Washington Post reportedly facing financial struggles, 'on a pace to lose money this year'

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The Washington Post is reportedly "on pace to lose money this year" after years of profitability during the Trump era. 

Following the constant news cycle during the Trump presidency, business at the "Democracy Dies in Darkness" paper's business has stalled so much so that their "5 by 25" initiative to reach five million digital subscribers by 2025 may be out of reach, sources told The New York Times.  "The organization is on track to lose money in 2022, after years of profitability, according to two people with knowledge of the company’s finances," the Times wrote Tuesday. "The Post now has fewer than the three million paying digital subscribers it had hailed internally near the end of 2020, according to several people at the organization. Digital ad revenue generated by The Post fell to roughly $70 million during the first half of the year, about 15 percent lower than in the first half of 2021, according to an internal financial document reviewed by The New York Times." Sources allege to the Times that Washington Post CEO and publisher Fred Ryan, who was hired by the paper's owner Jeff Bezos, "floated… the possibility of cutting 100 positions" in the newsroom, potentially in the form of "hiring freezes."  WASHINGTON POST'S DAVE WEIGEL LEAVING PAPER THIS YEAR FOR DIGITAL MEDIA START-UP SEMAFOR

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 15 : Washington Post publisher Fred Ryan speaks during a 2019 Pulitzer Prize announcement ceremony in the newsroom at the Washington Post office on Monday, April 15, 2019 in Washington, DC.  (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

The Post told the Times that the paper not only is not reducing head count but may expand the newsroom and "exploring positions that should be repurposed to serve a larger, national and global audience." According to the Times, the spokesperson "said the document showing ad revenue declines depicted an incomplete picture of The Post’s business, but she declined to detail how." THE WASHINGTON POST'S WEEK FROM HELL The Times alleged the financial downturn has fueled "frustration internally" with top executives "concerned" that Ryan "hasn’t moved decisively enough to expand coverage" and that under his leadership, marketing efforts were being halted. "Mr. Ryan’s focus on productivity and office attendance in the newsroom has also been a source of tension. He has expressed his belief to members of his leadership team that there were numerous low performers in the newsroom who needed to be managed out," the Times wrote. "He has monitored how many staff members come into the office, and has weighed new measures to compel people to return to work, including threats of firings, several people at The Post said."

Washington Post Publisher and CEO Fred Ryan speaks during a book discussion with former Iranian prisoner Jason Rezaian at the Washington Post headquarters, on January 23, 2019 in Washington, DC.  (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Ryan has reportedly "expressed annoyance" with Post leaders about the apparent lack of productivity, noticing how fewer meetings took place on Fridays as one measurement. The publisher "has also grown increasingly frustrated" that Post staffers have not been working from the office at least three days per week, a policy rolled out by the paper earlier this year following the pandemic.  "In recent weeks, Mr. Ryan asked for disciplinary letters to be drafted and sent to employees who had not made any appearance in the office this year, according to three people with knowledge of the discussions," the Times wrote. "He ultimately decided that the letters should not be sent, and that the people should be called instead. The Post spokeswoman said Mr. Ryan welcomed employee input on the return-to-office policy." WASHINGTON POST BOSS DENOUNCES ‘ATTACKING COLLEAGUES’ IN MEMO TO STAFF AS WARFARE ON TWITTER ENSUES Some employees, according to the Times, have pushed back against Ryan, stressing about the "grave concerns" about the return-to-work policy in a letter sent to him, writing "Such decisions are extremely personal and consequential… and we urge management to allow employees to make these decisions without fear of punishment from their employer."

A Washington Post piece, "DeSantis spokeswoman Christina Pushaw makes sure reporters feel the burn," focuses on Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' press secretary, Christina Pushaw.  (ERIC BARADAT/AFP via Getty Images)

Executives at The Post have mulled over buying other news organizations including "The Associated Press, The Economist and The Guardian," sources told The Times, and that Ryan has prioritized the paper’s ability to "covering new areas rather than acquiring rivals." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The report also claims that Bezos has been more hands-off in recent years, going from having a "regular presence" at the Post before the pandemic to rolling back from what used to be his ever-other-week Zoom calls, which became "less frequent" but that he's "still engaged, however, weighing in during budgeting season and participating in calls." The Post spokesperson told the Times it is "absolutely false" to suggest Bezos is less interested in the paper. 

A spokesperson for the Post declined to further comment. 

Joseph A. Wulfsohn is a media reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to joseph.wulfsohn@fox.com and on Twitter: @JosephWulfsohn.

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ICC eyes $4 billion-plus media rights money for Indian market

The ICC are about to discover how much their cricket is worth when they open bids for the Indian market from various broadcasters on Friday. At stake are the rights to broadcast ICC events - men's and women's - for the next four or eight years, on TV and digital, straight to your device of choice. And given the massive amounts generated by the bidding for the IPL, there's an expectation that the ICC could benefit from the big money swirling around the game.

Here's what you need to know about the bidding.

Why do I even need to know about ICC rights when all I care about is who my team plays next?
Because, ultimately, the money from these rights forms a chunk of the money that makes the rich (India, England and Australia) richer but keeps the game going in the smaller member countries. So, if you care about that, you probably better care about this too.

Fine, so what's being bid for?
A whole bunch of events from 2023-31: 16 men's events (over eight years between 2023-31) and six women's events (over four years - between 2023-27). World Cups, Champions Trophy, T20 World Cups, U19 World Cups, you name it, every ICC event - men and women - you watch until 2031 will be part of this deal.

Brought to me by?
As ESPNcricinfo understands it, one or more of Disney Star*, Sony, Zee, Viacom and Amazon.

And am I watching it on my phone, TV, tablet?
Either, both, all. For the first time, the ICC has unpacked its rights. No longer is it selling one set of TV rights to the highest bidder; it is now selling its rights as separate packages of TV only, digital only, and TV and digital combined. All three are for four or eight years. In case any of the packages are sold for only four years, the ICC will open another window to sell the rights for the second four-year period.

That sounds like bidding could get complicated.
That's exactly what four of the main broadcasters in the running thought, and several emails were sent to the ICC about the lack of transparency in the process. And as a symbolic protest, they didn't initially attend some training sessions - or "mock auctions" as they called them - designed to familiarise them with the process.

Expand.
Disney Star, Zee, Sony and Viacom expressed various concerns over the transparency of the bidding process. TL;DR: the broadcasters were unhappy with the fact that the bids were not going to be shared once opened, among those who bid; that there was no clarity about how close the highest bids needed to be to trigger a second round of bidding; and they wanted to know more about how the ICC would judge a bid for a four-year deal against a bid for an eight-year deal.

What happened next?
The four broadcasters eventually did go ahead and put in bids, and according to some reports, the clarity they wanted has been given. For example, according to a report in the Times of India, broadcasters have been told that if a bid is within 10% of the highest bid/combination bid, it will trigger a second round of bidding - only this time through an e-auction (more on that shortly).

There has also been some more information around a pre-determined multiplier, which will be used to judge an eight-year bid against a four-year one. The ICC will look at the best bids for both tenures and then look at the ratio between the two, compare that with the multiplier, believed to be set at 2.8. If the ratio for eight years exceeds the multiplier, then the ICC will pick the winner for the eight-year bid. If the ratio is less, then the highest bid for four years will be selected.

I'm sorry, what?
Here's an example. If the best four-year number is 100 and the best eight-year number is 270, the ratio is 2.7 (270/100). That is below the 2.8 multiplier set by the ICC. So in this case, the ICC will go with the highest bidder for four years. But if the best bid for four years is 100 and the highest bid for eight years is 300, then the ratio of 3 means the ICC will pick the highest bid for eight years.

Does that mean there could be an e-auction, like the one at the IPL?
Only, as we say, if the second-best bid is within 10% of the best bid; the first round of bidding is the old-school, sealed-bid methodology, which the ICC says has worked best for years (some broadcasters wanted an e-auction from the start, after the success of the IPL). The ICC also argue that the unbundled nature of their rights offering means that it is too complex for a simple e-auction process. In fact, at first they had ruled out an e-auction but have since stepped back from that. The e-auction, if needed, will take place a few days later.

Why have they gone to the Indian market first?
In short: money. It is cricket's biggest market and as the IPL rights proved, there is massive appetite among the biggest broadcasters there for more cricket content. The ICC is banking on the belief that since two different broadcasters - Disney Star and Viacom - have won the TV and digital rights respectively for next five-year cycle of the IPL, both as well as other participants will bid aggressively to bag the second biggest rights in cricket, that of the ICC.

Underpinning this is also simple maths: by unbundling its package of rights into men's and women's events, into digital and TV, by going into different territories, they stand to make much more money than they have in previous cycles.

I'm not sure how it has taken this long to get to the crux of this: how much money are they expecting to make?
Nobody can be certain but here are some facts. In the last cycle, the ICC sold its rights for just over US$2 billion. But that was a different, linear world: that figure was for all rights on all platforms globally. For this cycle, the ICC is believed to have a benchmark figure in mind, an "asking price" of $1.44 billion for a four-year deal and $4 billion (1.44 multiplied by 2.8) for an eight-year deal. That is double the last deal for eight years, and it is only a benchmark figure - so the minimum they expect - and it is only for the India market.

Expectations have risen not just because of the way broadcasting and the digital landscape has changed since the last cycle, but because there is more content. There were six men's events in the previous eight-year cycle, whereas there will be one annually in this next cycle. Six of the eight events fall in the Indian time zone; India play host to three men's event; four of the eight events in the next cycle take place during the Diwali festive season when the Indian market is usually in spending mood.

Separate women's rights will help. An element of development still remains, in that the highest bid will not necessarily guarantee the winner. The ICC is keen to find the right broadcasting partner who can promote women's cricket globally. The highest bidder(s) will make a presentation in front of the Media Rights Advisory Group (MRAG) - formed specifically to adjudicate the bidding - to showcase how they aim to help women's cricket grow, and that will not just be limited to the global events but the overall game.

*Disney Star and ESPNcricinfo are part of the Walt Disney Company.

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Greece flies Russian money launderer to US: lawyer

Greece has extradited a Russian money launderer to the US, hours after his release from a French jail, his lawyer said Friday.

Zoe Konstantopoulou said Alexander Vinnik “was loaded onto a private plane to the US” without being allowed to lodge an asylum request in Greece.

A source with knowledge of the case in France said Vinnik had been handed back to Greek authorities on Thursday afternoon, just weeks after the Court of Cassation in Paris confirmed his five-year sentence for money laundering.

Vinnik, 43, had been in French custody for the past two years following his extradition from Greece.

The father-of-two has been the subject of a long legal wrangle between Greece, France, Russia and the United States.

Vinnik’s French lawyer, Frederic Belot, said Washington appeared to have exerted significant pressure to secure his extradition.

He said his client was sent to San Francisco via Boston. He faces 55 years in prison in the US, Belot said.

“We are outraged by the Greek authorities’ unfriendly actions,” the Russian foreign ministry said, pledging to stand up for Vinnik’s interests.

“Russian diplomats will do everything possible to protect his legitimate rights and interests.”

Vinnik was originally arrested in July 2017 at the northern Greek tourist resort of Halkidiki. A long judicial procedure followed, with Greece sifting through the conflicting extradition requests before deciding in favour of France.

A French court in 2020 sentenced Vinnik to five years in prison for money laundering, but cleared him of an original charge of defrauding nearly 200 people using ransomware. His sentence was confirmed by the French Court of Cassation in June.

A US indictment accuses Vinnik of 21 charges ranging from identity theft and facilitating drug trafficking to money laundering.

In Russia he is wanted on lesser fraud charges involving just 9,500 euros.

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