The Editorial Makes Way for the Business
Finally, the day of sentence come. The publisher of the LA Times was fired because of his refusal of cutting jobs from the newspaper’s 940-member editorial staff.
Jeffrey M. Johnson, the publisher, went to Chicago three weeks ago to convince the Tribune Company of the necessity of keeping the current staff, by doing which he risked his job. For a while it seems he secured his position. But he didn’t. The Tribune Company showed their tough side by forcing out Johnson for his renegade.
It’s not the first time the editorial made way for the business. Newspapers are on an irreversible trajectory of losing profits and circulations to the new media. And as this trajectory goes on, more editorial jobs and principles will be sacrificed. The media is controlled by the Wall Street, not by the public.
Google in Talks to Acquire YouTube for $1.6 Billion
After Yahoo’s attempt to acquire Facebook, a much bigger acquisition is on the way.
From The New York Times
Google is in serious talks to acquire YouTube, the wildly successful online video-sharing Web site, for $1.6 billion in cash and stock, people involved in the negotiations said today.
A deal would end an almost yearlong chess game among the nation’s media and technology moguls to take over YouTube, which allows users to share home movies, amateur spoofs and snippets of the best parts of television shows. Though it is not yet profitable, the site has exploded into a cultural phenomenon less than a year after its debut, broadcasting more than 100 million video clips a day.
Microsoft, Yahoo, Viacom and the News Corporation, among others, have all paid visits to YouTube’s headquarters in San Mateo, Calif., in recent months to inquire about buying the company.
Terms of the potential sale to Google could not be learned. It was still possible that the talks could collapse or that another suitor could swoop in with a rival offer.
The negotiations come as all of the established media conglomerates are in a frenzied hunt to acquire hot Internet properties. Yahoo, for instance, is in negotiations to buy Facebook, a social networking site originally aimed at college students, for more than $1 billion, according to people involved in those talks.
The buyout rush is partly a reaction to Rupert Murdoch’s acquisition of MySpace, an online hangout with millions of personal Web pages. MySpace, which Mr. Murdoch bought last year for $580 million, is now worth as much as $2 billion by some analysts’ estimates.
Buffett’s Stocks Pass $100,000 a Share
From The New York Times
The most expensive stock in the United States passed an unusual plateau yesterday, as the price for a Class A share of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. briefly surpassed $100,000.
Shares in the company, run by Warren E. Buffett, closed up $1,296, or 1.3 percent, at $98,995 on volume of 830 shares, more than twice the average daily volume. During the session, shares reached $100,100 — a record high.
Berkshire Hathaway shares are not only expensive, they are also rare compared with those of other large publicly traded companies. At the end of June, there were 1.13 million of the more expensive Class A shares and 12.41 million of the Class B shares in existence.The Class B shares, which are worth about one-thirtieth of the Class A shares, were first issued some years ago in part to give less wealthy investors a chance to benefit from the company’s consistently strong results.
But the Class B shares have since joined the rarefied ranks of highly expensive stocks, closing at $3,280 yesterday, up $30, or 0.9 percent.
Mr. Buffett owned 498,320 Class A shares as of May. He is the only person who owns more than 5 percent of the company’s shares.
The Aftershocks of the Shanghai Political Earthquake (part 6): Noxious Rice and an Investigation in Beijing
From My CDT Post
More than 300 hundred investigators from the Central Committee of Discipline Inspection have stationed in Beijing, ready to launch a full investigation on the possible corruptions of Beijing officials, Hong Kong magazine Ya Zhou Zhou Kan reported. The magazine said the investigation is one of a series of anti-corruption campaigns Hu Jingtao kicked off to curb corruptions in China’s three major cities: Beijing, Tianjin, and Shanghai.
The investigation in Beijing is even on a larger scale than in Shanghai. The investigators gather in a hotel at No. 8 Wanshou Road.
Shanghai investigators station in Moller Villa Hotel, a 70-year old building got well-known overnight after Chen Liangyu was sacked.
The investigation team has encountered strong resistance in Beijing. The magazine reported that the team received a mail explosive a few days ago.
Jia Qinglin, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau, is implicated in some scandals under investigation.
Earlier, 2,000-ton noxious stale rice was discovered in Beijing. Beijing authorities managed to cover the news until Ya Zhou Zhou Kan publicized it. The magazine also reported that the noxious rice is circulating in market, which the authorities denied.
Jing Liang Heng Ye (京粮恒业), a state owned company, is allegedly involved in the selling of the rice.
Also Read The Aftershocks of the Shanghai Political Earthquake (part 5): Chen Liangyu’s “Personal Cashier” Under Investigation
Former Shanghai Tycoon Zhou Zhengyi Arrested Again
From My CDT Post
Zhou Zhengyi, a former Shanghai property tycoon who just completed a three-year sentence in May, is under house arrest in Shanghai, Hong Kong magazine Ya Zhou Zhou Kan said.
Zhou had been managing to obtain visas to southern American countries, the magazine said. Zhou almost made his way to south America before he was detained for being implicated in economic crimes of senior Shanghai officials.
Zhou was once named China’s 11th richest man with an estimated personal fortune of $320 million. He is widely considered a close ally of Chen Liangyu.
Click HERE to read more about Zhou Zhengyi.
Random Blog 