AOL has announced the surprise acquisition of liberal-leaning news website The Huffington Post. The internet giant paid $315 million for the site, and will make its founder, Arianna Huffington, the president and editor-in-chief of the newly christened Huffington Post Media Group, "which will include all Huffington Post and AOL content." Media analysts were stunned by the move, which has secretly been in the works since November, but were quick to applaud it as a "win-win" for both parties. Is that really the case? (Watch a CNN report about the deal)
Yes, AOL gets vision while Arianna gets money: "This deal is a good one for both sides," says Felix Salmon at Reuters. AOL gets "a voice and a clear editorial vision," which it has lacked thus far. HuffPo gets more resources and "lots of money," with which it will buy many more "big names" like Howard Fineman from mainstream media. This makes their combined forces a "unique and very valuable" proposition.
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