American Gossip King

Chapter 237 I Want Your International Influence

The theater attack brought Ian Carl no fewer than four major hot topics, as well as a large number of related events.

The interviews with the hostages, the thrilling gunfights, the sensual behind-the-scenes stories—all of these things captivated and even enthralled people in this event.

With the extensive publicity surrounding this incident, the reputation of the Chechen independence movement has been severely damaged, and it won't be long before they are officially added to the terrorist list.

Ian then used all of this to continue his extensive collusion with local political and business figures in Russia.

Besides Gazprom and Delta, Ian also reached some business agreements with a group of businessmen, including Shevlyanko, the chairman of Padiri Company. In gratitude for Ian saving them, these Russian bosses generously offered Ian the best terms.

Of course, there are also other ways to repay kindness.

For example, Miss Stokaya, the principal dancer of the musical theater troupe, had a voice as beautiful as a nightingale's, and a body so supple and flexible that she could bend over and kiss herself...

Absolutely fantastic.

Considering that the girl was unlikely to go to Russia with him, Ian treated her exceptionally well for a period of time, which made Ekaterina and Natasha jealous.

Of course, Ian would never admit to any of this.

"Lena, baby, I swear, it's just for the sake of the news. It's just the two of them, no one else."

In the hotel room, Ian pleaded repeatedly over the phone.

Gasker, you'd better control your wife. She's getting increasingly strict with me.

This is arrogance based on having a child!

Lena scoffed on the phone, "I've discovered you've found a shortcut to making news: publish all your scandalous affairs! Are you going to hook up with several girls every time you make a story? Why don't you leak our stuff too?"

Ian wailed, "No, Lena, of course not. I saw them all as you. Don't you think Natasha looks a bit like you? When I was with her, I was thinking of you!"

Lena's heart fluttered.

She looked at the man in the video, her eyes filled with affection, and said softly, "I've recovered, you'd better come back soon... I miss you."

Ian nodded with a wry smile: "I still have to go to China, so by the time I get back it will probably be 03. I'm sorry I won't be able to spend Christmas with you."

Lena was taken aback: "What are you going to China for?"

Ian shrugged. "It's business, of course. I have some investments there, and I'm planning to increase them."

Lena gently stroked Ian's face on the video screen, her voice tender: "Take good care of yourself, and don't make any more news."

"Of course, honey, I will." Ian smiled. "China isn't a good place. It's not exciting at all. No gunfights, no good news!"

Lena muttered, "This doesn't sound like a criticism."

………………

It took more than a month to reach an agreement with the Russian parties, and by the time Ian went to China, it was already November.

Ian arranged for Ekaterina and Natasha to go to Los Angeles first, while he went to China.

Capital International Airport.

The passenger plane slowly descended into the sky.

Looking at the familiar Chinese characters, Ian felt a sense of returning to his homeland, and a feeling of warmth welled up in his heart.

As Ian stepped off the plane, he saw Hua Ziruo leading a group of people standing at the entrance, with a red banner hanging above them that read, "Welcome Ian Karl to China."

Indeed, it was a very Chinese-style reception.

Ian smiled and went over to Hua Ziruo, giving him a warm hug: "Do you know what the best thing about coming to China is for me?"

Hua Ziruo asked with a smile, "Food?"

Ian replied, "No, it's because I speak Mandarin, which means I can save money on one translator."

Hua Ziruo laughed heartily and pulled Ian out, saying, "That's a good joke. Ian Carl is actually thinking about saving on translation fees. If your company were listed on the stock exchange, this one sentence could cause the entire company's stock price to fluctuate."

Ian casually remarked, "It's more likely that your media portrays Ian Carl as frugal and hardworking, spending every penny wisely. For him, enjoyment has never been the goal; his career itself is his greatest pursuit."

Typical Southern style!

Hua Ziruo chuckled, "That's certainly very possible; the media sometimes just loves to create idols. But you're an exception. You're a media legend! But do you know that I actually don't want you to come to China?"

Ian laughed, "Because Ian Carl is a raven? Wherever he goes, disaster follows?"

Hua Ziruo smiled and shook his head: "As expected, you understand everything."

Ian comforted him: "Don't worry, at least this time I'm not chasing after rotten flesh... You guys have cleaned your country too cleanly. Finding a good ingredient here requires ten times the luck and a hundred times the effort... To be honest, I hate this. It's the thing I dislike most about China."

Hua Ziruo: "..."

After a long pause, he said, "I know you're joking, Ian. Actually, I'm glad you think so highly of my country. But your country keeps slandering us; in their mouths, we're the nation that treats human life like dirt. If only you could put what you're saying in your media!"

"It's only a matter of time, that's the meaning of my existence," Ian laughed. "But don't expect me to help you completely change Americans' perceptions, that would only make me lose my own value."

indeed!

If all Americans think Chinese people are good people, then what is the point of Ian Carr's existence?

The problem is, aren't you being a bit too blunt?

Hua Ziruo remained silent: "You really are a pure businessman."

No, I still love China.

But the image of a market merchant is indeed a very useful facade!

Using the ugly face of a businessman to cover up my patriotism...that's fine.

Ian felt a sudden elevation of his personality, ignoring the fact that he still wanted to make money.

No, if I keep deceiving myself like this, I'll really start to believe I'm a saint. Ian, who is good at self-reflection, quickly said, "Actually, I'm just an idiot."

Hua Ziruo was once again bewildered by his nonsensical remark.

The two chatted casually as they walked out of the airport and got into the car.

The car drove away.

Sitting in the car, Hua Ziruo said to Ian, "By the way, I haven't congratulated you yet. The companies you invested in last year are all doing quite well. You have excellent business acumen, Ian."

Ian sighed softly, "That's the biggest problem. It seems like I've gained nothing from China except making money."

The latest novel is first published here!

Although Ian tries to gain support by reporting news about China fairly, the effect is ultimately limited.

There's nothing we can do about it; it's just that China isn't as capable as we are in terms of gun violence.

Without major events to support it, and without going against American political correctness, a neutral and objective report alone is not enough to get China to offer very favorable terms.

Furthermore, China is a country with relatively strong control, which means that Ian can't have much influence beyond making money in China... The Chinese stock market doesn't even allow short selling.

This is somewhat of a pity for Ian.

Hua Ziruo was also frustrated. "You're a businessman, shouldn't your ultimate goal be to make money?"

The problem is that it's too easy!

Real investment requires a lot of effort and manpower to conduct due diligence and research in all aspects. It involves reviewing financial reports, analyzing the market, sending a large number of people to discuss specific projects, closely monitoring them, and providing post-investment services.

Behind your potential tenfold return on investment may lie a massive capital outlay and even greater losses.

A good angel investment firm can make money if it invests in just one out of ten companies. This makes their successful projects look impressive (often yielding returns of hundreds or thousands of times), but their actual corporate revenue is not as impressive as that of unicorn companies. This often leads to various conflicts... Unicorn companies might think, "You lost so much money on your investment, and I'm the only one who made money for you. You're someone I've been supporting."

The most typical example is Masayoshi Son, who suffered huge investment losses and was entirely supported by Alibaba.

In return, Jack Ma waved his hand and forcibly separated Alipay, leaving Masayoshi Son with no choice but to accept it.

Ian Carl is different.

No one understands China's future development better than Li Yi Ian Carl, so making money in China is not something he needs to think about at all... He can spend two hours identifying the investment targets and timelines, leave the specific contracts to his subordinates, and that's it. Then he can just wait to make a fortune in a few years.

Apart from post-investment services and financial supervision, all other costs are non-existent. The sunk costs, which constitute the largest proportion of angel investment companies, are essentially non-existent for him.

Because making money is so easy, Ian doesn't care at all about making money in China.

He always needs to care about those things that are hard-won.

Ian had already stated, "I don't intend to interfere in Chinese politics; that's unrealistic. However, I still need some political influence. Ziruo, you're a good friend of mine; could you offer me some assistance?"

Hua Ziruo asked, puzzled, "I don't understand what you really want?"

Ian laughed: "I won't interfere in China's domestic politics, but I still need China's overseas influence."

The true king of media must be one who faces the world.

When facing the world, the most important thing is international influence.

Many people ask why American companies can form international conglomerates while Chinese companies can't? They say it's because Chinese companies are shoddy.

Shit!

Because other countries are powerful, they can protect you... If I can't beat you in normal competition, I'll crush you politically. Alstom in France is an example.

Wherever international influence extends, businesses can thrive!

Therefore, to develop into a truly international enterprise, the support of national influence is required.

And in the media industry, there is no such thing as working without political support... No country doesn't value propaganda; there are only differences in how much they value it, how much they value it more, and how much they value it super much, just like Starbucks only offers medium, large, and extra-large sizes.

Currently, Carl Media is only strong within its own borders. Apart from having independent media organizations in China and Russia that are cooperative in nature, it has no other presence. If it does have other presences, they are with CBS or News Corporation, not Carl Media itself.

In other words, overseas, Carl Media can only buy news, not sell it locally... It's not that they can't sell it, but they can sell it to local news organizations, but the revenue will be less.

Therefore, Ian also began to consider the expansion of Carl Media's overseas operations.

However, despite his high international reputation, his political influence is insufficient... Unless Ian gains the ability to create clones and causes major events around the world, the simplest approach is to seek support from powerful nations.

China's current influence is mainly in Southeast Asia and Africa. As the saying goes, when China's influence is greater, the United States' influence is weaker.

Therefore, with China's support, Ian's media internationalization can accelerate rapidly in Southeast Asia. As for Europe, Australia, Japan, South Korea, and other places... well, I'm an American, who else do I need to help me?

As expected, Hua Ziruo's eyes lit up: "Even overseas, we need positive publicity."

Ian laughed: "Of course."

(End of this chapter)