Monday, April 18, 2016

Murdoch-Trump Work On Detente

(New York Post photo)
The most intriguing part about the New York Post's endorsement of Donald Trump might be what it says about the relationship between the candidate and Rupert Murdoch, according to CNNMoney.

The Post, of course, is owned by Murdoch, once a vocal critic of Trump's presidential campaign. The tabloid's endorsement comes amid a thaw in tensions between Trump and Murdoch's media empire.

According to Tom Kludt at CNNMoney, Trump and Murdoch have had several meetings and conversations in recent months, according to sources close to both men. Those discussions were brokered by Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, the owner and publisher of the New York Observer, the sources said.

Kushner, who helped write Trump's speech at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference last month, encouraged Murdoch to have a dialogue with the Republican frontrunner.

Over the course of these discussions, Murdoch has apparently come to see Trump not only as a serious candidate with potential, but also as the GOP's inevitable nominee, the sources told CNNMoney.

It's a far cry from where their relationship stood last summer. At that point in the campaign, Murdoch said that Trump was "embarrassing his friends" and "the whole country."

On Thursday, hours before the Post's endorsement appeared online, the Wall Street Journal published an oped authored by Trump.

Trump's on-again-off-again feud with Fox News and the channel's star anchor Megyn Kelly appears to have reached detente, too. Kelly sat down with Trump earlier this week to "clear the air." After that face-to-face meeting, Trump had lunch with Fox News chief Roger Ailes. Trump may even appear on a Kelly special next month.

The Post was not exactly full-throated in its endorsement, however. The tabloid's editorial board even echoed some of Murdoch's concerns, calling Trump "thin-skinned" and questioning some of his proposals, including on immigration.

No comments:

Post a Comment