Former DNC Chairman Ed Rendell, Other Dem Officials Seek To Buy Philadelphia’s Two Largest Newspapers…
The former DNC chief and other top Dem officials owning the two most influential newspapers in a key battleground state, what could possibly go wrong?
(Washington Times) — Philadelphia’s two daily newspapers have long been accused of liberal bias, but critics say a group of potential buyers led by former Gov. Ed Rendell would turn the papers into mere mouthpieces of the Democratic Party in a 2012 swing state.
Mr. Rendell, a former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, is teaming with George Norcross, the Democratic Party boss of southern New Jersey, and others in an effort to purchase the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Daily News and the company’s website, philly.com.
There is reportedly at least one other bidder for the media company, the most influential in Pennsylvania, though that party has not publicly identified itself.
“The prospect of Rendell’s group owning the newspapers is like the foxes watching the henhouse and all of the sacred cows,” said Paul Davies, former deputy editorial page editor at the Inquirer. “Essentially, the Inquirer will cease to exist as a legitimate newspaper. It will become the insiders’ house organ.”
Mr. Rendell said on a talk-radio show this week that this deal would not be the first time powerful people with an “ideological bent,” such as Rupert Murdoch, have tried to purchase a media company. He also noted that the 183-year-old Inquirer was owned for decades by Republican businessman Walter Annenberg, and said his group is simply trying to save the financially troubled papers.
“Nobody wants to stifle news,” said Mr. Rendell, a two-term mayor of Philadelphia in the 1990s.
Journalists at both papers are so concerned that nearly 300 of them signed a public statement last week calling on the current and any future owners to protect the integrity of their reporting. They said the current owner, Philadelphia Media Network (PMN), has censored their coverage of the sale.
Posted by ZIP on Wednesday, February 22, 2012, at 11:13 pm | 
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“Nobody wants to stifle news,” said Mr. Rendell, a two-term mayor of Philadelphia in the 1990s.
Rendell continued, “but who here has two thumbs and will stifle news as fast as you can say ‘slick liberal’? This guy (pointing to self)”.
I thought item #20 on the communist checklist had already been check off as complete.
Me too Chicken_Shitte…. Like it would make any difference adding 2 more commie rags to the pile… Maybe there is an influx of bird cages to be lined in Philly?
On the “bright” side: who reads newspapers anymore?
What isnt enough of the birdcage pinners/parrots toilets giving out enough pro-demacRATS news these days
They said the current owner, Philadelphia Media Network (PMN), has censored their coverage of the sale.
Meet the new boss, same as the old boss…
IF they take on the liberal dems. like the Tea Party is taking on the rep. this would be a good thing.
Fine. He has reduced the city to either people who cannot read or those that cannot afford the papers. Be my guess.
Philly is in the shitter; why not soak it up with newsrag?
I’ll bet you a dime to a dollar they know Obama plans to bail out the newspaper industry in his next term. That’s the big hidden story here.
what could possibly go wrong?
At best: DNC propaganda.
At worse: BS stories like republicans are evil, eat babies for snacks, kick puppies.
Ect
either way the rebublican or consertive voter will not get a fair deal.
the Stinkquirer already is a dem talking points rag. There is little newsworthy in that paper. Most of the middle class has fled Philly for the suburbs. After the Stinkquirer dedicated a month leading up to the election to ringing John Kerry endorsements, the paper lost a large percentage of subscriptions. That’s why there’s a fire sale is going on now. Rendell will kill this paper. Nobody will care.
This won’t make any difference in Philadelphia politics.
It’s already a Libtard hellhole, run by the unions and welfare slobs.
If you live in PA – get the word out to people.
If you live in America – get the word out to people.
The Democrats are going to try to steal all the elections like usual.
But the Commie mask if off and they are a danger to all of us.
Warn old people, young people willing to listen who aren’t LIBTARDs, others who need to know the Democrats are evil – EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM!
It probably won’t matter that much. All the major papers are in the tank for the salad tossers anyway.
In my four years in the Navy I met numerous folks from Philadelphia, a large percenatage of them knuckleheads. For further confirmation of that trend, try watching an episode of “Parking Wars”, which is often set in Philly, uughh, could not live there ever.
A lot of taxpayer money can be shoveled to this paper and the NYT, WaPo, LAT, etc. They’ll make the pitch that newspapers are dying but, it’s not really there fault and that for the sake of the country they must survive.
They already get the milk free, why buy the cow?
Living in Philly, I can attest to the Democrat mindset here. Rendell, while he may have been a half-way decent mayor, did nothing for the neighborhoods; only Center City. However, this guy is scum. And a dirtbag. The guy who bought the newspapers a few years ago, Brian Tierney, was a conservative. We had high hopes that the tone of the papers would change; WRONG. When he made the statement that “the editorial page will not change”, we knew we were in for more liberal bias. I stopped buying the Inky when that happened. The Daily News is even worse (although they have a great sports section). I occasionally read one that’s left in our kitchen at work; the letters to the editor are hilarious. I’m convinced that the people who write in never went beyond 4th grade. The Bulletin (very conservative) made a welcome comeback a couple of years ago and had Herb Denenberg as one of its contributors. His articles were just fantastic & he bashed Obama as no one (outside of Levin & Rush) could. Unfortunately, both Herb and The Bulletin died.
And to the comment about parking, parking here has always been something for the books. It’s a way of life and you go with the flow. Oh, and I’m tired of the Philly bashing.
This would also be a power play withing the Democratic community.
Democrats who wish to do business in the area would have to operate under Rendell’s terms. He would become one of those central figures in the party that no one dare anger.
And this story comes only a week after reports of abnormal behavior of Media Matters’ David Brock…….a man who by some reports many be mentally ill, but who must be kept happy.
@ReRe – I also tire of Philly bashing – I like Philly in many ways – I feel the same way about New Jersey (though I was not born here).
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““Nobody wants to stifle news,” said Mr. Rendell, a two-term mayor of Philadelphia in the 1990s.” – I don’t think he has any intentions of stifling the dem talking points.
“Journalists at both papers are so concerned that nearly 300 of them signed a public statement last week calling on the current and any future owners to protect the integrity of their reporting.” – now THAT is a laughable statement – INTEGRITY?
My local rag, “The Trenton Times” is so far left it will slide off of your table when you set it down. It is possibly worse than the Philly Inquirer and really, one has to wonder how it can be called a newspaper.
This wasn’t even on the news, because if Scott Walker, Rick Scott, Marco Rubio, Sarah Palin, or Dick Cheney attempted to buy a major newspaper, it would be no big deal either.
Media bias is the absolute biggest issue to overcome before we all pay the price. There are too many uninformed stupids out there who vote.
Ha. Fools and their money. I hope they lose every last dime they sink into it if they do buy them. I just bet those “journalists” are “concerned.” More like concerned because they know they’ll be standing in an unemployment line soon! Mwahahaha.
Re Re says: Oh, and I’m tired of the Philly bashing.
But we just read your paragraph of what amounted to you bashing Philly yourself. Don’t take it personal, like parking, just go with the flow…
@BeforetheStorm
Spot on, I hav’nt bought a rag for years,
if I want bias crap i can just switch on the radio or tv
and get indocorated for free
Remember the Maine, to Hell with Spain
Good people of Philly, throw these bums out the window and stand up for your families.
The readership has gone down the tubes long before this move began. I can only hope that the remaining ship sinks like the Titanic if it goes through. I have a friend who works at the Inquie, and she was lamenting the layoff of about 50 of her colleagues at the end of the year. Once it becomes real that the only people who will read the swill are big city Philadelphia liberals, the paper is doomed. Or one would hope.
Swindle is just taking over a new dem money-laundering scheme. Look for newspaper bailouts from Ogabe soon.
re: Chris W. says:
February 23, 2012 at 8:47 am
This wasn’t even on the news, because if Scott Walker, Rick Scott, Marco Rubio, Sarah Palin, or Dick Cheney attempted to buy a major newspaper, it would be no big deal either.
How about adding Rush Limbaugh trying to buy a football franchise?
The lunatics are running the asylum now, and we are subjected to the Ayn Rand John Galt version of the fourth estate…there are no honest men (or women) in the mainstream media, print or otherwise.
If Rendell and Norcross own the paper, it will not matter, the Inquirier and Daily News are liberal rags anyway with one of the most hate-filled, left wing cartoonists in Tony Auth. He’s absolutely disgusting.
This is the same newspaper, by the way, that ran 21 straight negative editorials about George Bush leading up to the 2004 election. So who cares if Rendell buys it?
Welcome to the 19th century. Back in the day, towns and cities had Democrat and Republican (or Whig) newspapers, often one of each. You got your paper based on your political preferences. However, the papers also printed their political affiliation on the masthead (in most cases), unlike what will happen in PA.
Halodoc: Not bashing my hometown. The parking situation is ingenious. Double, triple parking, putting chairs, TV’s, etc. out to hold a space. Driving around for 20 minutes to find a space somewhere near your house. What fun! The problem is that when most of the houses were built (like mine – over 100 years old), there weren’t cars! Now, every house has at least 2.
If I bash my hometown, it’s because we have a cast of characters/dirtbags/thugs that need to be bashed (Wilson Goode, John Street, the carpenters union (oh, what thugs they are!) come to mind).
I used to get the Inquirer delivered and read the Daily News. At the time, the Inquirer was a very good newspaper. Now I hope Rendell buys the company and it promptly goes out of business.
Frankly speaking, the Democrats in the Philadelphia region aren’t the kind of people who purchase and read newspapers. Perhaps there are a few in the suburbs, but not enough to support to paper.