David Geffen Made Offer To Buy 19% Stake In New York Times: Report

Fortune:

Last month, sources tell me, former Hollywood mogul David Geffen made an offer to buy the 19% stake in the Times held by hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners, but no deal was struck. (Geffen and Harbinger declined to comment.). And a few weeks before that, Scott Galloway, a Web entrepreneur and New York University Business School professor who is one of two Harbinger appointees on the Times board, made an overture to Google co-founder Larry Page about Google buying the Times Co. Even though Google CEO Eric Schmidt has publicly lamented the state of the newspaper industry and dismissed the notion of Google investing in it, people involved said the company looked seriously at the opportunity before deciding to pass.

Read the whole story: Fortune

Comments

[voltage356]

He can use it as a tax write off.

[twoopeneyes]

The value of the last few dying newspapers is immeasurable.
Without their staffs of reporters digging and turning over rocks for the little tidbits of truth and scandal and the newspaper publishers to provide the platform and the infrastructure to make this information available we could kiss our so called democracy and freedom, or what ever it's morphed into goodbye.

[Jazzman323]

NY Times does business the old fashioned way--get rich people to fund them, since they can't make it on their products.

[SeaKitten]

I hear he also flushed a billion dollars down the toilet with the hope that 5 billion would float back up.

[wordvarc]

Buy Geffen buy!

[ghtrains]

Those of us who daily read the NY Times can not think of being without this paper, whether it is in paper or some media format. Those who do not read the NY Times should not pass judgment without spending a week reading the paper. It puts most other city daily papers to shame in the extent and variety of coverage. Assuming the paper is a mouth piece for one group in the political arena is nonsense.

[elefante]

Old media newspapers kill thousands of trees every year. Going to an electronic media age completely will help us halt the eradication of whats left of Amercia's forests.

[Airmail56]

Will he try to fence off the sidewalk out front like he did in California?

[303]

Google would be smart to get in on this deal, to protect its access to news and content.

AP is very SERIOUS about stopping the Free links Google generates but does not pay for.

[303]

Geffen should put together deal to buy BOTH NYTimes and LA TIMES, and combine them to build INTERNATIONAL juggernaut­---especia­lly, beef up the Business/Finance News and compete Head-on with the WSJ/Murdoch . There are so many synergies: Entertainment; Fashion; MODERATE Republicans and MODERATE Democrats; Imports/Ex­ports/Trad­e; Environmental/Green economy; Education

Geffen, Eli Broad and other LA billionaires like Ron Burkle almost bought the LA TIMES before Sam Zell finagled a way to use Employee Pension Funds (without employees'consent!) as "collateral" to finance his sham purchase of the Tribune companies a few years ago. Zell now wants OUT, so Geffen and other LA financiers should work with the Sultzbergers to merge the two Times.

ps--Bring back former LATimes editor/ multi Pulitzer winner John Carroll as a board member to the
NewTimes!

NYTimes + LATimes = Dynamic Duo
Watch Rupert weep!

[DontJustFollow]

The only ones stepping forward to keep the NYT going would have to be the DNC and George Soros.

[jsgaetano]

LOL! Seen any black helicopters lately? The DNC and Soros fund those, too.

Stay the Course, Goopers!

[buckaroom]

Giving money to prop up the NYT is not an investment. It is charity. He should not expect any financial returns and he will most likely lose all of his invested principle.

[jsomerville5]

Geffen looks really good !

[larry278]

Does this mean that the NYT will fold by 6/30/09 & does anybody care anymore?

[RJII]

Geffin, I'm going to give you some sound financial advice and it won't cost you anything, plus I'm not part of the failed MSM. Don't do it...you'l­l lose your shirt.

[larry278]

You mean that Sam Zell won't be able to pay his leveraged loans either? Since both the Trib & Sun-Times are both in bankruptcy, Chicago could become the USA's 1st major city to be without any daily newspaper. It can't happen to NYC. Both Zuckerman & Murdoch own daily tabloids. Besides, Murdoch is turning his WSJ into a general interest paper. Now, LA is different; Zell owns the LA Times.
LA could become a no paper town too. DC has the Post & Times.
Is any bookie taking $5.00 bets on if LA or Chicago becomes a no paper town 1st? No, Sam-I won't loan you any money.

[DontJustFollow]

you can hardly call the LA Times a paper anymore. It is nothing but story writing for the highest bidder / advertiser.

all it is really good for is elections - you read the LA Times picks and vote opposite. Works every time.

[SaulBloodworth]

No offense, but I believe Geffen became a billionaire entirely without you advice.

[Gerald Shields]

Interesting since Warren Buffet wouldn't buy into any newspaper at any price

[rodeman]

Agreed Gerald

They say a fool and his money are soon parted. Listen to Buffet's advice. You're certainly no fool.