05/10/2020
In 2015, Reuters reported that Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim Helú had become the majority shareholder of The New York Times. He now has a 9.8 % share of NYT common stock, almost ten times the amount owned by NYT Publisher A.G. Sulzberger, whose family owned the NYT for decades. After Slim Helú, the next largest shareholders of NYT common stock are American-based investment groups, The Vanguard Group (8.4%), Jackson Square Partners, LLC (8.4%) and Black Rock, Inc. (8%).
Would it surprise anyone if Slim Helú is no fan of Trump, who disparaged illegal immigrants from Mexico, re-negotiated the chief U.S. trade treaty with Mexico, and established the first serious border in modern times between the two countries. The NYT ("All the News That's Fit to Print") has reported negatively about Trump for years, serving as a cheerleader for his impeachment while downplaying evidence that Democrats manufactured evidence of wrongdoing. Is there a connection to Slim Helú?
Owning a media outlet is a powerful way to sell products and to protect the market from outside competition.