MAGA Billionaire L.A. Times Boss Is Struggling to Pay the Bills
The MAGAfied biotech billionaire who owns The Los Angeles Times is apparently struggling to steady the newspaper’s finances as he angles to take it public.
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Patrick Soon-Shiong, 72, bought the paper in 2018 for roughly $500 million and has since steered the publication rightward—blocking the paper’s editorial board from endorsing Kamala Harris, floating an AI-powered “bias meter” for its coverage, and courting conservative figures for its pages.
Soon-Shiong is now trying to raise as much as $500 million to float the storied title, which dates back to 1881, on the stock market. The paper has, over the past several months, regularly paid late and settled up only after disputes were escalated to senior leadership or other pressure was brought, multiple sources with knowledge of the situation told Status on Tuesday.
One was Catherine Herridge, 62, the ex-Fox News and CBS News correspondent hired in November to anchor an investigative series, who said at the time she was “thrilled” to join. She went months without being paid before the Times settled up, the sources said.
People with knowledge of conversations at the paper said the thriftiness is coming down from the top.
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Soon-Shiong apparently tried to woo veteran TV news executive David Rhodes, 52, for a senior role after his CBS News exit. That campaign of flattery included flying Rhodes out in economy, housing him at the billionaire’s own guesthouse, and lending him an SUV rather than booking a rental.
“That might be why I didn’t take the job,” Rhodes told Status.
Sources also said that Decatur Holcombe, the paper’s top finance executive, stepped down after privately flagging concerns. He denied any connection in a statement to Status issued by the paper on his behalf, calling that account “completely false.”
A Times spokesperson disputed the reporting, telling Status the company is current on most of what it owes. “The assertions being made are not accurate,” the spokesperson said.
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The Daily Beast has contacted the paper for further comment.
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