After years of cuts, Lee is adding reporters, says new chairman and billionaire David Hoffmann
The company is also cutting corporate overhead and expanding local sports coverage, Hoffmann said
Lee Enterprises, one of the largest newspaper chains in the country, has cut corporate overhead and added reporters to a few markets, according to the company’s new chairman, billionaire David Hoffmann.
For the first time since he acquired a majority stake in Lee, Hoffmann spoke on an earnings call Thursday, sharing that the company is undergoing a “decisive transformation.” Along with a change in top leadership, the company has started to invest more resources in local coverage and is eyeing opportunities for expansion — a reversal from the past several years, which have been marked by local cuts.
Related Knowledge Center: State of the business model
The traditional journalism business model has long since collapsed, and news organizations have shrunk or disappeared entirely. While a number of promising experiments are under way, the public has not shown a willingness to buy what news organizations are selling.