Media General said its board formally notified...

Media General said its board formally notified Beverly Hills entrepreneur Burt Sugarman by letter that its controlling shareholders, the Bryan family, had rejected his $61.50-a-share merger proposal. Noting that Chairman D. Tennant Bryant and Vice Chairman J. Stewart Bryan said they would vote against the $1.8-million proposal if it were submitted to a shareholder vote, the Richmond, Va.-based newspaper and television firm told Sugarman: “Under the circumstances, no further action on the part of the board is appropriate.” The Bryans said Monday that they were not interested in selling the family’s 71% interest “at any price.” Sugarman has proposed to buy all Media General stock and merge it with Barris Industries and Giant Group, which he controls.