Hollywood starts with an agent

Chapter 565 The Los Angeles Times

Dawn's superhero blockbuster "Spider-Man" has received much attention since filming began, whether it was filming on a large set in Los Angeles or at Columbia University in New York.
The Spider-Man production team hired a large number of diverse personnel, and this welding accident that resulted in injury or death quickly sparked some discussion.

However, Dawn quickly refuted the accusations and immediately cooperated with the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration in investigating the cause of the accident!

Burbank, Dawn Headquarters.

Aaron sat in his office, flipping through a research report on the CBS Group, which currently consists of five main business units:
Broadcasting department, television network, self-operated television station, news department, and cable television network;
CBS has 12 directly affiliated television stations in cities such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Seattle, Houston, and St. Louis, and 208 affiliated television stations nationwide.
It also operates FM radio stations, with more than 170 affiliated stations, and cable television networks including TNN (Nashville Network), CMT (Country Music Television Network), and EOP Entertainment Cable Television Network.

Aaron glanced at Charles Johnson, chairman of the Franklin Templeton Investments Group. "CBS Broadcasting Network, do you have any suggestions regarding pricing?"

Charles Johnson thought for a moment, "If you include the debt, it won't be less than $330 billion!"

Aaron leaned back in his chair. "Viacom can afford that price; the Summer Redstone family's National Entertainment Company owns more than 20% of Viacom."

“The voting rights are roughly 70%, which means Sumner Redstone can make the decision with a single word. Based on my understanding of Sumner Redstone, he is quite eccentric and will definitely resort to a share swap.”

Aaron's meaning was clear: Dawn's stock was worth more than Viacom's, and he didn't want to exchange too much Dawn stock for it!

Charles Johnson smiled. "Aaron, Westinghouse Electric also needs cash right now. If Dawn can come up with a large sum of cash, it will have a greater advantage."

"Furthermore, Viacom's subsidiaries, whether Paramount or other cable television stations, cannot compare in influence to Dawn's Universal and AMC."

"With the explosive growth of the internet, the importance of the content sector has become increasingly apparent. Dawn TV and Universal Pictures possess production capabilities that surpass all others in Hollywood."

“Westhouse Electric’s shareholders also understand that merging with Dawn is a more promising prospect than Viacom.”

Aaron nodded. "CBS is, after all, one of the three major wireless broadcasting networks in the United States, a national news platform; it's too much to handle."

"I will go to Washington, D.C., to seek some political support!"

Charles Johnson readily agreed, stating, "Ideally, we could persuade some committees in Congress to support it; FOX, as the fourth largest wireless television network in the United States, with seven directly affiliated stations, already wields considerable influence."

"ABC, CBS, and NBC are the top three wireless broadcasting networks in the United States, and their influence on public opinion cannot be ignored."

“The support from Washington, D.C. is very important.”

Aaron let out a sigh of relief. "Westhouse Electric's deadline for their quote is May 1st. You and your team will go and negotiate with them."

"Dawn's 10% stake in AOL is also a bargaining chip in the deal."

Charles Johnson's eyes lit up. "AOL's market capitalization has already exceeded $800 billion, and its stock price is still skyrocketing."

"Dawn's 10% stake in AOL is invaluable!"

Aaron glanced at Charles Johnson discreetly. "Whatever, all I want is CBS; nothing else matters."

"I want to see what Viacom has to offer to compete with me." Now, the dot-com bubble is nearing its peak, and Aaron is preparing to sell his shares at the peak, whether it's AOL or Yahoo and a series of other stocks.
This means they will keep Microsoft stock, and they will continue to buy more!

"understand……"

With the holding of award ceremonies by the Hollywood Directors Guild and Producers Guild, "Chicago" won the Producers Guild Award, while "Saving Private Ryan" won the Directors Guild Award.

The battle for the Oscars between "Chicago" and "Saving Private Ryan" has reached a fever pitch.

Los Angeles, Culver Hotel, Aaron attends a business cocktail party hosted by California’s new governor, Gray Davis!
At the reception, Aaron met Otis Chandler, chairman of the Times-Mirror Group, the parent company of the Los Angeles Times.

"I've heard that the Chicago Tribune Group is interested in the Times-Mirror Group?"

Aaron raised his glass and clinked it against Otis Chandler's, asking a question.

Otis Chandler smiled. "The Tribune Group has its eye on the Los Angeles Times; they want to expand their market share in the American newspaper industry."

"We've only just started talking to each other, as you know. With the rise of the internet industry, I'm somewhat pessimistic about the future of print newspapers."

Dawn only owns one major newspaper – The Houston Post, so Otis Chandler doesn't need to worry that Dawn will be interested in the newspaper industry.

“Print media,” Aaron shook his head, “I don’t know the specifics, but your *Los Angeles Times* is one of the nation’s top daily newspapers;”

"Besides the Forum Newspaper Company, I think other newspaper groups will definitely have similar ideas."

Otis Chandler took a sip of his drink. "What's going on here? Right now, the whole of Hollywood is buzzing that Dawn and Viacom are bidding for CB Radio Networks?"

Aaron shrugged. "With Dawn currently at its peak, do you think Viacom can stop it?"

Then, Aaron remembered something else: "There was an accident on the set of Dawn's Spider-Man recently."

"The news of two welders falling from a high platform, resulting in one death and one injury, is making headlines quite a bit these days."

"I need the Los Angeles Times to publish some more impartial articles!"

Otis Chandler, of course, understood what Aaron Anderson meant. "Don't worry, it's fine. People are dying in Los Angeles every day."

"It's currently the lead-up to the Oscars, which makes it easy to attract public attention."

Aaron chuckled and took a sip of his drink. "The Chicago Times will continue to give it a big shout-out in the Los Angeles Times!"

In every respect, DreamWorks cannot compare with Dawn, mainly because the reputation of "Saving Private Ryan" is not like that of "Forrest Gump" back then;
Chicago received better critical acclaim than Saving Private Ryan, but Saving Private Ryan was more commercially successful...

(End of this chapter)