Jeff Bezos Reportedly Eyes Buy of CNBC as Tech Billionaires Gobble Up Media

Jeff Bezos is considering shopping for the monetary information community CNBC, based on a brand new report from the New York Publish, which cites nameless sources. Given the injury Bezos has already finished to the Washington Publish, anybody who values the knowledge they get from CNBC ought to in all probability be nervous.

An unnamed supply instructed the New York Post that Bezos shopping for CNBC would “align properly together with his pursuits,” and it might stay a “impartial voice.” CNBC is being offloaded by its father or mother firm, Comcast, into a brand new publicly traded firm referred to as Versant by the top of 2025. The corporate’s different cable TV networks, which embody MSNBC, SYFY, the Golf Channel, USA Community, and E!, may even be a part of Versant.

The Every day Beast reported Wednesday {that a} supply “near Bezos” instructed the information outlet that he’s “not contemplating a bid to purchase CNBC,” however the man himself has not commented on the likelihood but. The Every day Beast denial can also be only one line with no additional rationalization.

Sources may insist to the New York Publish that Bezos solely desires CNBC as a “impartial voice” in his media portfolio, however anybody who thinks Bezos is above tinkering with the editorial content material of his media properties hasn’t been paying consideration. The 61-year-old Amazon founder bought the Washington Publish in 2013 for $250 million and, by all public accounts, didn’t mess with the day-to-day course of the newspaper. However that every one modified shortly earlier than the 2024 presidential election, when the Washington Publish editorial board deliberate to endorse then-Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate who was working towards present President Donald Trump.

Bezos not solely spiked the endorsement of Harris however set about purging the writing employees of liberal voices on the opinion pages. Not too long ago, writers like liberal columnist Jonathan Capehart, TikTok man Dave Jorgenson, and polling skilled Philip Bump have left the paper, taking buyouts provided to individuals who don’t wish to be concerned within the new period of Bezos meddling.

These sorts of modifications are any newspaper proprietor’s proper, however the shift has set off a wave of anger and outrage amongst individuals who see Trump’s presidency as a menace to the way forward for the USA as a liberal democracy. In response to NPR, Bezos misplaced the newspaper about 250,000 subscribers within the span of every week after information broke concerning the Harris endorsement, and he reportedly misplaced 75,000 more because the billionaire introduced that anybody who didn’t adhere to his explicit ideology of “free markets and private liberties” ought to go away the storied media establishment.

Bezos additionally cozied as much as Trump, attending the president’s inauguration in January and extra lately assembly with the president on the White Home final week, based on CNBC. The dude is seemingly all-in on the MAGA agenda of aggressive oligarchy.

Rumors lately circulated that Bezos could also be eager about buying Condé Nast, the media firm that owns magazines like Vogue and Wired. There was hypothesis that Bezos may even simply carve out Vogue for his new bride, Lauren Sanchez, whom he married final month in Venice, Italy, a marriage that was met by protesters who didn’t respect his proximity to Trump.

At this level, it’s rumors and hypothesis. However generally rumors flip into actuality. And if Bezos buys CNBC, there’s a great probability it might develop into the most recent political instrument of a person price over $200 billion.