Tribune, the bankrupt newspaper group, has agreed to give a group of bondholders access to documents and e-mails related to its 2007 buy-out, paving the way for debtholders to investigate their claim that the transaction precipitated the company’s failure.

Also on Thursday, a federal bankruptcy judge approved Tribune’s participation in the sale of the Chicago Cubs. The Major League Baseball commission is in the process of reviewing the transaction. Tribune reached a deal in August to sell a 95 per cent stake in the Cubs for $845m.