Trump Allies Seek Buyout of One America News Network (Report)

[Zippyjuan]

https://www.thewrap.com/trump-allies...etwork-report/

Trump TV. (I would use the Wall Street Journal as source, but they are behind a paywall)

Allies of President Trump are seeking a buyout of One America News Network, a conservative cable news channel, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The Journal reported on Friday that Hicks Equity Partners, an investment firm owned by the family of Republican National Committee chairman Thomas Hicks Jr., is courting other GOP donors to buy out OANN’s parent company, Herring Networks Inc. The Journal said the deal is valued at $250 million.

According to OAN’s website, the for-profit company was established in 2004 with primary production operations in California and Washington, D.C.

While it professes to be “a family owned and operated, independent media company,” OANN’s stories often align with White House talking points; on Friday the network posted a story about how Iranian military leader Qasem Soleimani had been planning “imminent” attacks on four U.S. embassies — information that was not shared with Congress before the Trump-ordered strike that killed the general.

The site also posted other stories about a petition to recall California Democratic governor Gavin Newsom and Texas Republican governor Greg Abbott, rejecting new refugees into the state. Stories that don’t necessarily fit a conservative agenda — including a sex toy review from CES and praise of an Alibaba ad featuring a gay Chinese couple — also appeared on OANN, but were aggregated from Reuters.

The buyout report comes at a time when President Trump has been increasingly critical of Fox News and its coverage, despite the network being the home of some of his staunchest supporters.

In July, Trump chastised the cable news network after polls showed Democratic candidate Joe Biden beating Trump in his re-election bid. “So different from what they used to be during the 2016 Primaries, & before – Proud Warriors!,” Trump tweeted. “Now new Fox Polls, which have always been terrible to me (they had me losing BIG to Crooked Hillary), have me down to Sleepy Joe.”

In December, he blasted the network for interviewing former FBI director James Comey and chairman of the House Intelligence Committee Adam Schiff during the height of the impeachment hearings. “Fox is trying sooo hard to be politically correct, and yet they were totally shut out from the failed Dem debates!” the tweet read.

Trump still posts favorable stories and soundbites from Fox News personalities and often calls into “Fox & Friends,” “Hannity,” and other shows. On Friday, Trump appeared on Laura Ingraham’s show to discuss Iran.

A spokesperson for Hicks Equity partners told the Journal that any interest in OANN is “purely business” and not political.

“Over the last 25 years, we have been active media investors. Any interest in OANN is from a purely business standpoint,” said Rick Newman, a partner at the investment firm.

In an email, OANN president Charles Herring said the company has seen an increase in suitors ahead of the upcoming election. “With the 2020 political season in full swing, expressed interest is on the rise,” he wrote. “Yet our family didn’t build our operations to sell it.”

OANN has only a fraction of Fox News’ audience and partially relies upon monthly subscriptions to their Facebook feed.

OANN did not return TheWrap’s request for comment.

[NorthCarolinaLiberty]

Anybody ever notice Zip's technique of trying to put everyone here on the defensive? He asks the concise questions; we furiously type out a long answer.

And I think people do a good job of refuting him, and even putting him on the defensive.

Both liberty people and the enemy, Zip, both expend a lot of energy. Sometimes you get exhausted, but there is one difference.

Zip goes home at the end of his posting with a paycheck. You don't.

[timosman]

Zippy is AI. Nobody is this ......

[NorthCarolinaLiberty]

Zippy is AI. Nobody is this ......

He might as well be. It's like we curse and kick the robot, and the robot just stands there.

I'm on another forum, which is also infested with paid trolls. The difference is that I stick it to them the way paid trolls stick it to RPF. The $#@!s on the other forum are reeling and befuddled. I've been called everything from a shill to a mentally ill bum posting from the library.

And I love it because the shills on the other forum have been totally exposed. There is little to no moderation, so I can say whatever I want. I totally mock them, but they continue to post there. They think it's that important to have their message out.

If anyone wants to have some real fun, then let me know. I have an idea of who pays them.

[timosman]

Is Zippy involved in moderation? I am afraid the answer is yes.

[NorthCarolinaLiberty]

The other forum I visit is great. You can block people, which means they can't quote you. They can't reply to your threads. This drives them totally crazy because their pay is affected.

If a normal person is blocked, he'll whine about it for 5 minutes but then move on. If a paid troll is blocked, he whines incessantly. I've driven off 2 paid people this way. A few others barely bother to post.