Busy morning of media news! Here's the latest on New York mag, Jeff Bezos, Google, Oliver Darcy, Zohran Mamdani, Thomas Massie, "Rick & Morty," and much more... |
James Murdoch just made a big investment in the American news media.
"Lupa Systems, James Murdoch's media and technology holding company, has agreed to acquire New York Magazine, the Vox Media Podcast Network, and Vox from the digital media group Vox Media," Lupa and Vox announced moments ago.
The parties are not commenting on the price tag, but I reported earlier this month that the sale price would be $300 million or more.
Titles like Eater, Popsugar, SB Nation, The Dodo, and The Verge "are not included in the transaction," the press release noted, raising immediate questions about whether other buyers will swoop them up.
But Vox CEO Jim Bankoff is heading to Lupa and celebrating Murdoch as a "long-term steward" of the brands...
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Here's what James is saying: |
James, who publicly and painfully split from father Rupert and son Lachlan's right-wing media empire years ago, said in an interview with the NYT's Ben Mullin and Jessica Testa that he valued a chance to acquire an asset known for "longer-form, thoughtful journalism that can really speak to the culture."
The Times asked: "Is he trying to do something deliberately different from his father this time around? 'No,' said Mr. Murdoch... I'm just trying to build a great business.'"
There are some insightful quotes at the end of the story: "In a landscape inundated with A.I. 'slop' and 'packaged media,' he believes that audiences find podcasts more 'authentic.' 'It's fun, it's differentiated, and it has scarcity value,' Mr. Murdoch said, describing the kind of company he's building."
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