Koch Brothers Looking To Purchase Several Major American Newspapers

[TomCADem]

Source: Think Progress

Right-wing funders and business industrialists David and Charles Koch may purchase the Tribune Company newspapers, which include the Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun, and the Los Angeles Times. The brothers are “interested in the clout they could gain through the Times’ editorial pages,” the Hollywood Reporter notes. Responding to the report, a spokesperson for Koch told the website that the brothers are “constantly exploring profitable opportunities in many industries and sectors”:


Missy Cohlmia, a spokeswoman for Koch Companies Public Sector, LLC, issued the following statement to THR: “As an entrepreneurial company with 60,000 employees around the world, we are constantly exploring profitable opportunities in many industries and sectors. So, it is natural that our name would come up in connection with this rumor. We respect the independence of the journalistic institutions referenced in today’s news stories, but it is our long-standing policy not to comment on deals or rumors of deals we may or may not be exploring. ”

The Los Angeles Weekly was the first to report that the Kochs could be mulling the purchase of the newspaper assets, which make up $623 million of the company’s $7 billion holdings.

The Koch brothers own Koch Industries, the second-largest private company in America, and bankroll a network of Tea Party groups and Republican political war chests.


Read more: http://thinkprogress.org/media/2013/03/12/1708561/report-koch-brothers-looking-to-purchase-several-major-american-newspapers/

[MindMover]

1. Any newspaper that is connected with Kochaholic enterprises

will not be read by at least 47% of the public ...

[FiveGoodMen]

22. Not even close to true.

Most people never even look behind the curtain at who's producing the news.

[MindMover]

24. With today's technology I do not agree ...

[Demeter]

2. Everything they touch, they destroy

There are so few real newspapers left in this nation....hands off!

[ladjf]

3. America needs to find some way to stop the Koch machine before it does any more damage to

our Country. nt

[Sunlei]

4. the kochs may buy all major online comment websites very soon.

Money talks, there is always a price.

America may need to move our free speech to some other countrys message board services.

[silvershadow]

5. This is why the rules on media ownership need to be restored. My god, I cannot fathom the damage

those sinister people could do with actual ownership. They are surely the spawn of satan.

[HughBeaumont]

6. Seriously, aren't these guys on the wrong side of their seventies?

And from the looks of it, neither one is a youthful mid-seventy?

Do these neo-fascist vampires think they're going to live forever?

[Ford_Prefect]

7. Once they have replaced government with their Cult it will no doubt be handed to their heirs.

Megalomania does not mean they have no sense of history. This is the next 1000 year Reich feeding itself on the remains of a free society.

[muriel_volestrangler]

8. it works for Rupert Murdoch (nt)

[MillennialDem]

14. David Koch is 72, Charles Koch is 77.

[KittyWampus]

19. that may very well be part of why they're into total domination> the gnawing reality they're going

die soon. They HAVE To own and control the entire monopoly board before they die to win the damned game.

[Arugula Latte]

29. Those fuckers could live for 20+ more years.

Unfortunately.

[HughBeaumont]

34. Not so sure about David - he has recurring prostate cancer.

[LeftyMom]

32. This is a multigenerational project- their father was a Bircher.

[Cooley Hurd]

9. They've learned well from Richard Mellon Scaife...

[tanyev]

13. And William Randolph Hearst.

[leftynyc]

10. Like all Murdoch papers

they will become a punch line on the Daily Show.

[FiveGoodMen]

23. ...and Gospel to a whole lot of voters.

[pipoman]

11. Better newspapers than modern media..

most people don't read newspapers anymore, they're going the way of the buggy whip..

[alp227]

26. Yes. Newspapers aren't even very profitable anymore!

Is this the koch brothers' final desperate power grab before their retirements? They are in their 70s. They are probably in this more for the politics not business as they can influence the national dialogue by infiltrating editorial boards then win more elections and thus get more bang for the campaign contributions.

[John2]

12. Are they looking for profits,

or political influence? That needs to be the question to ask about families such as the Kochs,Adelsons and Murdochs. They call it Capitalism but I call it Vulture Capitalism. People always think Socialism and Communism are dangerous to Democracy but Vulture Capitalism is just as dangerous when you put resources into the hands of the few. They restrict competition or any dissent that goes against their views. If you notice this past Election, employers have even gotten bolder to fire employees because they voted a certain way. Their claims to be just looking for profitable enterprises is just a cover.

[Myrina]

20. Aren't 'profits' and 'political influence' one and the same?

Especially for conniving fuckers like them?

[Ganja Ninja]

15. Money! Money! Must have more money!

These guys crave money like zombies crave brains. No matter how much they have they're always looking for more.

[midnight]

16. K&R

[City Lights]

17. Oh goodie!

And after they snatch up whatever they're looking to buy, the right-wingers will still whine about the liberal media.

[loudsue]

18. Interested in the clout they could gain through the Times "EDITORIAL PAGES"??? Bullshit.

The entire rag would be idiotic hair brained rightwing talking points.

[olddots]

21. The Puss Boil Bros

want to buy up news papers ? these scum bags are trying to make America illiterate then buy up news papers =if you're so rich why aren't you smart ???????????????????????

Oh I hate these guys .......

[Hekate]

25. Oh crap. I just re-subscribed to the LA Times after a couple years' hiatus

I was so disgusted at how anorexic that newspaper had become -- but I really miss having a daily paper. And now this. That newspaper used to be one of the great ones.

[WillyT]

27. K & R !!!

[judesedit]

28. Keep us posted and above all...do NOT subscribe to them. They will be nothing but propaganda

[TomCADem]

30. They Are Emulating Sheldon Adelson Who Did This In Israel

...to support Ben Netenyahu. Sheldon Adelson loses money on his media properties, since his distributes the newspapers at a loss, but it is all for advancing Adelson's right wing agenda.

[lexw]

31. Have you ever read the Wikipedia on these guys?

It's amazing how little information there is.
There's more now: but several years ago, I looked and found little if nothing of these scary individuals.

[Cha]

33. Didn't a rw own the Des Moines Register and had their

editors endorse mitt? And, Pres Obama won Iowa, anyway.

Just sayin'.. it's a danger but it's a good thing it's 2013 and not the 90s.