I’ve shared a few critical remarks about Alden Global Capital but pointed out that Alden is operating within a broader market that is brutal for newspapers. Ultimately, Alden makes money in the newspaper business because subscribers keep paying and journalists keep writing.
Savannah Jacobson has a new article out that criticizes Alden.
A May 29 paper (lead Erik Brynjolfsson) reports, “Of those employed pre-COVID-19, we find that about half are now working from home, including 35.2% who report they were commuting and recently switched to working from home.” And: “We find that the share of people switching to remote work can be predicted by the incidence of COVID-19 and that younger people were more likely to switch to remote work.” It’ll be really interesting to see how many of those new work-at-homers go back to the office once the pandemic cools off.
Tattered Cover, a Colorado institution as Denver’s most-successful independent bookstore, affirmed that “Black Lives Matter” and pledged to carry and host “a wider diversity of books” and author events. But, the store’s owners said, they weren’t keen on taking an active role in public debate. That’s a perfectly reasonable stance for bookstore owners. For that statement, of course, the owners were pilloried. So, of course, the owners issued a groveling apology. I’m sure others will draw the obvious lesson that it’s better simply to shut the hell up and keep your head down.