Britain’s Daily Mail publisher enters exclusive talks to buy Telegraph Media Group for US$654 million

The Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail newspapers are displayed for sale in London, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)

LONDON — The publisher of Britain’s Daily Mail has entered exclusive talks to buy Telegraph Media Group in a deal that would link two news groups that have traditionally supported the right-leaning Conservative Party.

Daily Mail and General Trust plc said on Saturday that the talks were designed to finalize the terms of a 500 million-pound (US$654-million) deal to buy the Telegraph from an Abu Dhabi-backed venture known as Redbird IMI.

The proposed transaction comes after concerns about foreign ownership of British news organizations stalled Redbird IMI’s efforts to take control of the Daily Telegraph and its sister Sunday publication two years ago.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said she would review any new acquisition to ensure it protects the public interest and complies with legislation governing “foreign state influence” in media mergers.

DMGT said it expected to complete the transaction “quickly.”

“Under ownership the Daily Telegraph will become a global brand, just as the Daily Mail has,” Chairman Jonathan Harmsworth, also known as Lord Rothermere, said in a statement.

The battle over ownership of the Telegraph, a fixture on Britain’s media landscape since 1855, began in 2023, when the Barclay family lost control of the company in a dispute with its lenders.

In November of that year, a venture between New York-based RedBird Capital and Abu Dhabi’s International Media Investments said it had agreed to acquire the Telegraph in exchange for loans that would allow the Barclays to repay their debts to Lloyds Banking Group.

But that deal triggered a debate in the House of Commons about the dangers of foreign influence over Britain’s news media — and by extension the national political debate.

The previous government, led by Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, quickly announced plans to review the proposed deal.

“It would not be appropriate for a foreign state to interfere with the accurate presentation of our news or the freedom of expression in newspapers,” then-Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said at the time.

Danica Kirka, The Associated Press