{{short description|American multinational mass media conglomerate group}} {{Use American English|date=December 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2020}} {{Infobox company | name = {{ubl| * Hearst Corporation * Hearst Holdings, Inc. * Hearst Communications, Inc. }} | logo = frameless|class=logo-nobg | logo_size = | logo_caption = Logo used since 2016 | image = Hearstowernyc.JPG | image_size = 250px | image_caption = Hearst Tower in Midtown Manhattan, September 2006 | parent = | type = Private | founder = William Randolph Hearst | area_served = Worldwide | key_people = {{ubl|William Randolph Hearst III|(chairman)|Frank A. Bennack Jr.|(executive vice chairman)|Steve Swartz|(president and CEO)}} | industry = Media | products = Books<br />Magazines<br />Newspapers<br />Publications<br />Television | revenue = {{up}}US$13 billion | revenue_year = 2024 | owner = Hearst family | num_employees = 22,000 | num_employees_year = 2024 | divisions = {{ubl | Hearst Television | Hearst Magazines | Hearst Ventures | Hearst Health | Hearst Transportation | Hearst Real Estate | Hearst Entertainment & Syndication | Hearst Newspapers | Fitch Group }} | subsidiaries = {{ubl | A+E Global Media (50%) | ESPN Inc. (18%) | Fitch Ratings | First Databank | King Features Syndicate | NorthSouth Productions (50%) }} | founded = {{start date and age|1887|3|4}}<br />San Francisco, California, U.S. | hq_location = Hearst Tower<br />300 W. 57th Street<br />New York, New York 10019<br />U.S. | hq_location_city = | hq_location_country = | website = {{URL|hearst.com}} | footnotes = <ref name="Forbes">{{cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/companies/hearst/ |title=Hearst |magazine=Forbes |access-date=August 31, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.mediadb.eu/en/data-base/international-media-corporations/the-hearst-corporation.html |title=The Hearst Corporation |website=Institute for Media and Communication Policy |date=October 19, 2017 |access-date=August 28, 2018 |archive-date=January 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124012304/https://www.mediadb.eu/en/data-base/international-media-corporations/the-hearst-corporation.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> }}
'''Hearst Corporation''', '''Hearst Holdings Inc.''' and '''Hearst Communications Inc.'''<ref>[https://sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1828972/000120919122000209/xslF345X02/doc3a.html SEC filing on Hearst Communications' ownership of shares of BuzzFeed]{{Dead link|date=August 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} (footnote 2 explains the ownership structure: "Hearst Communications, Inc. ("HCI")... is a subsidiary of Hearst Holdings, Inc. ("HHI"). HHI is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Hearst Corporation ("THC"). THC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Hearst Family Trust".)</ref> is an American multinational mass media and business information conglomerate owned by the Hearst family and based in Hearst Tower in Midtown Manhattan in New York City.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://wwd.com/business-news/business-features/swartz-succeeds-bennack-as-hearst-ceo-6877092/|title=Hearst's New CEO Steve Swartz Talks Business, Succession|last=Maza|first=Erik|date=April 1, 2013|website=WWD|language=en|access-date=July 23, 2016}}</ref>
Hearst owns newspapers, magazines, television channels, and television stations, including the ''Albany Times-Union'', ''Houston Chronicle'', ''Austin American-Statesman'', ''San Francisco Chronicle'', ''Cosmopolitan'' and ''Esquire''. It owns 50 percent of the A+E Global Media cable network group and 18 percent of the sports television company ESPN Inc.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/hearst/ |title=2016 America's Richest Families Net Worth: Hearst Family |magazine=Forbes |date=June 29, 2016 |access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref> The conglomerate also owns Fitch Group and First Databank.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nypost.com/2016/01/05/hearst-enjoys-record-revenue-in-2015-no-thanks-to-magazines/|title=Hearst enjoys record profits, eyes more acquisitions|last=Kelly|first=Keith J.|date=January 6, 2016|website=New York Post|access-date=November 4, 2016}}</ref>
The company was founded by William Randolph Hearst, a newspaper owner who was most well known for his use of yellow journalism. The Hearst family remains involved in its ownership and management.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hearst family |url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/hearst/ |access-date=2022-10-26 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref>
== History == === Formative years === In 1880, George Hearst, mining entrepreneur and U.S. senator, bought the ''San Francisco Daily Examiner.''<ref name="nelson">{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-george-hearst-20120627-story.html|title=George Randolph Hearst Jr. dies at 84; L.A. Herald-Examiner publisher|last=Nelson|first=Valerie J.|date=June 27, 2012|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=July 16, 2018}}</ref> In 1887, he turned the ''Examiner'' over to his son, William Randolph Hearst, who that year founded the Hearst Corporation.
=== Peak era === thumb|right|An ad asking automakers to place ads in Hearst chain, noting their circulation In the 1920s and 1930s, Hearst owned the biggest media conglomerate in the world, which included a number of magazines and newspapers in major cities. Hearst also began acquiring radio stations to complement his papers.<ref>{{cite episode| url=https://www.c-span.org/video/?107196-1/william-randolph-hearst-early-years| title=William Randolph Hearst: The Early Years| network=C-SPAN2| series=Book TV| date=June 12, 1998| credits=Brian Lamb, presenter; Ben Procter| access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref> Hearst saw financial challenges in the early 1920s, when he was using company funds to build Hearst Castle in San Simeon and support movie production at Cosmopolitan Productions. This eventually led to the merger of the magazine ''Hearst International'' with ''Cosmopolitan'' in 1925.<ref>{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9n6Qh17H6QcC&q=hearst+merges+international+with+cosmopolitan+1925&pg=PT205| title=The Improbable First Century of Cosmopolitan Magazine| last=Landers| first=James| date=November 1, 2010| publisher=University of Missouri Press| isbn=978-0826272331| language=en}}</ref>
Despite some financial troubles, Hearst began extending his reach in 1921, purchasing the ''Detroit Times'', ''The Boston Record,'' and the ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer.''<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/The-Reign-of-S-F-s-Monarch-of-the-Dailies-2914679.php|title=The Reign of S.F.'s 'Monarch of the Dailies' / Hearst media empire started with Examiner|last1=Taylor|first1=Michael|last2=Writer|first2=Chronicle Staff|date=August 7, 1999|website=SFGate|access-date=May 30, 2019}}</ref> Hearst then added the ''Los Angeles Herald'' and ''Washington Herald,'' as well as the ''Oakland Post-Enquirer'', the ''Syracuse Telegram'' and the ''Rochester Journal-American'' in 1922. He continued his buying spree into the mid-1920s, purchasing the ''Baltimore News'' (1923), the ''San Antonio Light'' (1924), the ''Albany Times Union'' (1924),<ref name=":0" /> and ''The Milwaukee Sentinel'' (1924). In 1924, Hearst entered the tabloid market in New York City with ''New York Daily Mirror'', meant to compete with the ''New York Daily News''.<ref>{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ET4uTW2k-9QC&q=%22syracuse+telegram%22+hearst&pg=PA315| title=The Chief: The Life of William Randolph Hearst| last=Nasaw| first=David| date=2001| publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt| isbn=978-0618154463| pages=320–322| language=en}}</ref>
In addition to print and radio, Hearst established Cosmopolitan Pictures in the early 1920s, distributing his films under the newly created Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.slate.com/articles/podcasts/you_must_remember_this/2015/09/marion_davies_actress_and_mistress_of_william_randolph_hearst_was_portrayed.html| title=The Mistress, the Magnate, and the Genius| last=Longworth| first=Karina| date=September 24, 2015| magazine=Slate| access-date=August 28, 2018| issn=1091-2339}}</ref> In 1929, Hearst and MGM created the Hearst Metrotone newsreels.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.cinema.ucla.edu/collections/hearst| title=Hearst Metrotone News Collection| website=UCLA Film & Television Archive| access-date=July 16, 2018| archive-date=July 16, 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180716224711/https://www.cinema.ucla.edu/collections/hearst| url-status=dead}}</ref>
=== Retrenching after the Great Depression === The Great Depression hurt Hearst and his publications. Cosmopolitan Book was sold to Farrar & Rinehart in 1931.<ref name="cosmobook">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GfCEtAEACAAJ&q=editions:WaCJdeNwHw4C|title=American literary publishing houses, 1900–1980. Trade and paperback|last1=Murray|first1=Timothy D.|last2=Mills|first2=Theodora|publisher=Gale Research Co|year=1986|isbn=978-0-8103-1724-6|editor-last=Dzwonkoski|editor-first=Peter|series=Dictionary of literary biography|location=Detroit|pages=91–92|chapter=Cosmopolitan Book Corporation}}</ref> After two years of leasing them to Eleanor "Cissy" Patterson (of the McCormick-Patterson family that owned the ''Chicago Tribune''), Hearst sold her ''The Washington Times'' and ''Herald'' in 1939; she merged them to form the ''Washington Times-Herald''. That year he also bought the ''Milwaukee Sentinel'' from Paul Block (who bought it from the Pfisters in 1929), absorbing his afternoon ''Wisconsin News'' into the morning publication. Also in 1939, he sold the ''Atlanta Georgian'' to Cox Newspapers, which merged it with the ''Atlanta Journal''.
Following Adolf Hitler's rise to power in Germany, William Randolph Hearst personally instructed his reporters in Germany to only give positive coverage to Hitler and the Nazis, and fired journalists who refused to write stories favourable of German fascism.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Parenti |first=Michael |title=Blackshirts & Reds: Rational Fascism and the Overthrow of Communism |publisher=City Lights Books |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-87286-329-3 |location=San Francisco |pages=11 |language=en}}</ref> During this time, high ranking Nazis were given space to write articles in Hearst press newspapers, including Hermann Göring and Alfred Rosenberg.<ref name=":1" />
Hearst, with his chain now owned by his creditors after a 1937 liquidation,<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.thenation.com/article/devil-and-mr-hearst/|title=The Devil and Mr. Hearst|last=Frank|first=Dana|date=June 22, 2000|journal=The Nation|access-date=March 19, 2019|archive-date=October 22, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191022075522/https://www.thenation.com/article/devil-and-mr-hearst/|url-status=dead}}</ref> also had to merge some of his morning papers into his afternoon papers. In Chicago, he combined the morning ''Herald-Examiner'' and the afternoon ''American'' into the ''Herald-American'' in 1939. This followed the 1937 combination of the New York ''Evening Journal'' and the morning ''American'' into the ''New York Journal-American'', the sale of the ''Omaha Daily Bee'' to the ''World-Herald''.
Afternoon papers were a profitable business in pre-television days, often outselling their morning counterparts featuring stock market information in early editions, while later editions were heavy on sporting news with results of baseball games and horse races. Afternoon papers also benefited from continuous reports from the battlefront during World War II. After the war, however, both television news and suburbs experienced explosive growth; thus, evening papers were more affected than those published in the morning, whose circulation remained stable while their afternoon counterparts' sales plummeted.
In 1947, Hearst produced an early television newscast for the DuMont Television Network: ''I.N.S. Telenews'', and in 1948 he became the owner of WBAL-TV in Baltimore.
The earnings of Hearst's three morning papers, the ''San Francisco Examiner'', the ''Los Angeles Examiner'', and ''The Milwaukee Sentinel'', supported the company's money-losing afternoon publications such as the ''Los Angeles Herald-Express'', the ''New York Journal-American'', and the ''Chicago American''. The company sold the latter paper in 1956 to the ''Chicago Tribune''{{'}}s owners, who changed it to the tabloid-size ''Chicago Today'' in 1969 and ceased publication in 1974. In 1960, Hearst also sold the ''Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph'' to the ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'' and the ''Detroit Times'' to ''The Detroit News''. After a lengthy strike it sold the ''Milwaukee Sentinel'' to the afternoon ''Milwaukee Journal'' in 1962. The same year Hearst's Los Angeles papers – the morning ''Examiner'' and the afternoon ''Herald-Express'' – merged to become the evening ''Los Angeles Herald-Examiner''. The 1962–63 New York City newspaper strike left the city with no papers for over three months, with the ''Journal-American'' one of the earliest strike targets of the Typographical Union. The ''Boston Record'' and the ''Evening American'' merged in 1961 as the ''Record-American'' and in 1964, the ''Baltimore News-Post'' became the ''Baltimore News-American''.
In 1953, Hearst Magazines bought ''Sports Afield'' magazine, which it published until 1999 when it sold the journal to Robert E. Petersen. In 1958, Hearst's International News Service merged with E.W. Scripps' United Press, forming United Press International as a response to the growth of the Associated Press and Reuters. The following year Scripps-Howard's ''San Francisco News'' merged with Hearst's afternoon ''San Francisco Call-Bulletin''. Also in 1959, Hearst acquired the paperback book publisher Avon Books.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,864911,00.html|title=The Press: Quiet Deal|date=August 31, 1959|magazine=Time|access-date=April 23, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0040-781X|archive-date=April 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190424002826/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,864911,00.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
In 1965, the Hearst Corporation began pursuing joint operating agreements (JOAs). It reached the first agreement with the DeYoung family, proprietors of the afternoon ''San Francisco Chronicle'', which began to produce a joint Sunday edition with the ''Examiner''. In turn, the ''Examiner'' became an evening publication, absorbing the ''News-Call-Bulletin''. The following year, the ''Journal-American'' reached another JOA with another two landmark New York City papers: the ''New York Herald Tribune'' and Scripps-Howard's ''World-Telegram and Sun'' to form the ''New York World Journal Tribune'' (recalling the names of the city's mid-market dailies), which collapsed after only a few months.
The 1962 merger of the ''Herald-Express'' and ''Examiner'' in Los Angeles led to the termination of many journalists who began to stage a 10-year strike in 1967. The effects of the strike accelerated the pace of the company's demise, with the ''Herald Examiner'' ceasing publication November 2, 1989.<ref>{{cite web| title=The Last Los Angeles Herald-Examiner Strike| url=https://library.csun.edu/SCA/Peek-in-the-Stacks/Examiner| date=February 3, 2014| website=California State University Northridge Oviatt Library| access-date=August 28, 2018| archive-date=December 18, 2022| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221218201221/https://library.csun.edu/SCA/Peek-in-the-Stacks/Examiner| url-status=dead}}</ref>
=== Newspaper shifts === Hearst moved into hardcover publishing by acquiring Arbor House in 1978 and William Morrow and Company in 1981.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/08/16/arts/donald-fine-75-publisher-of-suspenseful-best-sellers.html|title=Donald Fine, 75, Publisher Of Suspenseful Best Sellers|last=Smith|first=Dinitia|date=August 16, 1997|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 24, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| title=Hearst acquires leading book publisher| work=United Press International| access-date=August 28, 2018| url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1981/02/13/Hearst-acquires-leading-book-publisher/5505350888400/}}</ref> In 1982, the company sold the ''Boston Herald American'' — the result of the 1972 merger of Hearst's ''Record-American & Advertiser'' with the ''Herald-Traveler'' — to Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1982/11/18/Murdoch-Hearst-agree-on-sale-of-Boston-Herald-American/3484406443600/|title=Murdoch, Hearst agree on sale of Boston Herald American|website=UPI|language=en|access-date=August 20, 2019}}</ref> which renamed the paper as ''The Boston Herald'',<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/12/22/us/boston-newspaper-renamed.html|title=Boston Newspaper Renamed |agency=Associated Press |date=December 22, 1982|work=The New York Times|access-date=August 20, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> competing to this day with ''The Boston Globe''.
In 1986, Hearst bought the ''Houston Chronicle'' and that same year closed the 213-year-old ''Baltimore News-American'' after a failed attempt to reach a JOA with A.S. Abell Company, the family who published ''The Baltimore Sun'' since its founding in 1837.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/business/1987/03/13/houston-chronicle-bought-by-hearst-for-400-million/7f0b6b51-2861-4938-88bd-0f43a32d6e88/|title=HOUSTON CHRONICLE BOUGHT BY HEARST FOR $400 MILLION|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=March 13, 1987|access-date=March 14, 2026}}</ref> Abell sold the paper several days later to the Times-Mirror syndicate of the Chandlers' ''Los Angeles Times'', also competitor to the ''Los Angeles Herald-Examiner'', which folded in 1989. In 1990, both King Features Entertainment and King Phoenix Entertainment were rebranded under the collective Hearst Entertainment umbrella. King Features Entertainment was renamed to Hearst Entertainment Distribution, while King Phoenix Entertainment was renamed to Hearst Entertainment Productions.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1990-04-16|title=Hearst|work=Broadcasting|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/90-OCR/BC-1990-04-16-OCR-Page-0027.pdf|access-date=2021-09-24}}</ref>
On November 8, 1990, Hearst Corporation acquired 20% stake of ESPN, Inc. from RJR Nabisco (now a subsidiary of Mondelez International) for a price estimated between $165 million and $175 million.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/11/09/business/hearst-to-buy-20-espn-stake-from-rjr.html|title=Hearst to Buy 20% ESPN Stake From RJR|last=Fabrikant|first=Geraldine|date=November 9, 1990|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 23, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The other 80% has been owned by The Walt Disney Company since 1996, ironically since some Hearst-Argyle Television Stations are ABC (Also owned by The Walt Disney Company since 1996.) affiliates that also show ESPN games, it's been an all-around good equal partnership business for both companies. Over the last 25 years, the ESPN investment is said to have accounted for at least 50% of total Hearst Corp profits and is worth at least $13 billion.<ref>{{cite journal| title=Is the world's first media group now the best?| url=https://flashesandflames.com/2013/12/22/is-the-worlds-first-media-group-now-the-best/| last=Morrison| first=Collin| date=December 23, 2013| journal=Flashes & Flames| access-date=May 13, 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180428022318/http://www.flashesandflames.com/2013/12/is-the-worlds-first-media-group-now-the-best/| archive-date=April 28, 2018| url-status=dead| df=mdy-all}}</ref> In 1993, Hearst closed the ''San Antonio Light'' after it purchased the rival ''San Antonio Express-News'' from Murdoch.<ref>{{cite web|last=Donecker|first=Frances|url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/san-antonio-light|title=San Antonio Light|website=Handbook of Texas|publisher=Texas State Historical Association|access-date=February 20, 2021}}</ref> In April 1995, Netscape Communications Corporation announced Hearst was part of a group of private investors who purchased stake in the company.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pitta |first=Julie |date=1995-08-10 |title=Investors Get Caught Up in the Netscape : Wall Street: Software company makes an impressive debut, with more than 13.8 million shares changing hands during frenzied trading. |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-08-10-fi-33590-story.html |access-date=2025-04-18 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-08-14 |title=Antitrust Division {{!}} Direct Testimony Of Jim Barksdale : U.S. V. Microsoft Corporation; State Of New York V. Microsoft Corporation |url=https://www.justice.gov/atr/direct-testimony-jim-barksdale-us-v-microsoft-corporation-state-new-york-v-microsoft-corporation |access-date=2025-04-18 |website=www.justice.gov |language=en}}</ref>
On July 30, 1996, Hearst and the Cisneros Group of Companies of Venezuela announced its plans to launch Locomotion, a Latin American animation cable television channel, it eventually launched on November 1.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1996/07/31/Hearst-launches-TV-cartoon-channel/9981838785600/|title=Hearst launches TV cartoon channel|work=United Press International|date=July 31, 1996|access-date=February 20, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/96-OCR/BC-1996-08-05-OCR-Page-0064.pdf|title=Hearst on track with Locomotion in Latin America|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|date=August 5, 1996|access-date=February 20, 2021|via=World Radio History}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://apnews.com/1e2a1f167568f446502177eb629412ef|title=Hearst, Cisneros Group Plan All-Animation Channel for Latin America|work=Associated Press|date=July 31, 1996|access-date=February 20, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release|url=https://www.hearst.com/-/the-hearst-corporation-and-the-cisneros-group-of-companies-to-launch-locomotion-new-all-animation-tv-channel-throughout-latin-america|title=The Hearst Corporation and the Cisneros Group of Companies to Launch Locomotion, New All-Animation TV Channel, Throughout Latin America|publisher=Hearst Corporation|date=July 30, 1996|access-date=March 14, 2026}}</ref>
On March 26, 1997, Hearst Broadcasting announced that it would merge with Argyle Television Holdings II for $525 million, the merger was completed in August to form Hearst-Argyle Television (later renamed as Hearst Television in 2009).<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/03/27/business/hearst-to-buy-argyle-tv-in-a-rare-public-venture.html|title=Hearst to Buy Argyle TV In a Rare Public Venture|newspaper=The New York Times|date=March 27, 1997|access-date=February 20, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release|url=https://www.hearst.com/-/hearst-and-argyle-join-to-form-new-12-station-television-company|title=Hearst and Argyle Join to Form New 12 Station Television Company|publisher=Hearst Corporation|date=March 26, 1997|access-date=March 14, 2026}}</ref> In 1999, Hearst sold its Avon and Morrow book publishing activities to HarperCollins, while Hearst-Argyle Television bought the broadcasting division of Pulitzer, Inc. for $700 million.<ref>{{cite news| last=Tharp| first=Paul| title=HarperCollins Buys William Morrow & Avon| work=New York Post| access-date=May 28, 2018| date=June 18, 1999| url=https://nypost.com/1999/06/18/harpercollins-buys-william-morrow-avon/}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release|url=https://www.hearst.com/-/hearst-argyle-television-completes-acquisition-of-pulitzer-broadcast|title=Hearst-Argyle Television Completes Acquisition of Pulitzer Broadcast|publisher=Hearst Corporation|date=March 18, 1999|access-date=March 14, 2026}}</ref>
===21st century=== In 2000, the Hearst Corp. sold its flagship and "Monarch of the Dailies", the afternoon ''San Francisco Examiner'', and acquiring the long-time competing, but now larger morning paper, ''San Francisco Chronicle'' from the Charles de Young family.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-mar-18-mn-10118-story.html|title=Independent Publisher Buys S.F. Examiner|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=March 18, 2000|access-date=March 14, 2026}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release|url=https://www.hearst.com/-/hearst-corp-to-sell-san-francisco-examiner-to-exin-llc|title=Hearst Corp. to Sell San Francisco Examiner to Exin, LLC|publisher=Hearst Corporation|date=March 30, 2000|access-date=March 14, 2026}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release|url=https://www.hearst.com/-/the-hearst-corporation-completes-purchase-of-the-san-francisco-chronicle-and-sale-of-the-san-francisco-examiner|title=The Hearst Corporation Completes Purchase of the San Francisco Chronicle and Sale of the San Francisco Examiner|publisher=Hearst Corporation|date=July 28, 2000|access-date=March 14, 2026}}</ref> The ''San Francisco Examiner'' is now published as a daily freesheet. In December 2003, Marvel Entertainment acquired ''Cover Concepts'' from Hearst, to extend Marvel's demographic reach among public school children.<ref name=awn0>{{cite news |last1=DeMott |first1=Rick |title=Marvel Acquires Cover Concepts |url=http://www.awn.com/news/marvel-acquires-cover-concepts |access-date=February 20, 2021 |website=Animation World Network |date=December 18, 2003 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715084348/http://www.awn.com/news/marvel-acquires-cover-concepts |archive-date=July 15, 2014 }}</ref>
In 2006, Hearst acquired an interest in Fitch Group, a global financial services company. Hearst increased its ownership of Fitch Group to 80% in 2015, and to 100% in 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hearst Diversifies Revenue With Fitch Group Acquisition |url=https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/317530/hearst-diversifies-revenue-with-fitch-group-acquis.html?mobile-app=true&theme=false |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=www.mediapost.com |language=en}}</ref>
In 2009, A&E Networks acquired Lifetime Entertainment Services, with Hearst ownership increasing to 42%.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://variety.com/2009/scene/markets-festivals/a-e-acquires-lifetime-1118007820/|title=A&E Acquires Lifetime|last=Schneider|first=Michael|date=August 27, 2009|work=Variety|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102232152/http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118007820?refCatId=14|archive-date=November 2, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/ae-networks-lifetime-merger-completed-35353|title=A&E Networks, Lifetime Merger Completed|last=Atkinson|first=Claire|date=August 27, 2009|work=Broadcasting & Cable|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190424002819/https://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/ae-networks-lifetime-merger-completed-35353|archive-date=April 24, 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref>
In 2010, Hearst acquired digital marketing agency iCrossing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/03/google-and-hearst-make-digital-acquisitions/|title=Google and Hearst Make Digital Acquisitions|last=Elliott|first=Stuart|date=June 3, 2010|website=Media Decoder Blog|publisher=The New York Times Company|language=en-US|access-date=April 24, 2019}}</ref>
In 2011, Hearst absorbed more than 100 magazine titles from the Lagardère Group for more than $700 million and became a challenger of Time Inc ahead of Condé Nast. In December 2012, Hearst Corporation partnered again with NBCUniversal to launch Esquire Network.
On February 20, 2014, Hearst Magazines International appointed Gary Ellis to the new position, Chief Digital Officer.<ref name="Hearst Magazines International Makes Digital Hire">{{cite web |url=https://wwd.com/business-news/media/hearst-magazines-international-makes-digital-hire-7491274/ |title=Hearst Magazines International Makes Digital Hire |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |date=February 20, 2014 |access-date=February 24, 2014 |last=Steigrad |first=Alexandra}}</ref> That December, DreamWorks Animation sold a 25% stake in AwesomenessTV for $81.25 million to Hearst.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-dreamworks-hearst-20141211-story.html|title=Hearst Corp. buys 25% stake in AwesomenessTV|last=Verrier|first=Richard|date=December 11, 2014|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=December 16, 2014}}</ref>
In January 2017, Hearst announced that it had acquired a majority stake in Litton Entertainment; Litton entertainment was rebranded as Hearst Media Production Group in 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Albiniaklast |first=Paige |date=2022-01-13 |title=Hearst Media Production Group is Litton Entertainment's New Name |url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/hearst-media-production-group-is-the-new-name-of-litton-entertainment |access-date=2025-04-23 |website=Broadcasting+Cable |language=en}}</ref> Its CEO, Dave Morgan, was a former employee of Hearst.<ref name="tvspy-hearstlitton">{{cite news |title=Hearst Invests in Media Entertainment Production Company |url=https://www.adweek.com/tvspy/hearst-invests-in-media-entertainment-production-company/183796/ |journal=TVSpy |last=Eck |first=Kevin |date=January 9, 2017 |access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Hearst Acquires Majority Stake in Independent Distributor Litton Entertainment |url=https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/hearst-entertainment-litton-acquires-syndication-1201954104/ |work=Variety |last=Littleton |first=Cynthia |date=January 6, 2017 |access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref>
On January 23, 2017, Hearst announced that it had acquired the business operations of The Pioneer Group from fourth-generation family owners Jack and John Batdorff. The Pioneer Group was a Michigan-based communications network that circulates print and digital news to local communities across the state. In addition to daily newspapers, ''The Pioneer'' and ''Manistee News Advocate'', Pioneer published three weekly papers and four local shopper publications, and operated a digital marketing services business.<ref name=IPA>{{cite news| title=Hearst buys 145-year-old Pioneer Group from Batdorff family members| url=http://www.inlandpress.org/stories/hearst-buys-145-year-old-pioneer-group-from-batdorff-family-members,8258| date=February 10, 2017| access-date=August 28, 2018| website=Inland Press Association| archive-date=November 27, 2022| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221127042605/http://www.inlandpress.org/stories/hearst-buys-145-year-old-pioneer-group-from-batdorff-family-members,8258| url-status=usurped}}</ref> The acquisition brought Hearst Newspapers to publishing 19 daily and 61 weekly papers.
Other 2017 acquisitions include the ''New Haven Register'' and associated papers from Digital First Media,<ref>{{cite news| title=Hearst Media Acquires New Haven Register, Other Digital First Assets| url=https://www.wnpr.org/post/hearst-media-acquires-new-haven-register-other-digital-first-assets| last=Jones| first=Harriet| date=June 6, 2017| website=Connecticut Public Radio}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| last=Singer| first=Stephen| url=https://www.courant.com/business/hc-hearst-acquisitions-20170605-story.html| title=Hearst Acquires New Haven Register, Other Publications| date=June 5, 2017| work=Hartford Courant}}</ref> and the Alton, Illinois, ''Telegraph'' and Jacksonville, Illinois, ''Journal-Courier'' from Civitas Media.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/news/2017/09/01/hearst-acquires-alton-newspaper.html| title=Hearst Acquires Alton Newspaper| date=September 1, 2017| last=Mueller| first=Angela| work=St. Louis Business Journal| access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.myjournalcourier.com/news/article/Hearst-acquires-Journal-Courier-Telegraph-12587232.php| title=Hearst Acquires Journal-Courier, Telegraph| date=August 31, 2017| work=Journal-Courier| archive-date=February 27, 2021| access-date=February 14, 2021| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210227062925/https://www.myjournalcourier.com/news/article/Hearst-acquires-Journal-Courier-Telegraph-12587232.php| url-status=dead}}</ref>
In October 2017, Hearst announced it would acquire the magazine and book businesses of Rodale in Emmaus, Pennsylvania with some sources reporting the purchase price as about $225 million. The transaction was expected to close in January following government approvals.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.mcall.com/business/mc-biz-hearst-buys-rodale-20170927-story.html| title=Media giant Hearst will acquire Rodale| last=Wagaman| first=Andrew| date=October 18, 2017| work=The Morning Call| access-date=October 21, 2017| location=Allentown, Pennsylvania}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/hearst-agrees-to-acquire-rodale-inc-publisher-of-mens-health-and-runners-world-1508361381|title=Hearst Agrees to Acquire Rodale Inc., Publisher of Men's Health and Runner's World|last=Trachtenberg|first=Jeffrey A.|date=October 18, 2017|work=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=October 21, 2017|issn=0099-9660}}</ref>
In 2018, Hearst acquired the global health and wellness magazine brands owned by Rodale, Inc.<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 9, 2018 |title=Hearst Completes Acquisition of Rodale Inc. Magazine Media Brands |url=https://www.hearst.com/-/hearst-completes-acquisition-of-rodale-inc-magazine-media-brands |access-date=2024-01-04 |website=www.hearst.com}}</ref>
In June 2020, Hearst Autos announced the acquisition of Bring a Trailer, a digital auction platform and auto enthusiast community.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.autoweek.com/news/industry-news/a32712976/hearst-autos-acquires-bring-a-trailer/|title=Hearst Autos Acquires Bring a Trailer|date=June 25, 2020|website=Autoweek|access-date=October 24, 2025}}</ref>
In April 2023, Hearst bought WBBH-TV, an NBC-affiliated television station in Fort Myers, Florida, from Waterman Broadcasting Corporation.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 5, 2023 |title=Hearst To Acquire WBBH-TV (NBC Affiliate), Fort Myers/Naples TV Market Leader, Expanding Florida TV Presence |url=https://www.hearst.com/-/hearst-to-acquire-wbbh-tv-nbc-affiliate-fort-myers/naples-tv-market-leader-expanding-florida-tv-presence |access-date=2024-01-04 |website=www.hearst.com}}</ref> In June 2023, Hearst acquired the ''Journal Inquirer''<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2023-06-03 |title=Hearst CT Media acquires the Journal Inquirer |url=https://www.ctinsider.com/news/article/hearst-ct-media-journal-inquirer-manchester-deal-18133277.php |access-date=2024-01-04 |website=CT Insider |language=en-US}}</ref> and later in October 2023 bought ''San Antonio Magazine.'' The company paid $150,000 in cash plus an amount equal to 90% of the magazine's accounts receivable<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nowlin |first=Sanford |title=The Express-News' parent company is buying San Antonio Magazine |url=https://www.sacurrent.com/news/the-express-news-parent-company-is-buying-san-antonio-magazine-32945914 |access-date=2024-01-04 |website=San Antonio Current |date=October 26, 2023 |language=en}}</ref>
In November 2023, Hearst acquired all print and digital operations owned by RJ Media Group, including the ''Record-Journal'', seven weekly newspapers and a digital advertising agency.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |last2= |first2= |last3= |date=2023-11-27 |title=Hearst CT Media to acquire Meriden Record-Journal |url=https://www.editorandpublisher.com/stories/hearst-ct-media-to-acquire-meriden-record-journal,246884 |access-date=2023-11-27 |website=Editor & Publisher |language=en}}</ref> In December 2023, Hearst bought Puzzmo, a puzzle games website.<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 4, 2023 |title=Hearst Newspapers Acquires Puzzle Games Platform Puzzmo |url=https://www.hearst.com/-/hearst-newspapers-acquires-puzzle-games-platform-puzzmo |access-date=2024-01-04 |website=www.hearst.com}}</ref>
In April 2024, Hearst acquired the Texas magazines ''Austin Monthly'' and ''Austin Home'' from Open Sky Media. A new organization called Hearst Texas Austin Media was created to manage the titles along with the ''Austin Daily'' newsletter which was created early that year.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brack |first=Richard |title=Hearst Newspapers buys 2 Austin magazines, creates media company |url=https://www.expressnews.com/business/article/hearst-newspapers-buys-two-austin-magazines-18928300.php |access-date=2024-04-05 |work=San Antonio Express-News |language=en}}</ref> Hearst bought a majority of the Motor Trend Group, including Motor Trend and its TV network counterpart, Hot Rod, Roadkill, and Automobile, in December 2024.
In August 2024, Hearst announced it would acquire QGenda, a provider of healthcare workforce management software solutions, from investment firms Francisco Partners and ICONIQ Growth.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kreutzer |first=Laura |date=2024-08-12 |title=Francisco Partners to Sell QGenda to Hearst in a More Than $2 Billion Exit |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/francisco-partners-to-sell-qgenda-to-hearst-in-a-more-than-2-billion-exit-a9fb921f |access-date=2025-05-29 |work=Wall Street Journal |language=en-US |issn=0099-9660}}</ref> QGenda became the sixth business in the Hearst Health division<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fischer |first=Sara |date=2024-11-26 |title=For the first time, Hearst's B2B profits exceed media's share |url=https://www.axios.com/2024/11/26/hearst-media-profit-b2b |access-date=2025-05-29 |website=Axios |language=en}}</ref> following the acquisition of MCG (formerly Milliman Care Guidelines) in 2012,<ref>{{Cite press release |last=Hearst |date=2012-11-05 |title=Hearst Corporation Agrees to Acquire Milliman Care Guidelines LLC |url=https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2012/11/05/1009981/0/en/Hearst-Corporation-Agrees-to-Acquire-Milliman-Care-Guidelines-LLC.html |access-date=2025-05-29 |website=GlobeNewswire News Room |language=en-us}}</ref> majority stakes in Homecare Homebase in 2013<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ecker |first=Elizabeth |date=2013-12-12 |title=Hearst Corporation Buys Home Health, Hospice Tech Company |url=https://homehealthcarenews.com/2013/12/hearst-corporation-buys-home-health-hospice-tech-company/ |access-date=2025-05-29 |website=Home Health Care News |language=en-US}}</ref> and MHK (formerly MedHOK) in 2016.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Media, health care giant Hearst buying majority stake in Tampa software firm MedHOK |url=https://www.tampabay.com/news/business/corporate/media-healthcare-giant-hearst-buying-majority-stake-in-tampa-software/2281582/ |access-date=2025-05-29 |website=Tampa Bay Times |language=en}}</ref>
In July 2025, Hearst announced its purchase of the ''Dallas Morning News.''<ref>{{Cite web |title=DallasNews Corporation To Join Hearst - HEARST |url=https://www.hearst.com/-/dallasnews-corporation-to-join-hearst |access-date=2025-07-22 |website=HEARST |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Chief executive officers == * In 1880, George Hearst entered the newspaper business, acquiring the ''San Francisco Daily Examiner.'' * On March 4, 1887, he turned the ''Examiner'' over to his son, 23-year-old William Randolph Hearst, who was named editor and publisher. William Hearst died in 1951, at age 88. * In 1951, Richard E. Berlin, who had been president of the company since 1943, succeeded William Hearst as chief executive officer. Berlin retired in 1973.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/02/28/archives/hearst-corporation-reassigns-several-of-its-top-executives.html|title=Hearst Corporation Reassigns Several of Its Top Executives|date=February 28, 1973|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 23, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> William Randolph Hearst Jr. claimed in 1991 that Berlin had suffered from Alzheimer's disease starting in the mid-1960s and that caused him to shut down several Hearst newspapers without just cause.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ep9ZAAAAMAAJ&q=berlin+alzheimer%27s|title=The Hearsts: Father and Son|last1=Hearst| first1=William Randolph Jr. |last2=Casserly|first2=Jack|publisher=Roberts Rinehart|year=1991|isbn=978-1879373044|location=New York|pages=309–310|author-link=William Randolph Hearst Jr.}}</ref> * From 1973 to 1975, Frank Massi, a longtime Hearst financial officer, was president, during which time he carried out a financial reorganization followed by an expansion program in the late 1970s.<ref>{{cite press release| title=Frank Massi, Former President of the Hearst Corporation, Dead at 85| url=https://www.hearst.com/-/frank-massi-former-president-of-the-hearst-corporation-dead-at-85| date=August 7, 1995| access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref> * From 1975 to 1979, John R. Miller was Hearst president and chief executive officer.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hearst.com/files/hearst-timeline-november-2011.pdf |title=A brief history of the Hearst Corporation |access-date=January 25, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120428080513/http://www.hearst.com/files/hearst-timeline-november-2011.pdf |archive-date=April 28, 2012}}</ref> * Frank Bennack was CEO and president from 1979 to 2002, when he became vice chairman, returning as CEO from 2008 to 2013, and remains executive vice chairman.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.hearst.com/about/bios/frank-a-bennack-Jr| title=Frank A. Bennack, Jr.| website=Hearst Corporation| access-date=August 16, 2018}}</ref> * Victor F. Ganzi was president and CEO from 2002 to 2008.<ref>{{cite journal| url=https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/person.asp?personId=90817&privcapId=233421838| title=Company Overview of Pulte Capital Partners LLC: Executive Profile, Victor F. Ganzi| journal=Bloomberg Businessweek| access-date=August 16, 2018}}</ref> * Steven Swartz has been president since 2012, and CEO since 2013.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.hearst.com/about/bios/steven-r-swartz| title=Steven R. Swartz| website=Hearst Corporation| access-date=August 16, 2018}}</ref>
{{anchor|Foundation}}
== Trustees of William Randolph Hearst's will ==
Under William Randolph Hearst's will, a common board of thirteen trustees (its composition fixed at five family members and eight outsiders) administers the Hearst Foundation, the William Randolph Hearst Foundation, and the trust that owns (and selects the 26-member<ref>[https://www.hearst.com/-/new-directors-elected-at-hearst press release, "New Directors Elected at Hearst"]</ref> board of) the Hearst Corporation (parent of Hearst Communications which shares the same officers). The foundations shared ownership with the Hearst Corporation until tax law changed to prevent this and are now independent private philanthropies.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.hearstfdn.org/about/about-hearst-foundations/| title=About the Hearst Foundations| website=Hearst Foundations| access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Board of Directors {{!}} Hearst Foundations|url=https://www.hearstfdn.org/board-of-directors|access-date=2022-01-09|website=www.hearstfdn.org}}</ref>
In 2009, the Hearst Corporation was estimated to be the largest private company managed by trustees in this way.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://money.cnn.com/2009/11/24/news/companies/bunky_hearst.fortune/index.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091127135521/http://money.cnn.com/2009/11/24/news/companies/bunky_hearst.fortune/index.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 27, 2009|title=Citizen Bunky: A Hearst family scandal|date=November 25, 2009|website=archive.fortune.com|access-date=December 24, 2018}}</ref> As of 2017, the trustees are:<ref>{{cite press release| url=https://www.hearst.com/-/mitchell-scherzer-elected-a-trustee-of-the-hearst-family| title=Mitchell Scherzer Elected a Trustee of the Hearst Family Trust| access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref>
=== Family members ===
* Anissa Boudjakdji Balson, granddaughter of fifth son, David Whitmire Hearst Sr. * Lisa Hearst Hagerman, granddaughter of third son, John Randolph Hearst Sr. * George Randolph Hearst III, grandson of Hearst's eldest son, George Randolph Hearst Sr., and publisher of the ''Albany Times Union'' * William Randolph Hearst III, son of second son, William Randolph Hearst Jr., and chairman of the board of the corporation * Virginia Hearst Randt, daughter of late former chairman and fourth son, Randolph Apperson Hearst
=== Non-family members ===
* James M. Asher, chief legal and development officer of the corporation * David J. Barrett, former chief executive officer of Hearst Television, Inc. * Frank A. Bennack Jr., former chief executive officer and executive vice chairman of the corporation * John G. Conomikes, former executive of the corporation, preceded Barrett at Hearst-Argyle Television * Gilbert C. Maurer, former chief operating officer of the corporation and former president of Hearst Magazines ''died April 6th 2025''<ref>[https://www.hearst.com/-/gilbert-c.-maurer-director-and-former-chief-operating-officer-of-hearst-and-trustee-under-the-will-of-william-randolph-hearst-dies-at-96 Press release announcing death of Maurer]</ref> * Mark F. Miller, former executive vice president of Hearst Magazines * Mitchell Scherzer, executive vice president and chief financial officer of the corporation * Steven R. Swartz, president and chief executive officer of the corporation * Paul G. Taylor, senior vice president of the corporation and president and chief executive officer of Fitch Group.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hearst |first=Press Release {{!}} |date=2025-07-15 |title=Paul G. Taylor elected a trustee of the Hearst Family Trust |url=https://www.editorandpublisher.com/stories/paul-g-taylor-elected-a-trustee-of-the-hearst-family-trust,256725 |access-date=2025-09-28 |website=Editor and Publisher |language=en}}</ref>
The trust dissolves when all family members alive at the time of Hearst's death in August 1951 have died.
== See also == {{portal bar|Companies|Media|New York City}} * 224 West 57th Street, building formerly occupied by Hearst Magazines * List of assets owned by Hearst Communications * Newsboys' strike of 1899 {{Clear}}
== References == {{reflist}}
== Further reading == * Carlisle, Rodney. "The Foreign Policy Views of an Isolationist Press Lord: WR Hearst and the International Crisis, 1936–41." ''Journal of Contemporary History'' 9.3 (1974): 217–227. * Nasaw, David. ''The Chief: The Life of William Randolph Hearst. ''(2000). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. {{ISBN|0-395-82759-0}}., a prominent scholarly biography. * Pizzitola, Louis. ''Hearst over Hollywood: power, passion, and propaganda in the movies'' (Columbia UP, 2002). * Procter, Ben H. ''William Randolph Hearst: Final Edition, 1911–1951.'' (Oxford UP 2007). * Whyte, Kenneth. ''The uncrowned king: The sensational rise of William Randolph Hearst'' (2009).
== External links == {{Commons category|Hearst Corporation}} * {{Official website|https://www.hearst.com/}} * [https://www.hearstglobalsolutions.com/ Hearst Global Solutions] * [https://www.hearstfdn.org/ The Hearst Foundation, Inc.]
{{Hearst|state=expanded}} {{Authority control}}
Category:Hearst Communications Category:Hearst family Category:Mass media companies established in 1887 Category:Mass media companies based in New York City Category:Magazine publishing companies of the United States Category:Newspaper companies of the United States Category:Publishing companies based in New York City Category:Companies based in Manhattan Category:American companies established in 1887 Category:Publishing companies established in 1887 Category:1887 establishments in California Category:Privately held companies based in New York City Category:William Randolph Hearst Category:Family-owned companies of the United States