Jim and I started shooting the breeze, Harris recalls. For most readers, its not a newspaper., VandeHei and Harris often talk about Politicos digital platforms and the newsrooms shared DNA and metabolism.. He had met Elena Christine Hardy at Wesleyan, but they didn't date. He declined to be interviewed for this story. One glance at their Web site and I get a sense of whats going on.. VandeHei began playing poker with GOP staffers and breaking stories of national consequence: House Republicans were using a secret fund to explore the possible impeachment of President Clinton; Congressman Bob Livingston was ending his campaign for speaker of the House because of an extramarital affair. In 2013, Robert Allbritton, now the chief executive of the privately held Allbritton Communications, sold the family's TV stations and devoted himself to his own baby, Politico. If that works for you, we can do it.. Then there was the companys mastery of the dark arts of internet traffic generationlearned from an unconventional source. This article first appeared in the August 2009 issue of The Washingtonian. They paid a decent price for it., Says Trachtenberg: He saved everybodys bacon. In 1978, Mr. Albritton joined Texas American Bank as Senior Vice President. I cant take it anymore, he said. David Bass, a public-relations executive, had been hired to help Allbritton Communications find an editor for its new newspaper. Joe, in his eighties, was retired but still a force, and Robert was running things. Allbritton took the memo up to the 27th floor. That soon became official. [1], In 1975, he purchased The Washington Star along with its television station and smaller stations in the south. With VandeHei in the CEOs office and Harris often in Europe, the Rosslyn newsroom drifted off course. And for more on that, the broadcaster said, we go to Washington Post political correspondent Jim VandeHei.. That year, its website averaged 3.1 million unique visitors a month; only 11 US newspapers logged higher traffic. Joe Allbritton phoned his son a few weeks before Christmas 2000 and said, I have six weeks to live.. Robert is their only child. This story is from the August issue of Washingtonian, on newsstands July 21. VandeHei is tall and thin and has a manic bent; Harris is stout, a few years older, and seems more steady. He definitely saw himself as a transformational, transfigurative corporate leader and media baron, says a former senior Politico reporter. *, Home Lawn Care Has Become an Issue in Neighborhoods, Pamela Turnure Timmins: Press Secretary to Jackie Kennedy, Biden Gleefully Mocks Fox News at the WHCA Dinner, Scenes and Best Lines From the WHCA Dinner, Jeffrey Epsteins Private Calendar Reveals Prominent Names Including CIA Chief. Valenti, who died in 2007, was one of Allbritton's closest friends; the 41st president was a regular at the annual brunch Allbritton and his wife, Barbara, held at their Washington home on. He wanted to be seen as the guy in charge, Allbritton says. While their start-up turned into a behemoth, the men became friends. We would elbow our way to the front of the line in Washington reporting, he said. It was a really cool collaboration, Allbritton says. He suggested that VandeHei contact Fred Ryan. He wanted to go to give speeches and tell the Politico story. A former member of Politicos leadership says VandeHei made public appearances to promote the companynot himself. The Justice Department and FBI looked into Riggss international-banking practices and charged it with criminal failure to report numerous suspicious transactions. Riggs pleaded guilty and agreed to pay another $16 million in fines. His peace of mind comes in part from his decision not to buy the nine New York Times Company TV stations three years ago. Now, as publisher of Politico, hes taking on a more public role. Allbritton makes a circle with his thumb and forefinger. We worked and filed midnights on Saturday because thats when Henry Paulson was meeting and making decisions. John will be editor-in-chief, you will be executive editor. My fathers theory was that certain folks will know about what kind of good works he did. Harris had just returned to the paper after cowriting a book about the 2004 presidential campaign. Whatever the case, Allbritton made sure VandeHeis figures were reviewed more carefully after the blunder. Allbrittons involvement with Politico steers clear of the publications political tone. Im a pretty happy guy. Father and son were close. He and Hardy decided to take the trip anyway. [7], Allbritton also made a name for himself in thoroughbred horse racing. Afterward, Allbritton occasionally gave instructions to executives and said, Dont tell Jim that I told you this., Politicos leaders were grateful to Allbritton for the resources he devoted to the company but were puzzled about why he wouldnt embrace the role of owner and allow the executive staff to run the company, the source says. I check my political views at the door, says Ryan. But most readers get their news from Politicos Web site. They happen in every thriving business every day. They were incredibly generous people, he says. Allbritton and his wife, Barbara, were major contributors through to numerous organizations through the Allbritton Foundation. How NPRs Latino Newsroom Plans to Provide Bilingual Coverage of the State of the Union, Marjorie Taylor Green vs. Dr. Dre Joins the Long History of Politicians Beefing With Musicians, Registration for the Bay Bridge Run Opens at Noon Today, Inside Jackie Kennedys Intriguing Pre-JFK Life, You Might Spot These Celebs Around DC This Weekend, A Black Bear Has Been Rummaging Through Trash Cans in Kensington, Everything You Missed at Last Nights White House State Dinner, How the M3 Rock Fest Saved 80s Hair Metal, Folger Shakespeare Library Will Reopen in November, Meet the 2023 Washington Women in Journalism Award Winners, A Ginormous Bounce House Is Coming to the DC Area This Spring, NEW: A Lottery System for National Gallery Night Tickets, The 100 Very Best Restaurants in Washington. According to a person familiar with the situation, these transactions served as reminders to VandeHei and Harris that they didnt have true equity stakes. When Comcast bought stakes in Vox and BuzzFeed that very summer, it valued them at $1 billion and $1.5 billion, respectively. In 2011, for example, AOL bought the Huffington Post for $315 million. It is its own little microcosm. In the old days, reporters would cover a crime scene, phone the paper, and say, Rosie, give me rewrite. Now reporters type the stories and send them over the Internet, but the essential reporting remains the same. It was the first major cutback the station has had to make. He was my savior, Zander recalls. Riggs had earned its good name. The following year, Politico had more than 450 employees in Rosslyn, Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey, California, Illinois, Paris, London, Brussels, and Berlin cranking out roughly 6,000 news items a month. In the end, the riftwhether it was over how best to manage growth or how best to compensate the people who had built the company into a behemothwas too much for the partnership to bear. [9] [10] With his wife Elena, Allbritton donated funds for the establishment of the school's Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life. He had been running the family communications business since 1996, when he was four years out of college. Joe Allbritton grew up in DLo, Mississippi, and then moved west to Texas with his family. a blog by Jack Limpert, Editor of The Washingtonian for more than 40 years. Did the company outgrow him? Allbritton says. I was bored to tears, he says. Upon graduation, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the U. S. Air Force. In 1978, he was forced to divest the newspaper. This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance, says a former member of Politicos leadership, to partner with Axel Springeror in a dream scenario, with Business Insider, tooto create a real global powerhouse.. [1] He contributed to Washington National Cathedral, where he was made a Lay canon. In Rosslyn, Allbrittons company has been taking steps to put the drama behind it. Allbritton himself spends much less time in the corporate suite on the 27th floor these days. Could the same scenario unfold? They were surprised and a little disappointed but respected his judgment. I ask if he sees himself as a pillar of the Washington community or a businessman who lives here. I am a huge supporter of education, he says. Want to more about Him? But making weekends mandatory when nothings breaking isnt sustainable.. At 22, he was analyzing deals and helping the bank decide on loans. The companys top executives had been examining the TV deal for weeks. The only other hire from the Post was Kim Kingsley to run public relations. He described the difficult financial situation and announced that he would have to lay off 26 staffers. Allbritton talked up the Capital Leader. He wanted to be involved in most of the decisions, Brady says. Research American banker, publisher and philanthropist, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, "Joe L. Allbritton, founder of Allbritton Communications, dies at 87", "Joe L. Allbritton, communications giant who led Riggs Bank into disrepute, dies at 87", "What Those Glowing Obits Didn't Tell You About Joe Allbritton", "Memorial Service for Canon Joe L. Allbritton", "Joe Allbritton, TV and Banking Titan, Dies at 87", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Allbritton&oldid=1145110386, United States Navy personnel of World War II, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 17 March 2023, at 09:50. To understand whyand to understand how the story of Politicos first decade is in many ways the story of Washington in the digital ageit helps to go back to the beginning. None were charged. Weve had opportunities most people can only dream of. He turned out to be a thoughtful, responsible, unflappable guy. He hired a former Hill editor, brought on 50 employees, and prepared to roll out the new publication: the Capitol Leader. In 1991, his 3-year-old horse, Hansel, won two legs of the U.S. And all the players had to get their stories straight. Such a change could have given global throw-weight to the growing news outlet and could have benefited VandeHei financially. Thats never been important to me. Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Allbritton surname lived. They came up with a nameCapital Leaderand began hiring reporters. Game-changers, says Josephine Hearn, an early hire. I catch up with Allbritton in the glassed-in conference room in the center of the combined newsrooms. He asked to meet with Harris. VandeHei, a native of Wisconsin, was watching a Green Bay Packers game. Because of her stellar academic record, she was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. We need to take on a partner to truly grow globally..

Original Kidz Bop Members Names, Richard Boswell Obituary, Articles R