Free Web Novel“If that bill passes, it’ll be a serious blow.”
“Exactly. They’re finally starting to move to keep me in check.”
Murdoch’s media empire had grown far larger than before.
Perhaps because of that remarkable pace of expansion, the existing media conglomerates were now openly trying to rein him in.
“If you announce you’re acquiring the Wall Street Journal, it’ll be even more of an uproar.”
“I think the New York Times has already caught the scent. I heard they’re even preparing a special feature about me.”
So attacks were coming from everywhere.
The more solid Murdoch’s media kingdom became, the more enemies he was bound to make.
“The New York Times?”
“They’ve been hostile to us ever since I bought the New York Post. They looked down on us as nothing more than a tabloid outfit. But if I acquire the Wall Street Journal, they won’t be able to dismiss me so easily. They’ll throw everything they have into stopping it.”
As Murdoch said, if he acquired the Wall Street Journal, his standing would rise even further.
It wasn’t just any newspaper—he’d be taking one of the two great pillars of global financial journalism into his hands.
“Is this a bill the Democrats are pushing?”
Murdoch nodded with a heavy expression.
“That’s right. The Democrats are leading it, but I’m told quite a number of Republicans are siding with them too. It can’t be helped. Not only the progressive press but the conservative press doesn’t exactly like me either.”
With Democratic power alone, it would be difficult to pass the bill in its original form.
But if Republicans joined in, it became a different story.
I rubbed my chin, thought briefly, then spoke.
“Then it’ll be hard to stop it from passing entirely, no matter how much lobbying you do.”
“I’m not asking for that, Charlie. But I need to secure a stake big enough to exert influence. My absolute red line is about 40%.”
“Then you handle the Republicans, Chairman. I’ll step in on the Democratic side.”
Murdoch’s face brightened.
“Good. I’ll do what I can with the Republicans—I'll trust you with the Democrats.”
“Understood. I’ll tell James. We’ve already greased some palms on the Democratic side, so even if we can’t kill the bill, we should be able to soften it. Of course, the Republicans will have to coordinate too.”
“That’s enough.”
That was probably sufficient on the bill.
Right now, the Wall Street Journal acquisition was far more enticing.
It would be a very attractive bullet to fire in the conflict with China.
“Chairman Murdoch. Let’s leave the bill for now and go back to the Wall Street Journal. How far have things progressed?”
“Hoo... Like I said, the price isn’t the problem. What they want is editorial independence. They want a document stating they’ll never accept any interference from me. And that’s not exactly an easy thing.”
Editorial independence...
In Korea, it would’ve been unthinkable. Korean media companies were practically private press outlets that moved according to the owner’s tastes.
Murdoch himself was one of those owners.
He acknowledged autonomy, sure—but he wasn’t the type to never interfere at all.
That was also why most of the outlets he’d acquired eventually tilted conservative.
“I think it’s best to agree to their condition. Damaging the Wall Street Journal’s value isn’t a good long-term choice.”
“Even so...”
“So what the Bancroft family wants—complete editorial independence?”
Murdoch nodded.
“Then why not accept it?”
“I want to. But what meaning is there in a company where the majority shareholder can do nothing? It’s not as if I intend to meddle excessively in the first place.”
“If necessary, bending first is also a strategy. How far along are negotiations? What price are they asking?”
“Mm...”
Murdoch couldn’t answer easily and only hummed.
From his reaction, it was obvious why the talks were dragging.
“If the purchase price is the issue, you can always pay a premium and buy it. But that isn’t the real problem, is it? Even if you count the publicly traded Dow Jones shares, it’s not even 40%.”
“......”
“What they want is a simple wish: to protect the Wall Street Journal’s journalism. And you don’t intend to destroy that value, do you?”
After staying silent for a long while, Murdoch looked straight at me.
“Charlie. I’ve dreamed of buying the Wall Street Journal for twenty years. I’m not chasing honor—I’m a merchant who runs newspapers to make money. And to do that, I have to preserve quality. So I don’t plan to interfere excessively. But there’s a difference between choosing not to and being unable to, isn’t there?”
He wasn’t wrong. But the other side was the Wall Street Journal—an institution with enormous influence in America.
“I know what you mean. But if you don’t accept the condition, they’ll never sell. That’s what the Wall Street Journal is. Even if you’re a majority shareholder, you can’t just ignore that and hand over the stock. Maybe with another company—but with a media company, that special nature makes it even more so.”
“That’s why I’m torn.”
The Bancroft family had owned Dow Jones for a century and built the Wall Street Journal.
They weren’t going to sign away the paper just for money.
The price could be negotiated, but editorial independence was different. That was their last line—something they would never yield.
In the end, Murdoch would accept it after enough agonizing.
But at this critical moment, I wanted to pull the timeline forward even a little.
A paper that shaped Wall Street could have a huge impact on what I intended to do.
“Chairman Murdoch—do this. Guarantee the independence of news editing. But carve out the editorial/opinion section separately and make it independent in a different way.”
“Separate news and opinion...”
“Yes. News is based on facts. Editorials are another matter.”
Murdoch fell into thought for a moment, then broke into a grin.
“Charlie, you really are something. Through the editorials, I can still give it the conservative tone I want.”
“Exactly. And tell them you’ll expand the Wall Street Journal—grow its influence not only in America, but also in Europe and Asia. Increase page count, raise quality in international, politics, and current affairs as well. With those conditions, they’ll accept.”
The Wall Street Journal had immense authority as a financial newspaper, but its presence in other areas was narrow.
Strengthening that would be too tempting to refuse.
“That would cost a fortune. Charlie—can you help?”
“Of course. It’s for you, but it’s also for me. Your outlets are doing great, but if I’m being honest—aren’t you trapped in the ‘king of yellow journalism’ frame?”
“Ha-ha! You’re the only one who says that to my face. But it’s true. I won’t deny it. I’m a businessman trying to make money through media. And nothing lures wallets like sensational stories.”
Instead of being offended, Murdoch laughed loudly.
I smiled faintly.
“Then let’s grow the Wall Street Journal enough to break the New York Times’ dominance. I’ll invest as much as needed. In return—don’t damage the Wall Street Journal’s value.”
“I won’t. Owning at least one paper like that wouldn’t be bad. And it’s been my long-held ambition.”
After hearing that, I took out my phone and called Han Kyungyeong.
“Hyung, busy?”
— No. Just having a drink. Why?
“Do you know Dow Jones?”
— Dow Jones? The company that owns the Wall Street Journal?
“Yeah. This time...”
— Why Dow Jones all of a sudden? Wait. Hold on a second.
Han Kyungyeong cut me off, urgently said something to someone beside him, then continued.
— I’m hearing we own about 3%. But we can’t get Dow Jones. A single family holds 60%. Why? You got a feeling again? Buy?
“No. I think Chairman Murdoch wants to acquire Dow Jones.”
I shared everything I’d discussed with Murdoch.
After listening, Han Kyungyeong spoke with concern.
— Hmm... If we buy what’s floating in the market, it could become a problem.
“I’m just asking to confirm. What’s the current price?”
— $25 a share.
I pulled the phone slightly away and asked Murdoch,
“Chairman Murdoch. How much are you considering paying?”
“Up to $50 a share. At that price, neither the Bancroft family nor the other shareholders will have any reason to oppose.”
He was offering double the current price.
I nodded, then returned to the call.
“Hyung. He’s thinking of buying the controlling shareholders’ stock at $50.”
— Double... Honestly, that sounds cheap. The Wall Street Journal is the number one paper on Wall Street in terms of credibility. Some value can’t be priced.
Even Han Kyungyeong, who usually spoke only in numbers, could say things like that. freewebnσvel.cøm
— And if this leaks, the share price will explode. It’ll rise at least to the acquisition price. Still, not bad. And Dow Jones doesn’t only have the Wall Street Journal—they run other businesses too.
“What if we make the board bigger?”
— What? Make it bigger and do what?
“Make it so the Bancrofts can’t oppose the sale.”
The Bancroft family’s stake wasn’t concentrated in one person.
— ‘Make it bigger’ means raise the price more, doesn’t it? Is there any need to go that far? Fifty is already enough.
“People inside the family won’t all think the same way. What I want is...”
After hearing my plan, Han Kyungyeong let out an impressed breath.
— I get what you mean. Put them in checkmate. If negotiations fail and the stock crashes, you’ll pin the blame on them.
“Exactly. How’s my plan?”
— It’s good. It’s forcing a choice, but that’s also how Wall Street works.
A traditional American method: bind the opponent so they can’t escape, then buy them.
— If they reject the offer and the stock falls, they’ll have to endure endless shareholder lawsuits. This is America—the land of lawsuits.
“Land of lawsuits.”
A nickname that fit a country where even trivial things ended up in court.
On Wall Street, lawsuits followed as routinely as sunrise.
Since Wall Street would do anything to take someone else’s money.
“When Murdoch goes back to the U.S. and resumes negotiations, attend with him. Offer $60 per share. And leak the rumor to Wall Street—don’t give any official answer, just let it spread. You know how to do that better than I do, right?”
— That’s what you pay me for, isn’t it? Not hard. But does it benefit us?
“We can use it big against China. Murdoch’s outlets are a bit...”
At my words, Han Kyungyeong and Murdoch burst into laughter at the same time.
— Hahaha! You lunatic. Aren’t you sitting right in front of Murdoch right now? Still, it’s true. Okay. I’ll prepare a no-escape noose. Tell Murdoch I’ll handle it. Don’t try to half-ass it alone.
“Thanks. Oh—and about that bill being negotiated in Congress...”
After hearing about the local broadcast ownership cap, Han Kyungyeong answered as if it were nothing.
— As long as it’s not outright scrapped, it’s not difficult. That’s why we gave the Democrats a ton of money. But you know this won’t be possible until after the election, right?
“I know. With the election right around the corner, it’ll be hard for them to even accept lobbying.”
— I’ll take the Democrats. Tell Murdoch to take the Republicans. It looks weird if I handle both.
We hadn’t planned it, but he said the exact same thing I had. I smirked.
“We already agreed on that.”
— And what about China? You’re going to withdraw the investment, right?
I hadn’t told him my plan yet, but he’d already predicted my move.
As expected ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) of someone who’d worked with me for so long—he understood me better than anyone.
“Yeah. Even if we go back in later. The loss will be big, right?”
— There won’t be a loss. Even if we pull out, we’ll still be up compared to what we invested.
“Then you prepare that too.”
— Fine. Busy again. Still better than drinking with politicians.
“Talk later.”
After ending the call, I put my phone down and smiled at Murdoch.
“Chairman. Let’s do it at $60 per share.”
Murdoch narrowed his eyes.
“Sixty? Then...”
“It’ll cost about six billion dollars.”
“An extra billion...”
He trailed off, as if it were more expensive than expected.
“But we’ll build a board they can’t escape. And this is exactly James’s specialty, isn’t it? If Dream High moves, nothing is impossible. What do you say?”
He looked deep in thought, but his hesitation didn’t last long.
After a moment, Murdoch nodded.
“Fine. If we can acquire it, we have to accept that level of loss.”
After that, Murdoch and I continued talking for a long time.
