This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Business News Deals Media
Standard sale confirmed
By CMU Editorial | Published on Thursday 22 January 2009
Former KGB agent Alexander Lebedev’s takeover of the London Evening Standard was confirmed yesterday to both the City and the paper’s employees. The Russian has bought 75% of the paper for a nominal sum (probably £1), but will take over the liabilities of the title, which is thought to lose up to £25 million a year.
Although old owners the Daily Mail & General Trust will retain 25% of the paper they will not be actively involved in running it, except for providing printing and other logistical resources, for a time at least. And presumably office space.
The sale means current editor Veronica Wadley is out the door. Tatler editor Geordie Greig will replace her – in fact according to Private Eye he’s been involved in Lebedev’s takeover talks with DMGT since the start and will take a stake in the new company Lebedev will form to hold its 75% of the paper. PR man Matthew Freud is also involved somehow.
Interestingly, DMGT will keep ownership of London Lite, the Standard’s freesheet sister title, which has been moved into the same division of DMGT’s Associated Newspapers as its other freesheet Metro.
This is interesting because the most obvious thing for Lebedev to do in a bid to compete with News International’s free London evening title The London Paper would have been to merge Lite and the Standard, and make the more content-rich evening paper a free title. He won’t be able to do this.
However, it’s reported that the deal between Lebedev and DMGT stops the latter from relaunching Lite as the Evening Metro, another obvious thing to do given the popularity of the Metro brand and the general ambivalence towards both The London Paper and Lite brands.
While this feature of the deal may stop the Standard’s owners from driving competitor The London Paper out of business, some point out that that is possibly not on Lebedev’s agenda anyway, given Freud’s involvement. He, of course, is married to Elisabeth Murdoch, daughter of New International owner Rupert Murdoch.
What all of this means for the Standard editorially isn’t clear – though other editorial staff, especially those close to Wadley, are expected to go. It’s thought the paper may become less right wing now it is no longer aligned to Associated’s Mail titles.
It was thought the paper would continue to support Boris Johnson – many reckon the Standard’s consistent and sometimes vitriolic editorials against his predecessor Ken Livingstone won Johnson the London Mayoral election last year.
However, Private Eye point out Freud is no fan of Johnson, not least because he lost a £100,000+ a year account advising City Hall on PR issues after Livingstone lost office. While it’s not clear that Freud is so involved with the deal that he’d have any active influence over editorial policy, some reckon on big issues like that he may do.
Whatever, interesting times are definitely ahead for the London print media.
