New: A daily newsletter defining what matters in business and markets

Stories

Newsweeklies are billionaires' new philanthropic ventures

Rack of magazines
Photo: Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images

Now that I'm writing a weekly newsletter, I'm increasingly interested in how weekly news is valued.

The big picture: As media companies decline in profitability, they're increasingly being traded more as trophies than as businesses. Many billionaires expect a financial return on their media investments. But others, including Benioff, Jeff Bezos, Pierre Omidyar and Laurene Powell Jobs, do not.

Read more toggle
Show less
Go deeper117 Words

By the numbers:

The bottom line: For them, owning a media property is a quasi-philanthropic way to invest in civil society. In terms of personal satisfaction and broader social acclaim, it's cheaper and more rewarding than buying a new yacht, or jet, or private island.

*He was worth way more than $200 million, so he was a billionaire, don't @ me.

Media trends
More stories loading.