Meet the Florida Billionaire Who Wants t WG娛樂城 o Be a Newspaper Baron
介紹想當報業大亨的佛州億萬富翁
The newspaper industry has decayed so much in recent years that even Warren Buffett — the world-famous investor whose annual meetings have included a newspaper toss — 最新娛樂城 has declared the business “toast.”
報業近年來嚴重衰落，甚至是年 鉅城娛樂城 會上包括扔報紙活動的世界知名投資人巴菲特都宣告，這一行「完了」。
But another billionai 娛樂城評價 re is placing a counterintuitive bet that local newspapers aren’t dead yet. David Hoffmann, a Florida investor worth $1.6 billion, who has purchased more than 5% of Lee Enterprises, one of America’s largest newspaper companies, wants to buy up a controlling stake.
但另一位億萬富翁正在下一個反直覺的賭注，即地方報紙還沒死。身價16億美元的佛州投資人霍夫曼，已收購美國最大報紙公司之一的李氏企業超過5%股份，想要買下控制股權。
Hoffmann, 72, acknowledged that investing in local newspapers in 2024 is a somewhat quixotic proposition. But he 娛樂城評價 said he believes print newspapers are “a key part of the American fabric.” He also thinks Lee Enterprises is undervalued by the stock market and a smart financial bet.
72歲的霍夫曼承認，在2024年投資地方報紙是個有點唐吉訶德式提案。但他說，他相信印刷報紙是「美國結構的一個重要部分」。他也認為，李氏企業被股市低估，這是個精明的財務賭注。
“These local newspapers are really important to these communities,” Hoffmann said.
霍夫曼說，「這些地方報紙對這些社區非常重要」。
Hoffmann is a relative newcomer to the struggling newspaper industry. The founder of DHR Global, an executive search firm, Hoffmann parlayed his early success into a sprawling hodgepodge of companies including Mitch’s Cookies, Oberweis Dairy, the Florida Everblades minor league hockey team and Linstol, a manufacturer of in-flight airline amenities like blankets and headsets. His family of companies, based in Naples, Florida, also includes a media group that has accumulated a handful of small newspapers, including the Mackinac Island Town Crier on Mackinac Island in Michigan and Northern California’s Napa Valley Register, a former Lee newspaper.
對於艱難的報業，霍夫曼是個相對新手。身為高階人才搜尋公司DHR Global創辦人，霍夫曼將自己的早期成功增值為一個龐大的公司大雜燴，包括米契餅乾、奧伯維斯乳品、職業冰球小聯盟冰刀隊，以及林斯托公司，這是一家毛毯與耳機等航空公司機上配備製造商。他的公司集團總部位於佛州那不勒斯，也包含一家媒體集團，已積聚一些小型報紙，包括密西根州麥基諾島的麥基諾島鎮傳報，以及前李氏報紙、北卡羅來納州的納帕谷登記報。
According to a securities filing last week, a trust connected to Hoffmann’s family paid roughly $4 million for a 5.2% stake in Lee Enterprises, the fourth-largest newspaper chain in the country. The company, based in Davenport, Iowa, owns roughly 75 newspapers in 26 states, including the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and The Buffalo News — which it bought from Buffett’s BH Media Group in 2020.
根據上周的一項證券申報，一間跟霍夫曼家族有關的信託基金，支付大約400萬美元，買下全國第4大報紙連鎖集團李氏企業5.2%股份。這家公司總部位於愛荷華州戴文波特，在26個州擁有大約75家報紙，包括聖路易郵訊報與水牛城新聞報，後者是該公司2020年從巴菲特的BH傳媒集團買下。
But Hoffmann wants to go bigger. He said his motivation was simple: He wants to preserve community news — including more local sports coverage.
但霍夫曼想要做得更大。他說，他的動機很簡單：他想要保住社區新聞，包括更多地方體育報導。
Lee Enterprises, which has nearly $500 million in debt, lost roughly $3.7 million last quarter. The company has cut costs in recent years, including furloughing and laying off journalists, to offset declines in advertising and subscription revenue.
李氏企業債務將近5億美元，上一季虧損約370萬美元。該公司近年已削減成本，包括放無薪假和解雇記者，以抵消廣告和訂閱收入下滑。
文／Benjamin Mullin 譯／周辰陽
說文解字看新聞
【張佑生】
要不是貝佐斯不准華盛頓郵報以社論支持賀錦麗參選美國總統，恐怕沒有太多人會注意到報紙的（不）重要性。導言用decay形容報業近年來的衰敗，這個字指自然腐敗，也形容每況愈下：Popular cinema seems to have decayed.俚語be toast指倒大楣、完蛋：If you challenge her, you’re toast.或His career is toast.
儘管華爾街股神巴菲特宣判報業「死刑」，仍有人不信邪。原意「男爵」的baron在新聞英文指某個產業的大亨，同義字包括tycoon或mogul：movie/media/oil mogul. 相較之下，baron屬於老派用法，紐時選用此字搭配報紙，有其用意，也帶貴氣。
Counterintuitive和quixotic形容買下報紙準備大顯身手是不按牌理出牌、充滿希望但不切實際的舉動：This ended in a quixotic campaign for statehood.縱觀中東現狀，是否在預告巴勒斯坦建國的前景呢？
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