Why Does The New York Times (NYT) Have Three CEOs?

The New York Times (NYT) is not a huge company  by most measures It has less than 10,000 employees and a market cap of just over $600 million.

NYT has three people who could act as CEO. Two of them are members of the family which controls the parent corporation. All three are paid well, and two appear to have little to do.

The NYT proxy lists Michael Golden as Vice Chairman. As one point he tried to take over the top job. Instead he got to run The International Herald Tribune, a sabbatical job based in Paris. Years ago, he oversaw the company’s magazines, which have since been sold.

Golden made $627,000 in base salary last year, which is a lot of money for an executive who has almost no responsibility at a company which is losing operating income rapidly. With its share price down to $4.34 from a 52-week high of $21.14, the board should let Golden have the top job which he has wanted for so long, or get him to retire and save the shareholders the money.

Janet Robinson is listed as the CEO of The New York Times Company. She really isn’t because the chairman, Arthur Sulzberger, Jr. controls the firm. Robinson made $1 million last year in a job which should not exist. The senior managers who operate the company’s major divisions don’t need her. They could just as easily report to Sulzberger who has been involved at the company for decades and could simply drop the charade about who is in charge.

That leaves Sulzberger himself.  The publisher of the New York Times made $1,087,000 last year. His only role appears to be running the board, part time, and acting as Robinson’s boss.

Both the employees and shareholders of the Times would like to think that the company is not passing out cash to three people doing the work of one, but that is exactly what is happening.

Douglas A. McIntyre