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Recent Press Releases (U.S. and international) for magazine issues and staff changes may be found below. Please note that for many issues there exists only a highlights sheet, while for others there may also be a full press release. The cover of FORTUNE's current issue is pictured at right. Please contact the appropriate communications staff member with any questions.
SPECIAL REPORT: AMERICAN WEALTH Private Money, by Rik Kirkland, page 50 Do you start your day with a cup of Dunkin' Donuts coffee and lunch at Burger King? Shop at J. Crew, Toys “R” Us, Neiman Marcus? Rent cars from Hertz, watch movies at a Loews cinema, gamble at Harrah's, or sleep at a Fairmont hotel? All these as well as less visible products and services are controlled (or were recently bought, then sold) by private-equity firms. And rumors continue to swirl that once-untouchable names such as Gap, Dell, Home Depot, even IBM could one day be sucked into the private-equity vortex. Of the record $1.56 trillion spent on mergers and acquisitions in the U.S. last year, private-equity buyouts accounted for 25% of the action, up from 10% in 2005. Private equity's firepower has never been greater. Last year firms in the U.S. raised a record $156 billion in new capital. According to Blackstone, the global buyout industry currently has $400 billion available to be invested. With leverage, that $400 billion represents as much as $2 trillion in potential buying power. “ The whole world of corporate ownership is undergoing dramatic changes, every bit as dramatic as when mutual funds first appeared ,” says investment fund manager Eddie Lampert. ALSO: The Top 10 Players, page 63 FORTUNE's “Power List” ranks and rates today's leading private-equity firms.
Wall Street's Man of the Moment, by Nelson D. Schwartz, page 74 Today Wall Street's newest titans can be found every Monday morning gathered around a long, slightly scuffed conference table in a windowless boardroom high above Park Avenue , the home of the Blackstone Group. Wearing white shirts and pinstriped suits that underscore their Harvard Business School credentials, Blackstone's top dealmakers have learned well the techniques pioneered by previous masters. What makes them different is that they also happen to dominate the iconic business of this decade—private equity. Presiding over this weekly gathering is Stephen Schwarzman, Blackstone' s 60-year-old CEO. Blackstone controls 47 companies, with more than $85 billion in revenue fr om wildly different businesses. The hard part about working at Blackstone isn't that it's bare knuckles, like Bear Stearns, but that there's the relentless pressure to succeed. “ Each time they suit up, they expect to win ,” says Mark Gallogly, who ran Blackstone's private-equity group before leaving in 2005 to start his own firm, Centerbridge Partners. “ That's what's Steve's been able to maintain .” James Lee Jr., vice chairman of J.P. Morgan Chase and a banker to Blackstone since the firm's launch in 1985 is blunter. “ You need to bring your A-game every day,” he says . “It's not summer camp .” An Almanac of American Wealth, by Ellen Florian Kratz and Doris Burke, page 81 Let's face it: One million dollars ain't what it used to be. Still, any household with that much in the bank is doing fine, thanks. So how many Americans hit that mark? In terms of assets, about 5.3 million households do. In terms of income, the figure is considerably smaller—about 502,000 in 2004, or one-half of 1% of all tax returns. Money in America is still predominantly white—the median net worth of a white household was $141,000 in 2004, compared with $25,000 for a nonwhite one. And yes, it is true that wealthier Americans have been getting richer faster than middle-class or poorer ones. Those in the top 10% of income have seen their net worth increase almost 60% since 1998, compared with little change among the bottom 40%. It's not true, though, that the rich escape taxes: People who make $1 million or more a year pay about 21% of total personal taxes. Richer Americans are more likely to identify themselves as Republican, but the richest states tended to vote blue in 2004. The picture of wealth in America is complicated and sometimes even strange; this is FORTUNE's impressionistic effort to portray some of that complexity.
FEATURES Bob Wright's Next Move, by Tim Arango, page 87 In an exclusive interview, the outgoing chairman of NBC Universal talks about the network's future, his old boss Jack Welch, and the fight to cure autism. When asked about the possibility of GE spinning off NBC Universal in the next three to five years, Wright said, “I wouldn't be surprised. I also think Immelt means exactly what he says. He wants it to be successful, and he wants it to stay part of GE. I understand that very well, because when this business is operating well, it's a very attractive part of GE. And where it can be difficult is, if something isn't perfect in the business, its imperfections become a noisy part of a company like GE. There may well come a time, and I'm not saying it's anytime [soon], where the fit isn't as good as he'd like. And he has to manage his portfolio.”
Big Plane, Big Problems, by Nelson D. Schwartz, page 94 Sometime in late March a giant will make its first appearance in the skies over the U.S. The Airbus A380, the largest passenger plane ever built, will touch down at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City before heading to Chicago's O'Hare. While plane spotters and other aviation enthusiasts eagerly await their first sighting of the 239-foot-long monster, another group will be watching even more closely—long-suffering A380 customers who have endured one delay after another and are now wrestling with whether to stick with the A380 or bail out and order planes from archrival Boeing instead. FedEx has already done just that, stunning Airbus in November by canceling a $3 billion order for ten planes and striking a $3.5 billion deal with Boeing for ten new 777s. The blow was the latest in a series of setbacks for the audacious $14 billion project to launch a 555-passenger aircraft—setbacks that have caused the once-highflying company to lose its lead over Boeing. ALSO: Anatomy of an A380, page 101 The story of a plane, a promise, and a company that fell to earth.
DEPARTMENTS FIRST The Money-Honey Mess The imbroglio involving CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo and fired Citi exec Todd Thomson is about much more than plane rides—and it may not be over. Shanghai Law Will a lawsuit against Sony in China set a scary precedent? DISPATCHES Hanging It Up America always needs hangers but may not make them much longer. The last days of a low-tech factory. Iran 's Cola Wars Sanctions? What sanctions? Coke and Pepsi are battling for the hearts and minds of Tehran . COLUMNS Politics Meet Unity '08, a Net-powered third party that may actually work. Value Driven A series of rules changes is eroding the authority of chief execs. Technology Why smart companies can be too smart for their own good. INVESTING Verizon's Big Bet on Fiber The phone giant is spending billions of dollars on new technology. But any payoff is years away. At Times, The Worst Are First Admired Companies don't always have the best returns. BUSINESS LIFE The Fractional Life With jewelry, yachts, and vineyards available by the slice, even the superrich are learning to share. Joy Ride At long last Audi announces the R8, a two-seater that brings the brand's Le Mans–winning capabilities to the street. FORTUNE is available in digital format. To access this version go to http://Digital.Fortune.Com
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