Forest City Fusion

Forest City Fusion

For many years and no special reason, Cleveland citizens have rumored that William Randolph Hearst (last week at the Cleveland Clinic undergoing a minor operation) intended buying the Cleveland News, Republican evening paper owned by Daniel. Carl & Mark Hanna, grandsons of the late great President-maker who founded it as a political mouthpiece. Reports lately got about concerning a merger between the News and Plain Dealer, owned by socialite descendants of the late Liberty E. Holden. prospector, hotelman and publisher. Last week the merger rumors were confirmed by the formation of Forest City* Publishing Co., capitalized at $9,000,000.

Officers were not announced. The merger thus far was purely financial. It was planned, for the time being, that each paper should continue to operate independently with no staff changes. Reported exchange of stock: two News shares for one share of Plain Dealer. The News, undistinguished as to format but published in a fine plant, has been called "the tramp that lives in a palace."

With coverage of the morning and evening fields, and with radio stations WHK and WAIU (Columbus) under partial control of the Plain Dealer, Forest City Publishing Co. was expected to have a sound story to sell to advertisers. Further to its advantage is the fact that both journals are controlled by socialite families, no mean business factor in Cleveland. Cleveland's only other newspaper is the Scripps-Howard Press. The Plain Dealer has no competition in the morning field.

Credited with having brought about the merger was the most active Hanna on the News, big. blond Daniel Rhodes Jr., publisher & president. He dictates editorial policy, occasionally handles details which are usually left in the capable hands of Business Manager-Vice President Charles F. McCahill, onetime Hearstling.

*Cleveland's outworn sobriquet.

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