending it spiraling down from more than $12 a share at its opening to a penny a share before Nasdaq halted trading about a half-hour into Monday's session. Trading in the stock later reopened, and its price returned to normal levels, ending the day off $1.38, or 11.92%, at $10.92.

Tribune said its preliminary investigation found the story was "apparently picked up by an investment advisory and  research firm and republished as though it was current."