紐時賞析／巴菲特為報業宣判「死刑」 另一富翁卻反操作投資地方報紙

Meet the Florida Billionaire Who Wants to 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 — has declared the business “toast.”

報業近年來嚴重衰落，甚至是年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 billionaire 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 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？