Tuesday 26 June 2012

Gina Rinehart Threatens to Sell Stake in Fairfax Unless Given Editorial Influence

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The world's richest woman, Gina Rinehart, has publicly threatened to sell her stake in Fairfax, Australia's oldest media company unless she is allowed direct influence over editorial decisions.

The Australian billionaire mining magnate, a staunch conservative who does no media interviews, has branded herself as a "white knight" trying to rescue the ailing – and liberal-leaning – Fairfax Media.

Mrs Rinehart recently moved to a 19 per cent stake in the company, just short of the 20 per cent mark at which she would have to launch a formal takeover bid. She has been vying for three board seats but has insisted that she should not have to abide by the company's charter of editorial independence.

In a statement to ABC Television, her company, Hancock Prospecting, said Mrs Rinehart was a potential saviour of the company and had started buying shares after its three biggest mastheads suffered long-term circulation declines. » | Jonathan Pearlman, Sydney | Tuesday, June 26, 2012

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