Taylor Lorenz’s Power User Private Equity Is Destroying America
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Jun 25, 2025 
Megan Greenwell, a journalist and author of 'Bad Company', sheds light on the pervasive influence of private equity on the American economy. She discusses how private equity firms, driven by profit, are dismantling healthcare, retail, and local news, leaving job security and essential services in jeopardy. Greenwell highlights the stark realities of corporate takeovers and the grassroots movements rising against them. Amidst the challenges, she also finds glimmers of hope and resilience in communities fighting back.
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Private Equity's Deep Influence
- Private equity firms are highly influential and embedded in powerful cultural institutions.
- This networking creates major hurdles to effective regulation against them.
Private Equity's Profit Tactics
- Private equity firms profit through fees, bonuses, tax breaks, and selling company assets like real estate.
- These strategies often worsen company finances while enriching the investors, even if the company fails.
Ghost Newspapers Phenomenon
- Private equity targeted local newspapers for short-term profits by cutting staff and content drastically.
- This created 'ghost newspapers' with no local reporting but still charging subscriptions.
