The New York Times Company Explained

Type:Public
Industry:Newspapers
Area Served:Worldwide
Revenue Year:2023
Income Year:2023
Net Income Year:2023
Assets Year:2023
Equity Year:2023
Num Employees Year:2023
Hq Location:The New York Times Building
Hq Location City:New York City
Hq Location Country:United States
Footnotes:[1] [2] [3] [4]

The New York Times Company is an American mass-media company that publishes The New York Times, its associated publications, and other media properties. Its headquarters are in Manhattan, New York City.[5]

History

The company was founded by Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones in New York City. The first edition of the newspaper The New York Times, published on September 18, 1851, stated: "We publish today the first issue of the New-York Daily Times, and we intend to issue it every morning (Sundays excepted) for an indefinite number of years to come."[6]

The company moved into the cable channel industry, purchasing a 40% interest in the Popcorn Channel, a theatrical movie preview and local movie times, in November 1994.[7] In 1996, it expanded upon its broadcasting by purchasing Palmer Communications, owners of WHO-DT in Des Moines and KFOR in Oklahoma City.[8]

The company completed its purchase of The Washington Post 50 percent interest in the International Herald Tribune (IHT) for US$65 million on January 1, 2003, becoming the sole owner.[9]

On March 18, 2005, the company acquired About.com, an online provider of consumer information, for US$410 million.[10] In 2005, the company reported revenues of US$3.4 billion to its investors.[11]

The Times, on August 25, 2006, acquired Baseline StudioSystems, an online database and research service on the film and television industries for US$35 million.[12]

The company announced on September 12, 2006, its decision to sell its Broadcast Media Group, consisting of "nine network-affiliated television stations, their related Web sites and the digital operating center".[13] The New York Times reported on January 4, 2007, that the company had reached an agreement to sell all nine local television stations to the private equity firm Oak Hill Capital Partners, which then created a holding company for the stations, Local TV LLC.[14] [15] The company announced that it had finalized the sale of its Broadcast Media Group on May 7, 2007, for "approximately $575 million".

On May 7, 2007, the company announced that its About.com web information service was acquiring Consumersearch.com, a Web site that compiles reviews of consumer products, for $33 million in cash.[16]

In 2007, the company moved from 229 West 43rd Street to the New York Times Building at 620 Eighth Avenue, on the west side of Times Square, between 40th and 41st streets across from the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey Bus Terminal.[17]

On July 14, 2009, the company announced that WQXR was to be sold to WNYC, which moved the station to 105.9 FM and began to operate the station noncommercially on October 8, 2009. This US$45 million transaction, which involved Univision Radio's WCAA moving to the 96.3 FM frequency from 105.9 FM, ended the Times' 65-year-long ownership of the station.[18]

In December 2011, the company sold its Regional Media Group to Halifax Media Group, owners of The Daytona Beach News-Journal, for $143 million. The Boston Globe and The Telegram & Gazette of Worcester were not part of the sale.[19] In 2011, the Times sold Baseline StudioSystems back to its original owners, Laurie S. Silvers and Mitchell Rubenstein, majority shareholders of Project Hollywood LLC.

Facing falling revenue from print advertising in its flagship publication in 2011, The New York Times, the company introduced a paywall to its website. As of 2012, it had been modestly successful, garnering several hundred thousand subscriptions and about $100 million in annual revenue.[20]

In 2013, the New York Times Company sold The Boston Globe and other New England media properties to John W. Henry, the principal owner of the Boston Red Sox. According to the Times Company, the move was made in order to focus more on its core brands.[21] [22]

After forming an editorial partnership with the New York Times in 2015,[23] The Wirecutter was acquired by the Times in October 2016 for a reported $30 million.

In March 2020, the New York Times Company acquired subscription-based audio app, Audm.[24]

In July 2020, the New York Times Company acquired podcast production company Serial Productions.[25] The same month, the company appointed chief operating officer Meredith Kopit Levien to the position of CEO.[26]

In February 2022, the New York Times Company bought The Athletic, a subscription-based sports news website, for $550 million.[27] Its founders, Alex Mather and Adam Hansmann, stayed with the publication, which is run separately from the Times.[28] Later that month, it acquired Wordle, an Internet word puzzle game that grew from 90 players in October 2021 to millions at the time of purchase.[29]

ValueAct Capital took a stake in the company in August 2022.[30] ValueAct aims to encourage the company to more actively pursue the sale of "bundled" subscriptions to its various offerings.[30]

Radio stations

The paper bought AM radio station WQXR (1560kHz) in 1944.[31] Its "sister" FM station, WQXQ, became WQXR-FM (96.3MHz). Branded as "The Stereo Stations of The New York Times", its classical music radio format was simulcast on both the AM & FM frequencies until December 1992, when the big-band and pop standards music format of station WNEW (1130kHz – now WBBR/"Bloomberg Radio") was transferred to and adopted by WQXR; in recognition of the format change, WQXR changed its call letters to WQEW (a "hybrid" combination of "WQXR" and "WNEW").[32] By 1999, The New York Times was leasing WQEW to ABC Radio for its "Radio Disney" format.[33] In 2007, WQEW was finally purchased by Disney; in late 2014, it was sold to Family Radio (a religious radio network) and became WFME.[34] In 2009, WQXR-FM was sold to the WNYC radio group and, on October 8, moved from 96.3 to 105.9MHz (swapping frequencies with Spanish-language station WXNY-FM, which wanted the more powerful transmitter to increase its coverage) and began operating it as a noncommercial, public radio station.[35]

Holdings

See main article: List of assets owned by the New York Times Company.

Alongside its namesake newspaper, the company owns The New York Times International Edition and related digital properties including NYTimes.com, as well as various brand-related properties.[36]

Ownership and leadership

Since September 25, 1997, the company has been listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol NYT. From April 27, 1967, until January 13, 1969, the company's Class A common stock traded over the counter. From January 14, 1969, until September 24, 1997, the shares were traded on the American Stock Exchange.[37] Of the two categories of stock, Class A and Class B, the former is publicly traded and the latter is held privately—largely (over 90% through The 1997 Trust) by the descendants of Adolph Ochs, who purchased The New York Times newspaper in 1896.[38]

Carlos Slim loan and investment

On January 20, 2009, The New York Times reported that its parent company, the New York Times Company, had reached an agreement to borrow $250million from Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, "to help the newspaper company finance its businesses".[39] The New York Times Company later repaid that loan ahead of schedule.[40] Since then, Slim has bought large quantities of the company's Class A shares, which are available for purchase by the public and offer less control over the company than Class B shares, which are privately held. Slim's investments in the company included large purchases of Class A shares in 2011, when he increased his stake in the company to 8.1% of Class A shares,[41] and again in 2015, when he exercised stock options—acquired as part of a repayment plan on the 2009 loan—to purchase 15.9million Class A shares, making him the largest shareholder.[42] As of March 7, 2016, Slim owned 17.4% of the company's Class A shares, according to annual filings submitted by the company.[43] [44] While Slim is the largest shareholder in the company, his investment only allows him to vote for Class A directors, a third of the company's board.

Board of directors

[45]

Community awards

The company sponsors a series of national and local awards designed to highlight the achievements of individuals and organizations in different realms.

In 2007, it inaugurated its first Nonprofit Excellence Award, awarded to four organizations "for the excellence of their management practices". Only nonprofits in New York City, Long Island, or Westchester were eligible.[46]

Jointly with the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the American Library Association, the New York Times Company sponsors an award to honor librarians "for service to their communities". The I Love My Librarian! award was given to ten recipients in December 2008, and presented by the New York Times Company president and CEO Janet L. Robinson, Carnegie Corporation president Vartan Gregorian, and Jim Rettig, president of the American Library Association. The award has been given to ten exceptional librarians annually since that date.[47]

In May 2009, the company launched The New York Times Outstanding Playwright Award to honor an American playwright who had recently had his or her professional debut in New York.[48] The first winner was Tarell Alvin McCraney for his play "The Brothers Size".[49] In 2010, Dan LeFranc won for his play "Sixty Miles to Silver Lake".[50]

Controversies

On April 15, 2024, The Intercept published a copy of an internal memo obtained that asserts the New York Times newspaper told its journalists and editors to avoid using the terms “genocide,” “ethnic cleansing,” “occupied territory,” or "refugee camps," when covering Israel’s war in Gaza. The memo — written by Times standards editor Susan Wessling, international editor Philip Pan, and their deputies — “offers guidance about some terms and other issues we have grappled with since the start of the conflict in October”. The memo states that the Times reporters had been instructed not to use the word Palestine “except in very rare cases”.The memo also instructed the Times reporters not to describe the Palestinian lands captured by Israel as “occupied territories”. [51] [52]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. The New York Times Company 2023 Annual Report (Form 10-K) . SEC.gov . . February 20, 2024.
  2. Web site: Mexican Billionaire Invests in Times Company . January 20, 2009 . The New York Times.
  3. Web site: The Sulzberger Dynasty Tightens Its Grip on the New York Times . . October 19, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161120005823/http://fortune.com/2016/10/19/sulzberger-nyt/ . 2016-11-20 . dead . 2016-11-19 .
  4. Web site: These 15 Billionaires Own America's News Media Companies . Kate . Vinton . . June 1, 2016.
  5. Web site: Contact Us . The New York Times Company . August 28, 2009 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090506014452/http://www.nytco.com/contact_us/index.html . May 6, 2009 . mdy-all.
  6. Web site: Timeline . September 29, 2008 . The New York Times Company . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080914122138/http://www.nytco.com/company/milestones/timeline_1851.html . September 14, 2008 . mdy-all.
  7. (November 28, 1994). "The New York Times Co. has decided to enter the cable network business by taking a 40% stake in the soon-to-be-launched Popcorn Channel. (Brief Article)." Broadcasting & Cable. NewBay Media LLC. 1994.
  8. News: 1996-05-15. Times Co. in Deal to Buy 2 TV Stations. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-11-02. 0362-4331.
  9. News: David D. . Kirkpatrick . International Herald Tribune Now Run Solely by The Times . The International Herald Tribune, descendant of an American paper first published in Paris in 1887, is appearing today for the first time under the sole ownership and management of the New York Times Company. The takeover ends an anomalous 35-year partnership between The Times and its domestic competitor The Washington Post that produced a journalistic hybrid consisting mainly of articles and editorials from both papers compiled by editors in Paris. In October, The Times reached an agreement to buy The Post's 50 percent stake in the venture for about $70 million -- in part, The Post said, by threatening to start a rival paper overseas. . . January 2, 2003 . August 29, 2008.
  10. News: New York Times buys About.com . Teather . David . 2005-02-17 . The Guardian . en-GB . 0261-3077 . 2017-01-08.
  11. Web site: The New York Times Company 2005 Annual Report . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200828070213/https://nytco-assets.nytimes.com/2020/06/2005NYTannual.pdf . 2020-08-28 . 2020-08-28.
  12. News: NY Times Sells TV/Movie Database Baseline . . October 7, 2011.
  13. The New York Times Company Announces Plan to Sell Its Broadcast Media Group . The New York Times Company . September 12, 2006 . July 23, 2008 . January 9, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160109123708/http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=105317&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=904561 . dead .
  14. News: Story, Louise . New York Times to Sell 9 Local TV Stations . . January 4, 2007 . August 23, 2008.
  15. The New York Times Company Reports April Revenues . The New York Times Company . May 17, 2007 . August 23, 2008 . On May 7, 2007, the Company sold the Broadcast Media Group, consisting of nine network-affiliated television stations, their related Web sites and the digital operating center, for approximately $575 million. . dead . https://archive.today/20120722191553/http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=105317&p=irol-pressArticle&ID=1003528&highlight= . July 22, 2012 . mdy-all.
  16. News: About.com Buys ConsumerSearch.com . Times . The New York . 2007-05-07 . The New York Times . 2019-09-13 . en-US . 0362-4331.
  17. The New York Times Company Enters The 21st Century With A New Technologically Advanced And Environmentally Sensitive Headquarters . November 19, 2007 . August 23, 2008 . The New York Times Company . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080824015053/http://www.newyorktimesbuilding.com/pdf/FactSheet2007.pdf . August 24, 2008 . mdy-all.
  18. News: New York Times to Get $45 Million for Radio Station . Bensinger . Greg . July 14, 2009 . . July 18, 2009.
  19. News: New York Times agrees to sell regional news group . . . December 30, 2011 . December 27, 2011.
  20. News: 'NYT' Pay Wall Could Bring $100M Annually . March 13, 2012 . Media Daily News . March 12, 2012 . Sass, Erik.
  21. News: Christine . Haughney . New York Times Company Sells Boston Globe . 4 August 2013 . The New York Times . August 3, 2013.
  22. News: Red Sox Principal Owner to Buy Boston Globe Newspaper . The Wall Street Journal . August 3, 2013 . August 5, 2013.
  23. Web site: Inside The New York Times's post-acquisition strategy for Wirecutter . Owens, Simon . March 21, 2018 . Medium . 20 December 2021.
  24. Web site: The New York Times Company acquires Audm, an app that turns longform journalism into audio . TechCrunch . 23 March 2020 . en-US . 2020-04-17.
  25. Web site: 2020-07-22 . The New York Times Company Acquires Serial Productions and Forms a Strategic Alliance with "This American Life" . 2020-07-23 . www.businesswire.com . en.
  26. News: NYT promotes Kopit Levien to CEO role . 9 September 2020 . Financial Post . Reuters . 22 July 2020 . en-CA.
  27. Web site: Tracy . Marc . 2 February 2022 . The Times hits its goal of 10 million subscriptions with the addition of The Athletic.. The New York Times . limited . https://archive.today/20220719212517/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/02/business/media/nyt-earnings-q4-2021.html . 19 July 2022 . live.
  28. Web site: The New York Times Company to Acquire The Athletic. 2022-01-07. investors.nytco.com. en-US.
  29. News: NYT promotes Kopit Levien to CEO role . 2 February 2022 . The New York Times . 31 January 2022 . en-US.
  30. News: Deveau . Scott . 2022-08-11 . New York Times Is Targeted by Activist Investor Pushing for Subscriber-Only Bundles . en . . live . 2022-08-11 . https://archive.today/20220811175631/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-08-11/activist-investor-valueact-takes-7-stake-in-new-york-times . 2022-08-11.
  31. Web site: New York Times Timeline 1941–1970 . The New York Times Company . https://web.archive.org/web/20080907235742/http://www.nytco.com/company/milestones/timeline_1941.html . September 7, 2008 . dead . September 16, 2008.
  32. News: WQXR-AM to Change Its Format, to Popular Music From Classical . Kozinn, Allan . October 21, 1992 . The New York Times . September 16, 2008.
  33. News: WQEW-AM: All Kids, All the Time . Blumenthal, Ralph . December 2, 1998 . The New York Times . September 16, 2008.
  34. http://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/90956/family-radio-acquires-wqew-new-york/ Family Radio Returns To New York – RadioInsight
  35. News: New York Times to Get $45 Million for Radio Station . Bensinger . Greg . July 14, 2009 . July 18, 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120216063543/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=ao4vtybp2N50 . February 16, 2012 . dead . Bloomberg News.
  36. Web site: Business Units . August 29, 2008 . The New York Times Company, a leading media company with 2007 revenues of $3.2 billion, includes The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 16 other daily newspapers, WQXR-FM, and more than 50 Web sites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com, and About.com. The Company's core purpose is to enhance society by creating, collecting, and distributing high-quality news, information, and entertainment. . The New York Times Company . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080830001639/http://www.nytco.com/company/business_units/index.html . August 30, 2008 . mdy-all.
  37. Web site: FAQs. The New York Times Company.
  38. Web site: SCHEDULE 13D/A (Amendment No. 11). January 1, 2018 . Securities and Exchange Commission . June 5, 2021.
  39. News: Mexican Billionaire Invests in Times Company . Dash . Eric . January 19, 2009 . The New York Times . July 1, 2012.
  40. News: Billionaire Carlos Slim Doubles Holdings in New York Times . Laya . Patricia . January 14, 2015 . June 20, 2015 . . Smith . Gerry.
  41. News: Carlos Slim increases stake in NY Times . Saba . Jennifer . October 6, 2011 . July 1, 2012 . Reuters. "
  42. News: Carlos Slim becomes top New York Times shareholder . January 14, 2017 . Reuters.
  43. Web site: The New York Times Company Notice of 2016 Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement . March 22, 2016 . The New York Times Company . October 28, 2016.
  44. Web site: Annual Report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, for The New York Times Company (Form 10-K) . February 24, 2016 . Securities and Exchange Commission . October 28, 2016., See Item 12, which states, "The information required by this item is incorporated by reference to the sections titled "Principal Holders of Common Stock", "Security Ownership of Management and Directors" and "The 1997 Trust" of our Proxy Statement for the 2016 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.
  45. Web site: Board of Directors . NYTCo. June 24, 2024 .
  46. The New York Times Company Announces Four Winners of Its First Nonprofit Excellence Awards . The New York Times Company . June 28, 2007 . December 10, 2008.
  47. American Library Association . Carnegie Corporation of New York/New York Times I Love My Librarian Award winners announced . December 8, 2008 . February 3, 2009 . February 20, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110220131249/http://www.ala.org/ala/newspresscenter/news/pressreleases2008/december2008/ilovemylibrarian.cfm . dead .
  48. News: Times's Outstanding Playwright Award Goes to Kristoffer Diaz . Healy . Patrick . ArtsBeat . June 21, 2011 . 2017-02-12 . en.
  49. News: Tarell Alvin McCraney Brings His Award-Winning The Brothers Size Home to Miami . Joseph . Chris . 2011-08-31 . Miami New Times. 2017-02-12.
  50. Web site: The New York Times Company – Dan LeFranc Wins the 2010 New York Times Outstanding Playwright Award For "Sixty Miles to Silver Lake" . investors.nytco.com . en-CA . 2017-02-12.
  51. Web site: Leaked NYT Gaza Memo Tells Journalists to Avoid Words "Genocide," "Ethnic Cleansing," and "Occupied Territory" . . April 15, 2024 . en . 15 April 2024.
  52. Web site: NYT instructs staff against using 'genocide', 'Palestine' in Gaza articles . . en . 15 April 2024.

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