Billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong Close to Deal LAT 020618.Pub

cc Tuesday, February 6, 2018 latimes.com/news

Billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong close to deal to buy the L.A. Times and San Diego Union-Tribune

By MEG JAMES AND JAMES RUFUS KOREN TIMES STAFF WRITERS

os Angeles biotech billion- aire Patrick Soon-Shiong is L nearing a deal to buy the Los Angeles Times and the San Di- ego Union-Tribune from their own- er, Tronc, according to two people familiar with the talks. The nearly $500-million cash deal, if consummated, would return The Times to local ownership after 18 years and end a tumultuous rela- tionship with its corporate parent in Chicago. A sale also would repre- sent a major strategy shift for Tronc, which has said that better Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong in 2014. (Danny Moloshok / Associated Press) promoting the Los Angeles Times brand and journalism was a key to acquisitions and further its digital including Amazon founder Jeff Be- its corporate growth. strategy across the remaining pa- zos, had stepped up. Bezos bought A deal had not been reached pers, which include the Chicago the Washington Post in 2013 for Tuesday afternoon, though both Tribune, Orlando Sentinel, South $250 million and invested heavily in sides were working furiously to Florida Sun-Sentinel and Baltimore its newsroom. complete the transaction and an an- Sun. Soon-Shiong would assume Forbes has estimated the net nouncement could come as early as pension liabilities for the California worth of Soon-Shiong, 65, who is Wednesday, said those sources, News Group, the entity that owns the second-largest shareholder of who were not authorized to speak The Times and the Union-Tribune. Tronc, at $7.8 billion. about the negotiations publicly and The talks accelerated over the Owning the Los Angeles Times requested anonymity. The sources weekend after a flurry of news arti- would be a significant coup for cautioned that the deal could fall cles questioning Tronc's oversight of Soon-Shiong, one of the city's apart at the last minute. Tronc and the storied brand and a critical New wealthiest men, raising his profile in Soon-Shiong declined to comment. York Times article that suggested the business, civic and cultural mi- Tronc is expected to use the that Los Angeles' wealthy class had lieu of the nation's second-largest $500 million in proceeds to pay abandoned its hometown newspaper city. Tronc had rebuffed Soon- down company debt, make other at a time when other billionaires, Shiong's repeated efforts to buy The The $500-million purchase price "seems to make sense," Arthur said, even though it is nearly twice what Bezos paid for the Post. "The Washington Post was se- verely challenged by the time Bezos bought it," Arthur said. "And this is not one but two newspapers." Despite ongoing declines in print advertising — print revenue plum- meted 17% in the first nine months of 2017 — the company continues to eke out a profit. For the quarter that ended Sept. 30, Tronc reported revenue of $353.1 million, a drop of 6.6% from a year earlier. Net in- come for the quarter was $2.1 mil- The Los Angeles Times building in downtown L.A. (David McNew / Getty Images) lion, compared with a net loss of $10.5 million in the year-earlier pe- Times as recently as last year, in a new digital strategy. But last month, riod. public war of words between the Levinsohn was placed on unpaid Tronc's market value is $608 mil- doctor and Tronc Chairman Michael leave pending an investigation into lion as of market close Tuesday, and Ferro, the company's largest share- sexual harassment claims that oc- the company has about $368 million holder. curred at previous jobs. There have of debt. A nearly $500-million sale An excited buzz ran through The been three top editors in the last six price for the two Southern Califor- Times' downtown Los Angeles months, including Jim Kirk, who nia papers would represent a little newsroom when the paper con- was named editor in chief last week. more than half of Tronc's $972- firmed that it was on the verge of He replaced former Forbes editor million enterprise value. being sold. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Lewis D'Vorkin, whose tumultuous "Patrick Soon-Shiong is a doctor Garcetti tweeted: "A great city needs three-month tenure was marked by and I hope that he can stand the a great newspaper, and Los Angeles contentious dealings with staff sight of blood because it is going to depends on the @latimes to tell our members. Also last month, The take a lot of investment to turn the story every day. I will always be Times' newsroom, unhappy with paper around," said Gabriel Kahn, a rooting for my hometown paper to corporate management and years of journalism professor at the USC An- succeed." cost-cutting, overwhelmingly voted nenberg School for Communication "This is surprising," newspaper to join the News Guild- and Journalism. "The Times has analyst Douglas Arthur of Huber Communication Workers of Ameri- been traded back and forth between Research Partners said. "But it ca. owners and been in bankruptcy and solves several issues by taking care The Times' newsroom has shrunk there has been no strategic plan or of a disgruntled shareholder, Dr. from more than 1,000 people in the strategic investment in the paper and Soon-Shiong, and also eliminating late 1990s to fewer than 400 em- there is a lot of catching up to do." the Los Angeles Times, which has ployees. There have been nine pub- Lloyd Greif, a downtown L.A. arguably been a problem child for lishers since 1999. investment banker, said he believes this management group for years." "Unfortunately all of that has tak- Soon-Shiong is interested in acquir- The Times has experienced en a toll on one of the greatest jour- ing The Times largely for civic rea- months of turmoil, starting in Au- nalistic platforms in the U.S. and it sons, though Greif said he suspects gust when several top editors were has just withered over the last dec- the billionaire entrepreneur will ousted. Ross Levinsohn, a former ade," Arthur said. "Maybe now with want to get a good return on his in- Yahoo and Fox executive, was ap- invested ownership, and local own- vestment. pointed its new publisher and ership, things will get better." brought his own team to develop a "Patrick wants a strong, locally At the time, the deal was seen as that left the company drowning in focused, engaged newspaper," said a big win for Ferro, a way for him to debt. Within a year, Tribune filed Greif, who has been closely follow- fight off a hostile takeover bid by for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protec- ing the developments. "He wants it rival newspaper company Gannett, tion. to be a vibrant voice. This is 100% which owns USA Today. Though On Dec. 31, 2012, the company good news. But yes, he's going to Ferro and Soon-Shiong presented a emerged from bankruptcy with a make money. He's not doing this as united front opposed to Gannett, consortium of wealthy investors in a charitable gift to the city." their relationship soon soured. control. Two years later, the board A sale of The Times could be a Early last year, Tronc and Soon- split the company. One group, Trib- first step in dismantling Tronc, for- Shiong traded barbs in a series of une Media, was made up of televi- merly known as Tribune Publishing, publicly filed letters, with Soon- sion stations, real estate holdings — Greif said. He speculated that Ferro Shiong saying he wanted to acquire including The Times' downtown might keep his hometown Chicago a larger stake in the company and L.A. headquarters — and digital Tribune but eventually sell off the Tronc saying it had blocked the doc- properties. The second company, rest of the company's publications, tor's efforts to acquire The Times. Tribune Publishing, housed the including the Baltimore Sun, Orlan- An April letter from a Tronc attor- newspapers, including The Times. do Sentinel and Hartford Courant. ney said Soon-Shiong offered to buy Drama followed. Tribune Pub- "If they sell The Times, I think The Times in December 2016 but lishing's first chief executive, Jack they go into liquidation mode," was told he would have to buy all of Griffin, ousted The Times' publish- Greif said. "This is a sign Ferro is at Tronc — which publishes 10 daily er, Austin Beutner. Griffin himself the end of the road and is prepared papers. "If [Soon-Shiong] wants to was sacked a few months later after to take whatever profit he can get. make such a proposal, the board will he brought in Ferro, a Chicago in- So he'll try to maximize the value of do its duty and consider it," Tronc's vestor and former owner of the Chi- The Times and get what he can for attorney wrote. cago Sun-Times. Ferro installed Jus- the rest. This is a deal where the Ferro initially bought a 16.6% tin Dearborn as CEO, and they re- sum of the parts could very well be stake in Tribune Publishing in 2016, named the company Tronc. Last worth more than the whole." investing $44.4 million in the com- summer, Dearborn fired a handful of However, a source close to Tronc pany when the stock was trading top Times editors, including the pre- disputed that speculation, saying around $8.50 a share. Ferro has con- vious publisher/editor, Davan Maha- there are no plans to sell papers oth- tinued to buy shares and now owns a raj. He then hired Levinsohn. er than the two in Southern Califor- 28% stake. On Tuesday, Tronc The Times newsroom has been nia. shares closed at $18.10. waiting for Tronc to unveil its plan Soon-Shiong, a medical entrepre- For more than a century, The Times for the papers. One presentation neur and native of South Africa, had was owned by the same family. Har- shared with investors included a been rumored several years ago to rison Gray Otis gained ownership of controversial move to heavily rely be among a group of wealthy Ange- the paper in 1884 and served as The on outside contributors to provide lenos who were interested in buying Times' publisher until 1917. His de- articles in an effort to reduce its de- The Times. His interest in the paper scendants, the Chandler family, con- pendence on the newsroom. was formalized in May 2016 when trolled Times Mirror Co. until its "The Los Angeles Times will the biotech magnate invested $70.5 2000 sale to Chicago-based Tribune never be a national voice the way million in The Times' parent compa- Co. the New York Times or the Wash- ny, then called Tribune Publishing But changes in news consump- ington Post are, but that's OK," and since renamed Tronc Inc., tion began to erode the business, and USC's Kahn said. "It can still be the which stands for Tribune Online soon Tribune was under pressure to paper of record for California, Content. His current stake is 26%. sell. In 2007, Tribune sold itself to which has nearly 40 million people, He also owns a minority stake in the Chicago real estate investor Sam and it can focus on technology, me- Los Angeles Lakers. Zell in a costly leveraged buyout dia, agriculture, trade and other big industries, and that will be OK."