Los Angeles Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong has reportedly increased his involvement in the work of the newspaper's editorial board, advising it to temporarily refrain from writing about Donald Trump, according to a new report by The Guardian.
The news come weeks after another Trump-related controversy: Soon-Shiong also blocked the newspaper's editorial board from endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris for president, a decision that sparked resignations from top officials and public criticism.
Back then, Soon-Shiong expressed concern that endorsing political candidates could exacerbate divisions in the U.S., going as far as to criticize the paper for being an "echo chamber" and moving too far left. He also stated his desire to make it more "fair and balanced." Now he reportedly told the board to "take a break" from Trump.
Since blocking the Harris endorsement, the owner has reportedly implemented policies requiring editorials critical of Trump to be paired with opposing viewpoints and is planning to introduce an artificial intelligence-powered "bias meter" into articles.
The Los Angeles Times is not the only major publication facing scrutiny over owner influence. Back in October, Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos reportedly blocked an editorial endorsement of Harris.
"It sounds like Patrick Soon-Shiong wants the media outlet he owns to provide a more balanced editorial position because the Times is losing a lot of money," Dustin Siggins, founder of the PR firm Proven Media Solutions, told The Latin Times. "Is it concerning to have a business owner with vested interests this involved in the editorial side? Yes. Is it reasonable when the outlet might otherwise close its doors, and he wants to guide it to a profitable future? Yes, especially since he's not demanding an end to Trump criticism - merely that other topics are covered and editorial balance is prioritized."
The news come amid a busy days for the always tense relationship between President-elect Donald Trump and the media. During his first post-election news conference, Trump vowed to "straighten out" the "corrupt" US press, following that up by filing a lawsuit against pollster Ann Selzer, the Des Moines Register newspaper and its parent company Gannett over a pre-election poll that -- wrongly, come Election Day -- saw him behind in the state.
He was also the beneficiary of a $15 million settlement with ABC with stemmed from a defamation lawsuit filed by Trump after comments made by anchor George Stephanopoulos, who falsely stated that Trump was found civilly liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll on his television show, "This Week," when in fact he he had been liable for sexual abuse.
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