Lee Enterprises, Inc. – owner of the Quad City Times and Dispatch/Argus – hopes increasing digital advertising and subscription revenues will eventually offset the steady decline in the media company's print ad and subscription revenue.

But the latest quarterly report shows the difficulty in jumping from print to online revenue streams.

The company lost $16.9 million for the first quarter as print ad revenues plunged more than 19 percent compared to the same period a year ago. A year ago, the company lost $1.6 million during the first quarter.

by Ashley Murray, Iowa Capital Dispatch
January 21, 2025

WASHINGTON — Barring a few exceptions, Senate Republicans on Tuesday largely deflected or altogether avoided questions about President Donald Trump’s broad clemency for over 1,500 defendants who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 — including many who beat police officers, smashed windows and trashed offices as lawmakers hid in designated safe areas.

Just hours into his second term Monday, Trump commuted the sentences of 14 felons, including leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.

The president granted a “full, complete and unconditional pardon to all other individuals convicted of offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021.” He also dismissed any pending indictments.

The pardons did not come as a surprise. As Senate Republicans were cheering for Trump on his march to electoral victory, the former and now current president exalted the “hostages” and “patriots” who injured more than 140 law enforcement officers and caused north of $2.8 million in damage to the Capitol, according to the Department of Justice.

by Cami Koons, Iowa Capital Dispatch
January 13, 2025

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency affirmed its November decision to add seven additional segments to Iowa’s list of impaired waters, following a public comment period. 

EPA announced in November it had partially approved the Iowa Department of Natural Resources’ assessment of surface water quality in the state and called for the inclusion of additional segments on the Cedar, Des Moines, Iowa and South Skunk rivers, based on measured levels of nitrate.

Per EPA documentation, a vast majority of the public comments submitted were in favor of the EPA decision. DNR, which monitors and compiles the impaired waters list every two years, per the Clean Water Act, called EPA’s assessment “illegal” since nitrate is not officially listed as a “toxic pollutant” under the Clean Water Act.

Lee Enterprises, Inc. maintains its transition from a print to digital revenue platform is succeeding, but the Davenport-based media company's overall revenues and earnings continue to slide.

The company reported it lost $1.69 per share ($10 million) for the fourth quarter ended Sept. 29, compared to a loss of 32 cents per share ($1.98 million) for the same quarter a year ago.

For the full year, the company reported it lost $25.8 million ($4.35 per share) compared to a loss of $5.3 million (90 cents per share) for fiscal 2023.

by Allison Kite, Iowa Capital Dispatch
December 6, 2024

Major institutional investors have artificially lowered coal production and raised energy costs for consumers in an effort to lower global carbon emissions, a federal lawsuit claims.

Republican attorneys general in 11 states – including Iowa's Attorney General Breana Bird – filed a joint lawsuit last month against BlackRock, Vanguard and State Street, claiming the organizations’ efforts to pressure coal companies to lower carbon emissions and respond to climate change amount to anti-competitive business practices.

All three companies, the lawsuit says, have acquired significant shares in the largest publicly traded coal companies to coerce their management.

by Robert Leonard and Andrew Green, Iowa Capital Dispatch
November 18, 2024

The election of South Dakota’s Senator John Thune as Senate majority leader is one of the few bright spots for our democracy as we move into the second presidency of Donald Trump.

Trump will have vast powers as he takes over in January, with Republicans holding the House, the Senate, and a compliant Supreme Court that recently granted him immunity from crimes he might commit while in power.

But that’s not enough for Trump. He’s nominating people for cabinet positions that are not only unqualified, they could prove to be a danger to the health and safety of the American people, our alliances abroad, and our democracy. Their only qualification is loyalty to Trump the man, not the Constitution of the United States.

Iowa Capital Dispatch
October 21, 2024

The sale of one of Iowa’s largest nursing home chains has reportedly been completed, with 29 care facilities now in the hands of a private equity firm.

According to Skilled Nursing News, the real estate brokerage firm of Marcus & Millichap says the $85 million transaction represents the largest nursing home sale ever recorded in Iowa. The 29 facilities represent 7% of the 410 nursing homes operating in Iowa.

The sale involves the transfer of care facilities previously owned by one of Iowa’s largest employers, ABCM Corp. of Hampton, to the Chicago-based private equity firm Cascade Capital Group.

According to a statement that Marcus & Millichap provided Skilled Nursing News, the final sale price of $85 million equates to $36,000 for each of ABCM’s 2,346 skilled-nursing beds and 326 assisted living units.

In recent years, the acquisition of nursing homes by private equity investors has come under scrutiny by regulators, the media and members of Congress, with critics suggesting too many profit-minded investors target care facilities for acquisition, starve them of cash while collecting a reliable stream of income from Medicare, and then cash out.