http://archives.cjr.org/year/98/3/books-beschloss.asp
He knew, too, how to pull on the pursestrings. Pressed by financial backer George Brown, chairman of Brown & Root, to approve a merger of two Houston banks sought by John Jones, president of the Houston Chronicle, Johnson proposes a quid pro quo: "I want John Jones to write me a letter . . . saying, 'Mr. President . . . I just want you to know that we're making arrangements for special coverage in Washington for the Chronicle . . . and that so far as I'm personally concerned and the paper's concerned, it's going to support your administration as long as you're there. Sincerely, your friend, John Jones.'" When Johnson gets the letter he wants, he phones Jones. "From here on out," he tells him, "we're partners." "Thank you," Jones replies. "Sure are." (Five days later, the merger went through.)
The "revived" public Media Schadenfreude and and Media Shenanigans lists
I read things and hear editors discuss them but don't always have all of the names to go with the events. When I search for all of the specifics, it can take me hours (and possibly even days at times).
I don't spread "rumors" but sometimes only provide details when I am challenged on the facts. In most instances where I did the research for a response, there is NO reply to my post.
Some people may not have heard about this bit of bias from Houston's only daily newspaper (at the time there was at least one competing daily paper). I think it was Lynn Ashby, who became editor of the Houston Post, that discussed this story on the air (when Roger Grey had an FM talk radio station). I do recall that Lynn Ashby was criticizing the current downtown businessmen (who are continuing to take this city to the cleaners to line their own pockets).
Maybe if the Post had done more to publicly separate it's views from those of the downtown funded Chronicle, more people may have bought it.
The left certainly never complained about the way the Clinton Administration okayed all of these newspaper mergers as not creating a monopoly in the communities. Only radio (Rush Limbaugh's current syndicator, Clear Channel, specifically) is considered a monopoly in their eyes.