The daily Le Monde, one of France’s most respected newspapers, is set to lose its prized independence in coming weeks as mounting losses force it to seek up to 100 million euros in a recapitalisation. In a letter to readers on the front page on Thursday, the newspaper’s head Eric Fottorino said the group, which is controlled by a company owned by its own journalists, has five potential bidders interested in taking control.
“This operation is expected to result by mid-June in the choice of a new partner who, alone or with other investors, will take a majority share in the capital of our group,” he said.
Among the candidates are French weekly magazine le Nouvel Observateur and its director Claude Perdriel, who is a board member at le Monde. Spanish media group Prisa, publisher of Spain’s daily El Pais, and the Swiss media group Ringier, publisher of daily Le Temps are also said to be interested.
Also in the running is an unlikely trio of Lazard banker Matthieu Pigasse, French Internet tycoon Xavier Niel, who founded the telecom group Free, and Pierre Berge, a wealthy industrialist .
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Christian Wulff nominated German Prez
Berlin, June 3: Christian Wulff, the state premier of Lower Saxony, was nominated on Thursday as the next German President, government sources told DPA.
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s centre-right coalition proposed the 50-year-old as the successor to Horst Koehler, who unexpectedly resigned at the start of the week. The next President is due to be formally voted into office by a special assembly on June 30.
Ms Merkel’s coalition majority means their chosen candidate is likely to succeed.
Earlier in the week, rumours had abounded that Labour minister Ursula von der Leyen could become Germany’s first female President. Mr Wulff, 50, has been one of Ms Merkel’s key rivals within her Christian Democratic Union party (CDU).
—DPA