Lee Enterprises sale to Alden Global Capital would create hedge fund-owned duopoly for American dailies - Entrepreneur Generations

"Lawmakers, local reporters and journalism advocates are sounding the alarm over a takeover attempt of local newspaper group Lee Enterprises by Alden Global Capital, a hedge fund known for cutting journalists at local papers to maximize profits," Sara Fischer reports for Axios.

That matters because investment groups already own about half of the nation's dailies. If Alden bought out Lee, a "clear majority" of dailies would be owned by hedge funds. Moreover, it would "essentially create a local news duopoly between Alden and Gannett/Gatehouse, which merged in 2019," Fischer reports.

Though Lee's stock spiked 26 percent on Monday after Alden announced its offer, policymakers and reporters expressed concern. Sara Gentzler, a state government reporter for the Omaha World-Herald, tweeted that it was a "gut-wrenching scenario for Nebraska newspapers and anyone who cares about preserving robust local news".

Lee was recently in the news after reports that Iranian hackers broke into the company's computer systems the day after the 2020 election and tested how to create fake news.

from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/3l2UZa6 Lee Enterprises sale to Alden Global Capital would create hedge fund-owned duopoly for American dailies - Entrepreneur Generations

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