Murdoch Near Deal to Sell Weekly Standard

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. is close to a deal to sell the Weekly Standard to billionaire media mogul Philip Anschutz, the Los Angeles Times reports. The conservative magazine boasts a modest circulation of 83,000, though Murdoch has long prized the cachet it granted him in Washington. But Murdoch now has his Wall Street Journal editorial pages to push similar views to a wider audience.

There have also been signs that Murdoch’s personal politics are drifting toward to the center. And while the Standard was never intended to be a big money-maker, News Corp. won’t miss it financially. On the other side, the Standard seems like an odd fit for Anschutz, best known for owning stadiums and sports concerns, like the Staples Center and Los Angeles Kings, and a few production studios. (More Rupert Murdoch stories.)