Newspapers across America have been struggling for years. Some of that can be chalked up to failing to adjust to the digital age. But then there’s the case of Alden Global Capital. It’s a hedge fund, run by two men who, a new article by The Atlantic says, gutted newsrooms across the country in their pursuit of profit.
Alden now controls more than 200 newspapers, including, at one time, The Salt Lake Tribune. But despite its national influence, little is known about the company. In a cover story for The Atlantic, reporter McKay Coppins pulls the curtains back on Alden to examine the policies and motives of its two co-founders, Randall Smith and Heath Freeman. In his reporting, Coppins learned that Smith and Freeman’s strategy for newspaper ownership is surprisingly simple, yields them great profits — and is often deadly for papers they own. Coppins join us this Friday at 11 a.m. to share what he’s learned about the men he says are killing America’s newspapers.
You can read McKay Coppins article for The Atlantic, "On The Vultures Ravaging America's Newspapers," here.
