Megan Greenwell served as editor-in-chief of Dead Spin when it was purchased in 2019 by a private equity firm based in Boston. After witnessing what she perceived as a misguided decision from her new boss for three months, she decided to leave. Two months later, her staff followed suit. Within five years, the once-thriving online sports magazine became synonymous with inappropriate reports and was listed for sale on a little-known Maltese website.
Disturbed by what she observed, the seasoned journalist resolved to delve deep into a somewhat misunderstood and lightly regulated industry that encompasses hospitals, daycare centers, supermarket chains, newspapers, commercial and residential properties, and more. That includes major players like Blackstone, the Carlyle Group, Apollo Global Management, KKR, and Cerberus Capital Management. But what questions lingered in her mind?
Her research culminated in “Bad Company: Private Equity and the Death of the American Dream,” a comprehensive, engaging, and profoundly unsettling account of how the private equity sector restructured the American economy for its own advantage, robbing ordinary citizens of their livelihoods, healthcare, and security while generating a new class of billionaires.
Rather than addressing the issue from a macroeconomic standpoint, she narrates the experiences of four remarkable individuals whose lives were shattered following private equity takeovers. Liz was a renowned floor supervisor for Toys R Us, which was acquired by Mitt Romney’s firm Bain Capital and other investors, leading to the dismissal of 33,000 employees without retirement benefits.
Roger was providing medical care in rural Wyoming when private equity swooped in and disrupted services. Natalia was employed by the local Gannett newspaper when the chain slashed over half of its staff after years under private equity ownership. Meanwhile, Lauren, an affordable housing organizer, left public housing only to end up in a mold-infested, rodent-ridden apartment in Northern Virginia, owned by a private corporation situated across the continent.
Greenwell presents a vital resource for navigating a largely opaque industry, contributing generously to both Congressional Democrats and Republicans while amplifying the call for the American Dream. Despite her deep engagement with this predatory landscape, she maintains a surprisingly optimistic outlook. “Each year,” she notes, “some individuals like Liz, Roger, Natalia, and Lauren emerge to fight back.”
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Source: apnews.com