Out of the blue, Bloomberg LLC, the financial news service giant created by New City mator Michael Bloomberg, created a new position to fit the size of its new recruit: Norman Pearlstine. The man is a veteran editor: 22 years at the Wall Street Journal (including 9 at the top news executives) and 11 years as the editor-in-chief of Time Inc where he oversaw 154 publications and acquisitions of two portfolios worth $2bn. Another particularity of Pearlstine is its career in the private equity business. He joined the Carlyle Group in 2006 where he worked in the media and telecommunication division.
Why bringing up this résumé? Because it fuels further speculation that Michael Bloomberg could buy the New York Times, and combine its operation with Bloomberg (see Monday Note’s special report about the battle of newspapers in New York). As New York Times Dealbook put it, “Mr. Pearlstine’s hiring — and [Bloomberg Press release] talk of “growth opportunities” — might signal that Bloomberg LP is more apt to be a buyer than a seller these days”. Rupert is watching closely.
Related columns:
- Google — The case for buying Associated Press TweetWould it makes sense for Google to buy AP? Yes, says a contributor to Wired.Com. AP is a non-profit cooperative with 1500 members, many of them on the verge of extinction. (See the latest’s figures form the New York Times which is bleeding ad revenue at a yearly rate of 13%), or the terrible situation [...]...
- CBS buying CNet, the content equation TweetWhen an aging TV network acquires one of the oldest independent web media properties, what does it mean? Last week, CBS took a major step to increase its internet presence by acquiring CNet Networks for a $1.8bn (euro1.56 bn). Created in 1992, CNet Networks is of the oldest media property on the internet. It runs [...]...
- The J-curve of the global print press TweetThe J-curve is an economics metaphor, a way of saying things will get worse before getting better. That’s the prospect for the global print media sector. For the American press, advertising revenue keeps dropping at a steady yearly rate of 12% to 15%. No industry can withstand a sustained double-digit decrease of its core business. [...]...
- The battle for New York’s papers TweetAn update: Murdoch decides not to bid for Newday. The AP story. Five newspapers in New York. Ranging from the most respectable to the lowest tabloid. One is the object of a bidding war, another is under siege by Wall Street. Who will control NYC’s newspapers a year from now? Here is an overview of [...]...
- Fighting Unlicensed Content With Algorithms TweetIt’s high time to fight the theft of news-related contents, really. A couple of weeks ago, Attributor, a US company, released the conclusions of a five-month study covering the use of unauthorized contents on the internet. The project was called Graduated Response Trial for News and relied on one strong core idea: once a significant [...]...
