Austin Beutner, the former Wall Street investment banker and philanthropist, accepted the position last month to become the new CEO and publisher of the Los Angeles Times despite decreasing sales of its print editions.
And he’s here to talk about it. According to the LA Times, Beutner addressed employees in a full auditorium, asking for individuals to “explore new revenue streams” and to embrace new technologies. The former Deputy Mayor of Los Angeles, and former candidate for mayor, is looking to raise advertising and digital revenues after Tribune Co., the newspaper’s parent company, which reported profit declines of 43% this past March.
Beutner's got a reputation as a concise but out-of-the box thinker, who was once interested in buying the Los Angeles Times and running it as a nonprofit. Now that he’s in charge, what should Beutner do differently to successfully run the historical newspaper? And how will he strike a balance between "Civic booster" and publisher of a paper that's supposed to be holding the city accountable?
Guest:
Austin Beutner, publisher and CEO of the Los Angeles Times