Billionaire businessman, politician and media mogul Michael Bloomberg is looking to acquire either The Wall Street Journal’s (WSJ) parent company or The Washington Post, an unnamed source familiar with the matter told Axios.
Bloomberg sees WSJ parent company Dow Jones as the ideal option for expanding his business media domain, Axios reported Friday. Dow Jones publishes business publications Barron’s and MarketWatch in addition to WSJ, and its parent company News Corp is owned by Rupert Murdoch.
Exclusive: Michael Bloomberg is interested in acquiring either Wall Street Journal parent company Dow Jones or The Washington Post, a source familiar with his thinking told Axios. https://t.co/EHy8adcJLu
— Axios (@axios) December 23, 2022
Bloomberg has not approached Murdoch nor any bankers about the prospect of a sale, according to Axios. It’s unclear if Murdoch is open to a potential sale. (RELATED: ABC News Producer Was Allegedly Paid Thousands By Lobbying Firm)
Acquiring Dow Jones would enable Bloomberg sell more subscriptions to the Bloomberg Terminal, a news and data platform used in the financial sector. Subscriptions to the Terminal provide a large portion of Bloomberg LP’s revenue, according to Axios.
The Terminal is a separate product from Bloomberg Media, the business and financial journalism company founded and owned by Michael Bloomberg.
Bloomberg would also be opening to buying The Washington Post (WaPo) if owner Jeff Bezos is looking to sell, Axios reported, citing the unnamed source. Bloomberg believes a combination of Bloomberg News and WaPo would be an impressive competitor to The New York Times (NYT), the source said, according to Axios.
WaPo’s revenue from digital ads dropped to about $70 million in the front half of 2022, roughly 15% less than the first half of the previous year, the NYT reported in August, citing an internal financial document. The outlet announced a “single digit percentage” of employee layoffs to come in 2023, according to WaPo’s chief spokesperson Kathy Baird.
Bloomberg’s net worth is an estimated $76.8 billion, making him the world’s 12th-richest person, according to Forbes Magazine. He served as the Mayor of New York City from 2002-2013 and briefly ran for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination.
News Corp declined to comment on Axios’ report.
“The Washington Post is not for sale,” a spokesperson from the outlet told the Daily Caller in response to the report.
Bloomberg LP did not respond to the Daily Caller’s request for comment.