Threat to shot Tost’

Press, 10 February 1988, Page 10

Threat to shot Tost’

NZPA-Reuter New York The publisher, Rupert Murdoch, said yesterday he would shut his “New York Post” newspaper on February 19 unless unions agreed to pay cuts so that he could sell it to a man who would only guarantee its existence for a year. "At this point, whether or not the ‘Post’ survives is entirely up to co-opera-tion from our unions,” Mr Murdoch said as he presented take-it-or-leave-it proposals to the paper’s union chiefs. The Australian-born

news media baron told the unions he needed pay cuts of 12 per cent and agreement to cut 77 jobs before he could sell it to a real estate developer, Peter Kalikow, for SUS 37 million ($55.8M).

Mr Murdoch said there would be no deal if the unions refused to make the concessions aimed at saving SUS24M over three years.

The unions met jointly after hearing Mr Murdoch make his statement. Mr Murdoch told the unions: “This is a very difficult time for everyone at the ‘Post’ ... there

is a lot at stake for everyone.”

He added that Mr Kalikow, listed by “Forbes” magazine as one of the 400 richest men in America, has made a commitment to publish the “Post” for a year and clearly wanted to keep it alive beyond that time.

Mr Murdoch said of all the potential bidders, Mr Kalikow was the most likely to succeed in reviving the paper. Mr Murdoch said the paper’s losses were running at about SUSISM a year and that advertising was down 25 per cent over last year.