A week after announcing that the Tampa Bay Times would accept a $12 million loan made in part by anonymous lenders as part of a larger refinancing by the newspaper company, CEO Paul Tash spoke with The Poynter Institute’s Ben Mullin to defend the decision to keep the Times’ creditors identity a secret.
The Q&A is worth a read if for no other reason than to see Tash’s arrogance on full display.
Mullin recaps the aspect of the refinancing arrangement which has drawn criticism from other publishers in the region as well as the chairwoman of the Pinellas Democratic Party: Of the eight local lenders to The Tampa Bay Times, only four were named … Tash and his wife, Karyn, are among the named investors, along with three other philanthropists and business executives.
Asked by Mullin — who, indirectly, has his paycheck signed by the same person as Tash — who are the four anonymous donors, Tash demurs and says, “And I’m going to keep them that way.”
Why won’t Tash name who they are?
“… because I know who they are …” he says defiantly.
In other words, there’s nothing to see here, move along.
The donors can remain anonymous, Tash says, because he knows “the character of these individuals.”
Tash sounds like former president George W. Bush when he said he looked Vladimir Putin in the eye and “was able to get a sense of his soul.”
Is that an exaggeration? Certainly. But who wouldn’t attest to the incredible character of those tossing out a multi-million dollar lifeline?
In fact, Tash explains that part of the reason why the four unnamed donors wish to keep their involvement a secret is “these are not people who seek public attention or credit for what they’re doing. And some of their reticence is modesty.”
We have to take Tash’s word for that.
That’s what this is all about, you either trust the benevolence of Paul Tash or you do not.
In his column, Tash writes that the lenders won’t have any sway over news coverage. How can Tash assure us of this, Mullin asks.
“I make that assurance because it’s true.”
It’s just stunning how arrogant that line is. Remember, the Times is in this financial predicament, not because of the decline of newspapers and all that, but because the CEO of the Times Publishing Co. — Paul Tash — thought it was a smart idea in 2002 to spend more than $20 million to put its name on the Ice Palace in Tampa,
Without that expenditure, there would have been no need to take out the $30 million loan that the Times has refinanced, in part, with this $12 million loan from the anonymous creditors.
That’s all on Tash.
But there’s hardly anyone left in the region to call Tash out about this or any thing else. There is no ombudsman at the Times. Nor can any of Tash’s employees at the newspaper point out that the emperor has no clothes.
In the end, it’s as simple as this:
Rule number one: Paul Tash is always right.
Rule number two: When Tash is wrong, refer to rule number one.
