You know things are pretty bad in the media business when you have the New York Times reporting that the Washington Post is selling Newsweek to an audio tycoon – for $1. According to the news report, the loss-making magazine's new owner Sidney Harman will pay as little as that after absorbing all its liabilities.
So who is the new owner? Forbes tells us the 91 year old invented the world's first integrated audio receiver and made his fortune selling FM radios back in the 1950s.
The response on Twitter has been absolutely hilarious. Slate magazine presents some examples:
@dan_mccleary Sidney Harman is 90. Maybe he thinks he is buying a Newsweek subscription.
@Judy_Sims Scammers used to trick 91 year olds into unnecessary home repairs. Now they sell them weekly news magazines.
@BorowitzReport Some guy just bought Newsweek for $1. Weird, because you can read it for free at the dentist.
Still, it's not a good sign for the news industry and it's all part of a trend for flagship newspapers and magazines to go for knock down prices. Earlier this year, The Independent was sold to Russian billionaire Alexander Levedev for £1.
It's a dying industry and there are media owners who are desperate to sell. Which makes you wonder what the next one will sell for? 50 cents?
no comment untill now