Rupert Murdoch is a multi-billionaire media mogul whose influence is known to swing elections. But it seems like what he really wants to be is a regular old media reporter.
Murdoch on Friday tweeted out, for unknown reasons, that he had heard the embattled Tribune Publishing Company could be bought by a "big Wall St firm" and that the Los Angeles Times, one of the numerous papers owned by Tribune, could be bought by a philanthropist.
Strong word Tribune newspaper group to be bought by big Wall St firm, LA Times to go to philanthropist Eli Broad and local group.— Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch) November 27, 2015
Murdoch's tweet may be nothing more than sour grapes or hearsay. In the summer of 2014, he had been rumored to be preparing a bid for the company, an idea he put to rest by tweeting that U.S. ownership laws prevented him from buying up the newspaper group.
It could also just be trolling a rival. The Tribune Company, which owns more than a dozen newspapers including the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Orlando Sentinel, and the Baltimore Sun, has been struggling through a serious revenue decline. The company has announced that it will be reducing costs in a variety of ways including through buyouts, which offer employees the chance to resign for an agreed-upon payout.
Tribune is also looking into a sale of its iconic Tribune Tower in Chicago.