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Outlet profile

The Hollywood Reporter

U.S. entertainment trade press, center-left cultural orientation

Owned byOwned by Penske Media Corporation (PMC), the Los Angeles-based media company controlled by CEO Jay Penske; PMC acquired an 80% stake in 2020 from Media Rights Capital (Eldridge Industries retains a minority interest)
FundingAdvertising and sponsorships, digital and print subscriptions, and licensing/awards-season business revenue, as part of the broader PMC portfolio (which also owns Variety, Rolling Stone, Billboard, Deadline, and others)
On the administrationmostly neutral

Background

Founded in 1930 by Billy Wilkerson as a daily trade paper covering the film industry, The Hollywood Reporter grew into one of the two dominant entertainment trade publications alongside its rival Variety. It changed hands several times over the decades, including ownership by BPI Communications/Nielsen and later Guggenheim Partners' eOne/Media Rights Capital-linked entities. In 2020, Penske Media Corporation — which had already acquired Variety in 2012 and built a stable of entertainment and lifestyle titles — paid roughly $225 million for an 80% stake in The Hollywood Reporter's parent, consolidating the two historic rival trades under one owner. This concentration has drawn scrutiny from critics who note PMC's outsized influence over entertainment-industry narratives, awards coverage, and even awards-season campaigning (PMC also owns Dick Clark Productions and has been involved in Golden Globes-related business). THR is best known for original investigative and business journalism on Hollywood studios, streaming, labor disputes (e.g., the 2023 WGA/SAG-AFTRA strikes), and awards-season analysis, generally seen as trade-press-professional rather than overtly partisan, though its op-ed and feature coverage often reflects the socially liberal leanings prevalent in the industry it covers.

Sources

  1. Hollywood Reporter Parent MRC Teams With Penske Media for Publishing and Content Ventures
  2. Penske Media paid $225 million for an 80% stake in The Hollywood Reporter's parent | Nieman Journalism Lab
  3. Penske Media Corporation
  4. The Hollywood Reporter
  5. Jay Penske
  6. The great open secret of Hollywood media: it's Penske Media's one-company town - The Globe and Mail

Profile compiled 2026-09-27; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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