Chapter 214： New York Times

After Camilo Hagen heard William Chen's question, he hesitated and said:

"At present, its market value is not high, but if you want to fully grasp this newspaper company, it is not so easy..."

Through his introduction, William Chen also got a general understanding of the inside story.

Founded by Henry Raymond and George Jones on September 18, 1851, the original name was changed to September 14, 1857.

After the end of the First World War, it has become the largest newspaper in the United States, and together with the British one, it is called "the newspaper of the newspapers".

Currently in the hands of the Salzberg family, the current leader is Arthur Salzberg Jr.

Under the impact of the Internet, the entire newspaper industry is in recession. According to the data provided by the American Newspaper Association, American print media advertising fell by 55% from 2007 to the beginning of 2010, and the editorial department shrunk by 1/3.

Also facing the dilemma of declining subscriptions and advertising, in this age of social media and mobile Internet in full swing, the newspaper's classically serious "Gray Lady" style seems to be out of liking.

In addition, the subprime mortgage crisis was destructive to the overall economy, so in order to get out of the predicament, the group also had to start selling many of their assets at low prices.

But even so, if you want to completely acquire the group, you still need to face a major difficulty, that is, although it is a listed company, and the current stock price is not high, the market value is only less than 1.5 billion US dollars, but the group is implemented with a dual shareholding structure.

As the circulating Class A shares, although they occupy 90% of the total share capital, the corresponding voting rights are only 30%; 70% of the voting rights are held in the Class B shares, which occupy 10% of the total share capital. The Salzberg family holds 90% of Class B shares, which makes them firmly in control of the group.

Even if Chen William bought all 90% of the Class A shares in circulation, he would have only 30% of the voting rights in the board of directors at most, and he would still not be able to shake the control of the Salzberg family. % of dividends...

So if you want to buy it completely, you must first get the consent of the Salzberg family, but they have always claimed that they will not sell the newspaper group at all.

When Camilo Hagen said this, he saw William Chen's brows slightly wrinkled, and turned to say:

"But Mr. William, there is no absolute thing in the world. If you can't buy what the other party has with your money, it is likely that your bid is not enough. A similar example is in 2007, Murdoch's News Corp. The right acquisition."

"The Bancroft family, who also owns 64.2% of the voting rights in the parent company, has always claimed that it will not sell the paper. But when Murdoch came up with the sky-high $5 billion, Bancroft The special family immediately changed their minds and finally agreed to the deal. After all, the share price was $36 and Murdoch's bid was $60 a share."

"The current share price of the group is about $10.15, and the market value is nearly $1.5 billion, so I think the reference example, if the bid is more than $2.5 billion, then the hope of persuading the Salzberg family is very high, but this premium acquisition It is also necessary to consider the future development of the company, and the prospect of the newspaper industry is still worrying."

Hearing Camilo Hagen say this, William Chen nodded and said to him:

"It's worth a try. You go to contact the other party first and try to make an offer first."

As for the future development that Camilo Hagen is worried about, William Chen is not too worried, because he knows that the transformation of this newspaper will be very successful in the future. will lose.

And his status is also very important, and can be used as a very useful public opinion tool for him.

……

"Do you want to buy it?"

As expected by William Chen, when his uncle John Drey heard the news, a very interested look appeared on his face:

"Not to mention, if you can really buy this newspaper, they will welcome you even more."

William Chen followed John Drey's gaze. He was the commander who was chatting cordially with the guests.

They are now on a yacht. The commander came here from Washington. Together with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, they invited the financial giants to meet, which is to encourage everyone to unite and deal with this financial crisis.

William Chen, who just invested in Goldman Sachs Group and Citigroup, was also invited to this reception.

After the initial speech at the evening reception, the commander took time to chat with William Chen. He expressed his appreciation for William Chen's practical actions to help the bank out of the predicament. As long as everyone can work together to overcome the difficulties, Then the economic crisis this time is nothing to worry about, just like the difficulties that the United States has overcome time and again before.

"William, I know you're still doing a master's degree, don't you? I was a teacher before, and at the University of Chicago, that experience was very important to me. When I saw you, you were about the same age as my student at the time, but you got the Amazing achievement indeed, and it's no wonder that Mr. George has always been proud of you."

The commander is still very charismatic in his speeches. As the first African-American commander, it does require some strength to be successful.

William Chen knew that he was referring to his grandfather-George Del Rey. With William Chen's background, the commander easily regarded him as his own, so his words were very relaxed and close.

Unsurprisingly, Chen William saw his uncle in the entourage.

So I told him about what I was going to acquire.

As for what John Drey just said, William Chen can also think of the reason.

When he first bought it, William Chen told editor-in-chief Kaplan that there is no absolutely objective and neutral media in the United States, and all newspapers are somewhat biased, left or right, conservative or free. .

Just like among these newspapers in New York, if it is the flagship newspaper of the conservatives, it is definitely the number one newspaper of the liberals in the United States.

The former social motto was: "Publish all news that is suitable for publication". News coverage, they claim, "should be fearless impartial, without partisanship, geography, or any special interest".

Maybe at the beginning, they could still uphold this attitude and report more objectively and neutrally, but when the newspaper passed into the hands of the current leader, Arthur Salzberg Jr., he pursued more than his predecessors. Profits, the quality of reporting has declined, and there has been a lot of fake news and political bias, which has greatly damaged its credibility.

For example, during the 2008 general election, when the competition for the position of the chief commander was intensified, negative reports on the current chief commander were published many times, but similar articles by his competitors were rejected.

Presumably the commander-in-chief will also have a fresh memory of these things. If William Chen can buy this newspaper, which is inclined towards the liberals of the elephant party, they will also be happy to see it.

Not to mention the time when Chen William needs to make the newspaper favor the Donkey Party. Even if he can maintain neutrality and impartiality, it will be a victory for the Donkey Party to remove one opponent's position of public opinion.

"But I know that the Salzberg family will not let go of this newspaper so easily. Are you sure? William."

John Del Rey also knew that the Salzberg family was very strict in their control, so it was not so easy to succeed.

"You always have to try first. It's nothing more than a question of how much to bid. If you want to buy this newspaper, you must increase the premium."

William Chen wouldn't tell his uncle directly that the bottom line in his heart was three billion dollars. If he couldn't win the newspaper with a 100% premium, then it would be a big deal to switch to another one—the newspaper group that is now in crisis, but also A lot of.