If you liked liberal Russia-collusion mania, you’ll love Koch-Time freak out
Prof. Glenn Reynold’s dystopian vision of a world where pop-culture publications are run by conservatives gets a step closer to reality
Meredith Corp is buying Time, Inc. with the help of the Koch brothers.
Reuters reports:
U.S. media company Meredith Corp (MDP.N) said on Sunday it will buy Time Inc (TIME.N), the publisher of Sports Illustrated and Fortune magazines, in a $1.84 billion all-cash deal backed by conservative billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch….
It will give news, business and sports brands to the Des Moines, Iowa-based publisher and broadcaster, which owns lifestyle magazines such as Better Homes & Gardens and Family Circle….
When combined, the Meredith and Time brands will have a readership of 135 million people and paid circulation of nearly 60 million. The deal also will expand Meredith’s reach with internet-savvy millenials, creating a digital media business with 170 million monthly unique visitors in the United States and more than 10 billion annual video views.
While the parties to the deal are denying the Koch brothers will have editorial influence, the NY Times is unsure of that:
It was not clear how much influence, if any, the Kochs would wield over Meredith or Time Inc. The brothers have long sought to shape political discourse through their support of nonprofit organizations, universities and think tanks but have never owned their own media company.
In a news release announcing the deal, Meredith said that Koch Equity Development would not have a seat on Meredith’s board of directors and would “have no influence on Meredith’s editorial or managerial operations.” The investment from the Kochs, Meredith said, “underscores a strong belief in Meredith’s strength as a business operator, its strategies, and its ability to unlock significant value from the Time Inc. acquisition.”
If the Koch brothers did exert influence, that would be a good thing. As Prof. Glenn Reynolds proposed in 2012, Republican donors should purchase magazines that shape the culture, such as women’s magazines:
The thing is, those magazines and Web sites see themselves, pretty consciously, as a propaganda arm of the Democratic Party. So while nine out of 10 articles may be the usual stuff on sex, diet and shopping, the 10th will always be either soft p.r. for the Democrats or soft — or sometimes not-so-soft — hits on Republicans….
This kind of thing adds up, especially among low-information voters. They may not know or care much about the specifics, but this theme, repeated over and over again, sends a message: Democrats are cool, and Republicans are uncool — and if you vote for them, you’re uncool, too.
Liberals are not buying that the Kochs are shelling out hundreds of millions of dollars just for the non-political investment value of the deal.
It’s Koch TIME …https://t.co/PAEOps9bQU
— Mike Allen (@mikeallen) November 27, 2017
https://twitter.com/dangillmor/status/934941182307721216
The Koch brothers are now part owners of Time, Inc. This ain't good, people. No doubt in my mind the Koch buy-in is intended to influence readers; it's what the Kochs have done at universities since the 70's. https://t.co/Zh0R5cIIr2
— Alex Kotch (@alexkotch) November 27, 2017
https://twitter.com/MikeIsaac/status/934948048903348224
3 times a charm: Meredith’s buys Time Inc 3rd try. Only reason deals works now is because of Koch brothers uneconomically motivated equity when all others walked away. This is NOT for economics, this is for the Kochs to control Time, People, Fortune etc content. Don’t be fooled!
— Amy Siskind ?️? (@Amy_Siskind) November 27, 2017
Don’t Let the Koch Brothers Buy ‘Time’ Magazine pleads a former editor https://t.co/UefrHVnas3
— Derek (End the Filibuster) Cressman (@DerekCressman) November 27, 2017
Get ready for next year’s new Time Magazine feature “Person of the Last & Next Century” Ayn Rand @kenvogel https://t.co/UuQ9rIak9E
— US Rep Brendan Boyle (@RepBrendanBoyle) November 27, 2017
[Featured Image: Time magazine cover January 19, 1999)
DONATE
Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.
Comments
“The … Koch family didn’t put hundreds of millions into a media deal in order to have no influence.” — Some Left-Wing Nutjob
My God, I hope you’re right!
Those damn Koch brothers: we spend years defending their asses, and we find out in 2016 that they’re part of the GOPe swamp.
Exactly
It didn’t take some of us that long.
Don’t ever forget this nice post: reason dot com/blog/2011/02/24/evil-koch-bros-support
“Breech on our flank!”
Why answer is easy; it’s a simple payoff to stop the daily defamations.
When did the Koch brothers become conservatives?
Good Point. They may be Libertarian fiscal conservatives, but they want amnesty and open borders too.
For “non-partisan” publications, these people sure seem upset.
LOL
Why does the left freak out so hard at the mere drop of their names?
It’s not like these guys are out their using their wealth to undermine democratic institutions and countries isn’t it??
Because their frame of reference is George Soros and/or what they would do in the same situation?
Buy it, fire the staff and sell every piece of equipment and furniture for scrap. Make it useful.
Obama/Clinton/DNC/press-Russian collusion mania until it became an inconvenient truth and they projected, waged war, forced immigration reform/refugee crises in order to escape the anthropogenic progression.
Democrat “morality”:
Hundred billionaire Democrat Bezos buys Washington Post, digs up 38 year old dirt on Roy Moore. GOOD.
Billionaire Republican Koch buys Time, tries to resuscitate rag which deserves DNR. BAD.
Got it?
Meanwhile back at the ranch …
LATimes:
As he investigates Trump’s aides, Robert Mueller’s record shows surprising flaws
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-mueller-record-20171122-story.html
Newsweek:
Robert Mueller Is a Hot Head Who Can’t Own Up to His Mistakes, Former Aides Say
http://www.newsweek.com/robert-mueller-special-counsel-russia-aides-criticize-722670
This can’t be good.
Where was all the Ted Turner outrage?
La Times and Newsweek do pieces detrimental to Mueller. Wonder why? Could there be good news for the Donald? The only Russians found were in Hillarys’ purse?
Ooo, scary Koch brothers! Libertarians! Eeek!
I would love to see an expose on Nazi collaborator Soros from some enterprising “journalist” but t’ain’t gonna happen is it?
If they “journalists” have given up on the concept of impartial observers in favor of socialist activists exactly why do they still enjoy constitutional protections?
Wichita is my home town and also the headquarters of Koch Ind. So for most of my life the Koch Bros. were just two guys who owned a company that employed a bunch of people…
Then a few years ago, I started to see all these stories about how EVIL the Koch boys were!!
Seems like the anti-Koch movement came out of nowhere…
Their reaction implicitly admits that journalists are partisans.