Battle of the Billionaires

[fulvio sammut]

There's an article in today's Sydney Morning Herald's website, entitled as per the heading of this thread, which probably explains to some degree why Rugby union gets such poor or non existent newspaper coverage in this State.

You won't read it in the West Australian.

[wholetruth]

You beat me to in there Fulvio.
Perhaps it goes some way to explain why Nick Taylor was ousted/left.
Love a good conspiracy but this may be more than that.
You can read about it on plenty of other websites.

[Sheikh]

Although remember that the Sydney Morning Herald is owned by the Nine Entertainment Corporation, who of course are competitors of Seven, and wouldn't be averse to a little stirring of the pot themselves.

Battle of the billionaires: Forrest doubles down on Stokes ‘bias’ newspaper coverage claims

A bubbling feud between billionaires Andrew Forrest and Kerry Stokes has spilled out into a Fortescue Metals Group briefing, with the mining magnate doubling down on claims the media mogul’s Seven West empire is peddling “salacious” articles amid a business row.

On Tuesday, Business News reported Forrest had told staff recent articles about Fortescue’s affairs published by The West Australian may have been a byproduct of the company’s June decision to partner with German equipment manufacturer Liebherr for the supply of 120 hydrogen-powered haul trucks.

The company is a direct competitor of Caterpillar dealer WesTrac, a heavy equipment supplier owned by Stokes’ private company Australian Capital Equity.

Stokes, 82, is best known for chairing ASX-listed Seven West Media, owner of The West Australian newspaper.

In an audio recording broadcast by Radio 6PR’s Gary Adshead on Wednesday, Forrest branded The West’s coverage “biased” and “inaccurate” and said it could well be driven by commercial interests.

And Forrest doubled down on those comments during a half-yearly meeting the same day, referencing the “salacious” reporting when fielding questions from a journalist at The West.

“Look I think you’re an excellent journalist, and they’re great questions, but I would really think carefully about not co-operating with your particular outlet,” he said.

“I don’t know if you’re under a lot of pressure or not, but we’ve had some really salacious misreporting, inaccurate, trying to put fear into the West Australian community [and] give the West Australian community a poor impression of this company.

“I’m particularly sensitive about answering questions from The West, we would normally not co-operate, but these are excellent questions.”

Forrest told the meeting he had put his foot down with WesTrac after it claimed it would not be able to bring pollution-free trucks online for almost another decade.

That put it at odds with the company’s commitment to decreasing emissions.

By inking the supply deal, Forrest said he had simply “called their bluff”.

“I made it really clear, if they don’t change that stance, [and] I don’t bluff, I will bring them [Liebherr] in,” he said.

The stoush comes after The Australian Financial Review revealed ACE had pulled out of the pair’s joint business deal to buy the old East Perth Power Station from the state government.

Australian Capital Equity and Forrest’s investment vehicle Tattarang were selected as the preferred proponents on the riverfront redevelopment and were due to sign off on the purchase in a matter of weeks.

According to the AFR, Seven Group Holdings managing director Ryan Stokes, Kerry’s son, has insisted there is no bad blood between the two companies, with FMG still considered one of WesTrac’s most valued customers.

He also stressed that the editorial decisions of Seven West Media were entirely independent.

The lashing confirmed months of speculation about a feud between the billionaires and comes amid The West Australian’s coverage of Fortescue’s WorkSafe charges, a recent staff exodus, and the viability of ambitious plans of the miner’s green energy arm.

Last week, WorkSafe revealed it had charged Fortescue with 34 counts of failing to hand over documents related to alleged sexual harassment that occurred at its mine sites.

Fortescue initially said it was reluctant to comply with the watchdog’s demands because its priority was protecting the private details of staff, but has since agreed to supply redacted versions of the documents sought.

It also follows several media reports about job losses at the company and the number of high-level executive departures.

Seven West Media and The West Australian editor-in-chief Anthony De Ceglie both declined to comment.

[wholetruth]

It's not just the Herald that are running with it. It's all papers and websites - except The West. What a surprise. Here's the Aus Fin Review that was one of the first with the story I think

Andrew Forrest has accused a newspaper controlled by Kerry Stokes of “biased, inflammatory” and inaccurate reporting, suggesting his fellow West Australian billionaire is misusing the power of his media empire in a showdown of the lucrative mining machinery market.
Dr Forrest claims his Fortescue Metals Group is being targeted after bypassing the Stokes-controlled Seven Group and its flagship WesTrac business on a big haul truck order and then flagging plans to become a major rival in the supply of mining machinery in resources-rich WA.
The Fortescue founder and executive chairman said on Wednesday that his plans were a “direct business threat” to WesTrac, which supplies Caterpillar machinery, and had led to what he views as biased coverage in The West Australian newspaper owned by Kerry Stokes-chaired Seven West Media.
A spokesman for Kerry Stokes declined to comment. Seven Group managing director Ryan Stokes, who is Kerry’s son, said there was no editorial interference in Seven West Media, including The West, by management or owners. Seven Group owns 40 per cent of the media business.
Fortescue’s plans are based on a partnership with Liebherr, where it has placed an order for 120 emissions-free haul trucks due for delivery in 2025.
“We are not just shipping in from North America where Caterpillar does the whole thing, we are actually going to manufacture it and maintain it here,” Dr Forrest said of the machinery plans.
“So I think we are going to accelerate local content and local employment. That is a direct business threat to that Caterpillar franchise (owned by WesTrac).”
In a video message released to Fortescue staff, Dr Forrest claimed the coverage of his mining group was being “driven by the narrow, self-seeking, commercial interest” of Kerry Stokes’ wider conglomerate.
“You know me well enough to know that I do not pull my punches. I’m honest and I tell it as I see it,” Dr Forrest says in the video message.
“The West commentary on this and many other matters has been biased, inflammatory and above all inaccurate. This could well be driven by the narrow, self-seeking, commercial interest which does not support the steps we have all taken to make polluting, mobile equipment history.
“Everyone loves positive disruption and improvement in technology and in society, except perhaps when it happens to them. This I believe is the case and what has inspired the biased inaccurate reporting of The West.”
The two billionaires and their private companies have also had a parting of ways on controversial plans to co-develop WA government-owned riverside land in East Perth on top of the dispute over mining machinery and reporting in The West.
There has been a marked change in The West’s coverage of Dr Forrest and Fortescue since mid-December based on analysis of its reporting.
The West has scrutinised Dr Forrest and Fortescue over green energy projects, staff exits, pending job cuts and a dispute over the handing over documents on sexual harassment cases to the work safety regulator. Other publications, including The Australian Financial Review, have also covered these issues.
The West’s editor-in-chief, Anthony De Ceglie, did not respond to a request for comment.
Caterpillar machinery, which is supplied by WesTrac, represents about 80 per cent of the current Fortescue fleet. Fortescue is the second-biggest customer of both Caterpillar and WesTrac in WA behind BHP.
In the past five years, Fortescue has spent $1.35 billion with WesTrac and the Seven Group business faces a big financial hit in losing that business and if Liebherr gains an even bigger foothold in the WA mining industry.
Dr Forrest said Fortescue gave WesTrac a chance to meet its green requirements for haul trucks, but only Liebherr could deliver in the timeframe required.
“Caterpillar whose franchisee owns The West Australian has for a long time said they are not going to be able to bring a pollution free truck into the mining industry until the 2030s,” Dr Forrest said.
“Now I made really clear that if they didn’t change their stance, I don’t bluff. I will bring them in. There was no way they could see I could do that, so they just called my bluff.
“Now we have ordered 120 trucks, we will be putting in local content, batteries which we will be installing here which will be eventually manufactured here at large scale, like we will hydrogen fuel cell drive trains at large scale and that is all local content.”
Dr Forrest said he was “very happy to speak to the Stokes family and make sure we keep them really busy so that they too can profit and enjoy distributing the trucks which we will be partly responsible for”.
“There is massive business which could be available to companies like WesTrac so what we have got to do is see the opportunity and not try to fight it.”
Dr Forrest said Williams Advanced Engineering in the UK, a green technology and engineering business acquired by Fortescue Future industries for £164 million in January last year, could build batteries for mining machinery before a transition to battery-making in WA.
Dr Forrest and Mr Stokes, both based in Perth, also fail to see eye to eye on the future of fossil fuels with Mr Stokes backing gas through Beach Energy and Dr Forrest backing green hydrogen.
The clash with Mr Stokes comes with Dr Forrest at odds with Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart, on the future of fossil fuels and on the back of a falling out with Mike Cannon-Brookes over Sun Cable.
WesTrac was the biggest contributor to earnings for Kerry Stokes-controlled Seven Group in the first half of the financial year, up 21 per cent on last year and contributing $254 million to overall group earnings before interest and tax of $595 million.
Ryan Stokes said WesTrac via Caterpillar was making great strides in the supply of electric and emissions-free machinery to mine sites.
“We are confident about being able to provide our customers, including FMG, a solution to that battery-electric requirement and other technologies. CAT has made tremendous progress,” he said.
“We feel very confident about our ability to meet all of our customers’ energy transition ambitions. We are not concerned about our position there.”
Ryan Stokes said it was disappointing that Fortescue had opted to buy Liebherr trucks but the decision was made in 2021-22 and WesTrac had continued to support Fortescue as a valued customer.
“Seven Group Holdings and WesTrac consider FMG one of our most important and highly valued customers, we will do anything to support them in their mining and broader ambitions,” he said.
“We value the relationship we have throughout the organisation. The decision on 50 per cent of their truck fleet was more than 12 months ago. Yes, it is disappointing – as it is to lose any deal – but we have been actively engaged on current and future deals.
“As far as Seven West Media goes, editorial decisions are completely independent as you would expect.”
The Stokes’ family’s privately-owned Australian Capital Equity (ACE) has pulled out of a deal with Dr Forrest’s private company Tattarang that would have seen them redevelop an 8.5-hectare former power station site in East Perth.
The WA government has tipped more than $50 million to prepare the site for redevelopment and planned to sell it to the billionaires for a token amount given about $200 million in rehabilitation work is still required.
It is understood ACE pulled out in December but Tattarang is willing to continue in its own right with a multi-billion dollar project expected to employ about 2000 people in the construction phase.
The Australian Financial Review revealed in 2020 that the East Perth site could eventually become home to new Fortescue headquarters.

[fulvio sammut]

Jebus.

Now we all know how Labor feels.

[shasta]

Jebus.

Now we all know how Labor feels.

What a daffy, looney left sentiment! No billionaire media owner would use their outlets run their agendas. You probably watch the biased ABC with their woke commie journos.

PS this is a piss-take. Rex has not hacked my account.

[wholetruth]

Seven Group managing director Ryan Stokes, who is Kerry’s son, said there was no editorial interference in Seven West Media, including The West, by management or owners. Seven Group owns 40 per cent of the media business.

And Santa Claus is real

[.X.]

Santa?

[wholetruth]

Seven Group managing director Ryan Stokes, who is Kerry’s son, said there was no editorial interference in Seven West Media, including The West, by management or owners. Seven Group owns 40 per cent of the media business.

And Santa Claus is real

So does the Editor not answer to anyone?

[GIGS20]

So does the Editor not answer to anyone?

Each editor is only controlled by their immediate line manager in the editorial department and the head of the editorial department is completely free to publish or retract any story they wish said Ryan stokes ceo and editorial department head.