Forbes magazine has devoted a ‘daily cover’ to an enlightening profile of emerging publishing titan David Hoffmann, who now controls some 131 US mastheads, with many more in the pipeline.

There’s an ‘old-school’ element to the image of the billionaire at his desk, red pen in hand, and with two piles of newspapers he has looked over. If you can turn away from the image of his US$85 million (A$120 million) home for a moment, visualise him sitting in his leather-blue desk chair, marking the copies that need discussion, perhaps for an “inflammatory” headline, or a political stance. Forbes’ Luisa Kroll notes that some AP reports are “a little to the left for him”.

Hoffmann had already been picking, and rescuing, newspapers in need when control of the Lee Enterprises stable – part of which was Warren Buffett’s BH Media – came his way.

The 73-year-old is committed to saving America’s newspapers, doing “something for America that is meaningful and far-reaching”.

The billions help, but importantly Hoffmann is reported to be doing more than bankroll the titles… he’s showing them how to turn a dollar.

Kroll describes it as “a seemingly simple blend of preserving cash and making a profit while doubling down on what he calls ‘hyperlocal’ content, contrasting his style with that of the giant Gannett chain and investment firm Alden Global Capital, “both notorious for cutting staff”.

Layoffs is a ‘bad word’ in his vocabulary, and Hoffmann has added newsroom numbers to boost coverage of local tourism, sports and business, supporting local communities. Kroll says there are some savings as well, such as consolidating payroll, sharing legal and marketing services, and “sometimes reducing the frequency of the printed product”.

She says the formula “seems to be working” with all of the 48 titles he has bought since 2022 and owns outright, making money, and the Lee papers freed of expensive debt. There have been partnerships, and a “roadshow” to sell his concepts to business leaders in key Lee markets.

The story goes that on a trip to visit his hockey-playing grandsons, he wanted to read about their games and see their photos in the paper, but the local Glenview, Illinois, Pioneer Press had recently shut down. Too late to save it, he resolved on a programme to save newspapers in small town America, picking up the Fort Myers Florida Weekly, and with it, former Gannett veteran Pason Gaddis, with whom he then “picked up a handful of titles in tourist spots”.

Taking a cue from musicians who had to move from record sales to concerts, they’re also looking to be an event leader in their communities.

Kroll says Hoffmann has letters of intent signed to buy another nine publications, and “keen to irrigate as many news deserts as he can”, he is happy to be judged on his performance.

Peter Coleman