Exploiting Hollywood 1980

James Wells, the editor-in-chief of the Daily News, was invited to Ronald's apartment on Fifth Avenue. Ed Bastian, who led the secret acquisition team, was also there.

"James, I'm sorry to invite you here. You've heard about the wiretapping incident I've suffered recently. I have to strengthen security measures." Seeing that James Wells didn't seem unhappy, Ronald continued, "I heard that you have something you can't decide on. Do you want to hear my opinion?"

"Let me be honest and tell you what I think, Mr. Li.

You are the best candidate to take over the Daily News. During this period, your support for the newspaper, your respect for the news editing team, and Mr. Bastian's professional support have been admired by the knowledgeable people in our newspaper. Editors and reporters all hope to have a boss like you."

Ronald looked at Ed Bastian. What he meant was how did you reveal the acquisition to the editor-in-chief.

"Ronald, Mr. James Wells is a journalist with traditional American media virtues. He is the kind of person that our society lacks now, the kind that is good enough to win the Pulitzer Prize.

He said this out of respect for you. After all, your donation is actually supporting the operation of the Daily News.

Traditionally, when encountering particularly difficult problems, editors need to obtain the approval of all the people in the newspaper. Just like when the Watergate incident happened, the two reporters also got the support of Mrs. Graham, the owner of the Washington Post, before they dared to release the exclusive report.

Now you are actually the owner of the Daily News, so Mr. Wells needs your help to say that."

Ronald understood what Ed Bastian meant. This was not a leak of his acquisition plan, but the editorial department of the newspaper encountered something difficult to decide, and wanted to ask for a promise of support behind the scenes.

Ronald looked at James Wells, "My support for the Daily News is entirely out of not wanting such a long-standing newspaper to disappear, and it is also a respect for your editorial department. Although I am not the actual organizer of the newspaper, if you need my help in any way, you might as well tell me."

Usually, what reporters in newspapers want to write is protected by the First Amendment. There are two sources that can make them bear the pressure, one is the power of the high level, and the other is capital.

Although the report is protected, the newspaper cannot withstand the repeated investigations of the high-level investigation agencies and the boycott of the newspaper's advertising by big capital.

The problem that the Daily News encountered this time came from a very sensitive political issue.

At the beginning of the year, the mayoral election in New York officially kicked off. The popular candidate representing the Donkey Party is Manhattan Borough President, black politician Dinkins, and the candidate representing the Elephant Party is former Manhattan South District Attorney Rudy.

Today, the primary elections of the two parties have entered a white-hot stage. The two leading candidates in the primary elections have found the editorial department of the Daily News and want them to endorse themselves.

"Daily News, I remember that you always support conservative Elephant Party candidates, right?"

Ronald's limited political knowledge made him not understand James Wells's difficulties. What is there to be afraid of? Just support the Elephant Party as before, and the Donkey Party can't say anything.

"The problem lies in this year's election. Compared with previous years, the two candidates are not traditional candidates of the two parties."

James Wells complained bitterly.

From Rudy's side, although his supporters are the core of the Elephant Party, including people in Staten Island, Queens, Long Island, and some people in Manhattan, Rudy has not officially said in any campaign that he is running for the Elephant Party.

Dinkins is also different from ordinary Donald Trump candidates. He faces Koch, a traditional Donald Trump strongman who has served as mayor for three terms. However, relying on his black political identity, he actually suppressed the current mayor Koch and the current governor Cuomo with more than 50% of the polls in the primary election.

Both parties have traditional media supporters. According to tradition, the New York Post supports the Elephant Party and the New York Times supports the Donald Trump Party. The two media with large circulations but not as influential as the first two newspapers in the country, the Daily News and Newsday, are not tied to the two parties and decide which side to support based on the candidates in each election.

The circulation of Newsday is mainly concentrated in Brooklyn and the Bronx in northern Manhattan, where many black people are natural supporters of Dinkins, so they are likely to endorse Dinkins this year.

The main distribution channels of the Daily News are Staten Island, southern Manhattan, and Queens. They should have supported Rudy, but because Rudy did not follow the usual path, they were in a difficult situation.

Ronald understood that the editorial department was actually afraid of endorsing the wrong candidate and being suppressed in various ways after the new mayor took office. If there was a tall man like Ronald who could take the lead, then the grievances would be settled and the grievances would not be vented on the reporters of the newspaper.

"According to tradition, the issues related to the election are all decided by the organizers of the newspaper. The editorial department has already surrendered to you. If you can help them shelter from the wind and rain this time, then it will be much easier for us to acquire the overall assets of the newspaper."

After sending James Wells away, Ed Bastian told Ronald his opinion.

"I still don't quite understand why Rudy is unwilling to say his Elephant Party?"

"Because he wants to abandon the Conservative Party and run for election with the Liberal Party." Ed said it all.

……

"Rudy can't possibly unite with the Conservative Party. Sorry, Mr. Lee."

Ronald then called Rudy. Rudy sent someone from his campaign team to contact him.

"You know, the main distribution area of ​​the Daily News is the traditional sphere of influence of the Elephant Party. As long as Rudy says that he represents the Elephant Party, the people here will vote for him, so it's only natural for the newspaper to endorse him."

"Hey, I just brought the campaign materials of the Conservative Party candidate, billionaire Lawton. Take a look at them yourself."

Ronald took the materials handed over by Rudy's campaign manager.

There is a reason why Rudy did not unite with the Conservative Party in accordance with tradition. The Conservative Party is more right-leaning than the Elephant Party. They don't like Rudy's ideas on abortion rights, gun bans, affirmative action, and eliminating discrimination against people with minority orientations, so they simply launched their own candidates.

"Where are these people from? How come they are even more conservative and stubborn than those evangelicals in the South?"

Ronald could understand the conservative party's opposition to women's right to abortion, gun bans, and equal rights, but he couldn't stand the last item on the flyer.

Lawton, the candidate of the Conservative Party, actually proposed to restore Bible and prayer courses in public schools.

The principle of separation of church and state was adopted when the United States was founded. Except for some church schools that still retain Bible study and prayer classes, general public high schools are not allowed to force students to do these things. Once this proposition came out, and in New York, where the atmosphere is open and free, any candidate essentially gave up the election.

"So, do you understand Rudy?" The campaign manager was also helpless. New York has always been a place where the donkey is strong and the elephant is weak. The elephant party candidate cannot compete with the donkey party without joining a small party.

With such a policy that will obviously be opposed by voters in Brooklyn and Manhattan, the two most populous districts, Rudy cannot form an alliance with the Conservative Party.

As for the Conservative Party, they didn't want to win the mayoral election, but just wanted to keep their base, but this may ruin the overall situation.

"These people seem to be living in the 19th century..."

Ronald shook his head, "So, can Rudy publicly show that he is the candidate of the Elephant Party?"

"I'm afraid that's not possible. If the voters of the Liberal Party only vote based on Rudy's political views, we still have the strength to compete with the Donkey Party candidates, but the Liberal Party doesn't like the Elephant Party. If we use the Elephant Party banner, we have no chance of winning."

It's still a simple math problem. If the Elephant Party candidate wants to win, he must unite with a small party. The Conservative Party is too radical, and the Liberal Party is unwilling to vote for a candidate with (R) after his name on the ballot (R stands for Elephant Party).

"I'm sorry, sir. I personally support Rudy, but a newspaper is a newspaper, and I have to be responsible for my subscribers. They can't accept the Daily News to endorse a candidate who is united with the Liberal Party and dares not say his own R."

Ronald's hands and feet are also tied. He bought the newspaper for the influence among subscribers and readers, and he can't lose his foundation because of supporting Rudy.

"Of course, Rudy will understand..." The campaign manager expected this result. This is a strategy that Rudy's team came up with after precise calculations, blurring the position to win the votes of middle-class voters.

"Then, on Staten Island..." The campaign manager came this time, more importantly to get Ronald's promise, in Staten Island, a conservative vote bank...

"Staten Island voters will definitely support a candidate like Rudy who is a prosecutor. We all have a good impression of this candidate who has a heavy hand in rectifying security and order and investigating Wall Street tycoons and the five major families in Manhattan."

The campaign manager shook hands with Ronald and got his reconfirmation that he would fully support Rudy on Staten Island, and they were satisfied.

...

"Mr. Dinkins, I want to know your opinion on the Central Park attack."

When the campaign manager from Dinkins' side came to visit, Ronald choked at the beginning.

They were very confident in their victory, so they didn't ask Dinkins what to do to get the endorsement of the Daily News, but first to investigate Ronald, who was said to be the next owner of the Daily News, his personal opinion.

"Huh?" Ronald frowned. I am also a victim of the Central Park violent attack, and you come to ask me what I think. What does it mean?

"What does Mr. Dinkins mean?"

"Mr. Dinkins believes that the five black and Latino boys were tortured into confessing. The so-called confession is just taking advantage of the fact that there are no lawyers present, using various means of intimidation to force these boys to admit to crimes they did not commit.

Mr. Dinkins will try to appeal and help these five boys gain freedom."

"Is this Dinkins' condition?" Ronald frowned even deeper. Among these five people, there was a black man who attacked himself and Helen. If he hadn't run fast, he might have been on the news.

Admitting a crime he didn't commit? What does this mean? In Ronald's opinion, these little guys don't obey the law at all, and have no respect for social order. They are typical black people who were raised in the slums.

Single-parent families, worship criminals instead of police, have violent tendencies, and regard robbery and drug trafficking as a job.

Even if there is no evidence to convict them of attacking and attempting to murder the lady jogging in Central Park, the bad things they have done can actually be convicted of the crimes sentenced by the court now.

Of course, under the legal system of the jury system, such words can only be said by oneself, and cannot be announced to the public, which is not in line with American values.

"We already have the support of the New York Times and Newsday. Once the primary election is over, we will publicly endorse Mr. Dinkins. If you have such an idea, you should contact us as soon as possible and wait for us to make an assessment of the coverage of this case in the Daily News."

Dinkins' campaign manager walked away arrogantly.

He has the confidence and confidence. In the party primary, facing the three-term mayor Koch, Dinkins' lead is still more than 10%.

His personal charm and the campaign strategy he adopted make him hopeful to become the first black mayor in the history of the first metropolis on the East Coast and New York.

Dinkins has a very high chance of winning in the party primary, first of all because he has the natural support of black votes. Among black voters in the Bronx, he has a support rate of more than 90%.

Therefore, he had to use the Central Park case to speak out for the five black and Latino suspects involved in the case. At every campaign site, Dinkins talked about the five boys, saying that they were treated unfairly because of their black skin.

Many years have passed, and black people are still stopped by white police on the street for no reason when driving, and they are also stopped and questioned when walking in white communities.

And among white voters? Dinkins also has a support rate of about one-third. These people are mainly dissatisfied with Koch and support Dinkins' seemingly middle-of-the-road position.

Koch, who has been re-elected as mayor for three terms, is not as popular as before. He himself is also deeply involved in scandals. As a single man, he has caused a lot of media, especially Newsday, to discuss whether he has a special orientation and likes men.

Most voters cannot be said to discriminate against people with these orientations, but they do not want their mayor to be one of them.

In addition, Dinkins knows that his weakness lies in the high crime rate in black communities, which has caused a decline in the overall sense of security in Manhattan.

So he is also advocating that he will be a tough mayor to crack down on illegal drugs and vicious crimes. He proposed to build New York into a kaleidoscope, where citizens of all ethnic groups live together, learn from each other's strengths and weaknesses, and achieve common security and harmony.

One-third of white support may not seem high, but it is more than double the white vote rate of Jesse Jackson, a black pastor and civil rights activist who represented the Donald Party in the last presidential election.

Everyone is optimistic about him, so the black manager of the campaign team is a little disrespectful to the future boss of the Daily News. Anyway, they have already obtained the support of the important media News Daily in Brooklyn and the Bronx. Ronald's support is a bit like you have more, you don't have less.

...

When encountering political problems, Ronald always discusses with Douglas Jr.

This time, Douglas Jr. also went to Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. After listening to all the explanations, he asked, "So what is your decision?"

"I think we don't necessarily need to express support for any candidate." Ronald's fingers tapped a rhythm on the table.

"Choosing a candidate means choosing a camp. All future reports need to be adjusted according to the position. Instead of this, what if we stand on a neutral position? At that time, among the four major newspapers in New York, only the Daily News can report real information in a relatively neutral position..."

"This is a good idea. It happens to be the election time, and it is also the time for us to take over the omni-media platform of the Daily News. It is just a breakthrough for the new owner to take over..." Douglas Jr. also thinks this is just right. At that time, the Daily News is more objective. Will the readers and subscribers increase while the heat is on?

"So, I need understanding from the top..." Ronald did not stand on the side, and he would also bear the corresponding risks. The media that does not rely on either side will be under pressure no matter which candidate comes to power.

"I'll call George Jr." Douglas Jr. nodded.

"Your media, don't you want to endorse Rudy?" George Jr. thought that Doug Jr. and Ronald Jr. were talking about the small newspapers they controlled on Staten Island. "

"Yes, Rudy is going to run in conjunction with the Liberal Party, and there is no red, no elephant, and no capital R in his campaign propaganda materials. Our newspaper is read by die-hard supporters of the Elephant Party. "

"You are absolutely right. I will call the National Committee of the Elephant Party. Rudy went a little too far. The Elephant Party platform should only be open to those who are willing to be loyal to the Elephant Party. I don't think there will be any problem." George Jr. heard this reason and felt that Ronald was right.

Staten Island was the only New York constituency that supported his father in the last election. If there were more such friends in New York, maybe his father could have won New York State.

After obtaining the understanding of the top leaders of the Elephant Party, Ronald decided that the Stanton Advance, which he and Douglas Jr. controlled, and the New York Daily News, would only report neutrally in this local election and would not endorse any candidate.

...

"Ronald, are you in New York? Why did I hear from the Elephant Party that you are in New York?"

After dealing with this matter, Ronald stayed in New York for another two days to meet Helen. Just when he was about to return to Los Angeles, an acquaintance called him again.

"Bannon, are you in New York too? I'm just about to return to Los Angeles."

"Wait, wait, can you postpone it for a day? I just need your help."