January 18, 2004

BLACK OUT

Conrad Black, publisher of some excellent titles (The Spectator, the UK Telegraph, etc) is in increasingly serious trouble:

Newspaper publisher Hollinger International Inc. said late on Saturday it was ousting media tycoon Conrad Black as its chairman and suing him and one of his top deputies for more than $200 million.

What this means for his various magazines and newspapers is anyone’s guess.

Posted by Tim Blair at January 18, 2004 10:49 PM
Comments

It appears that the Barclay Brothers, who own the Scotsman and various other titles, will buy the group. They seem to run pretty decent newspapers, although you have to say that a pair of reclusive identical twins who live on the own island does sound a bit Bond Villainy.

Posted by: Ross at January 19, 2004 at 06:27 AM

Go the Barclay brothers! The principal alternative appears to be smut king and (Tony) Blair stooge Richard Desmond, who would no doubt undermine the brilliant conservative coverage offered by the Jerusalem Post, the Chicago Sun Times, and my favourite newspaper and magazine in the world, the Telegraph and the Spectator.

Posted by: Alan Anderson at January 19, 2004 at 09:17 AM

What a joke. Black has combined his entrepeneurship and his own capital to not only run succesfully publishing interests but also as Tim stated,some of the best publications out and what does he get for it: a crap lawsuit and stasi-land police in the form of SEC on his back.

Posted by: d at January 19, 2004 at 09:38 AM

No need for anyone to guess. Try reading any newspapers, starting with The Telegraph. The deal has already been done.

Posted by: Walter Plinge at January 19, 2004 at 12:06 PM

> "a pair of reclusive identical twins who live on their own island does sound a bit Bond-villainy."

Please, reassure me that they don't have matching blond dreadlocks and the ability to teleport through car windshields ...?!

Posted by: Uncle Milk at January 19, 2004 at 01:14 PM

d, I would have thought that a good conservative would relish the prospect of a thief receiving his just desserts.

I can't wait until Kissinger (a Hollinger director) gets his arse sued for negligence and malfeasance, too.

Posted by: Mork at January 19, 2004 at 03:18 PM