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UK: Saudi investment in newspapers is ok, says watchdog

By  |  September 18, 2019

On Monday, September 16, Ofcom decided that Evgeny Lebedev, the billionaire owner of several United Kingdom newspapers and other assets, will not be additionally investigated over his sale to a Saudi investor of stakes in two of his publications.

The Russian-British businessman had been embroiled in a protracted dispute with the UK government over the sale of parts of The Independent and the Evening Standard newspapers, with the UK claiming partial Saudi ownership may influence editorial freedom. Media regulator the Office of Communications, which is also known as Ofcom, stated it could find no evidence of any meddling at the papers following the investment from Sultan Mohamed Abuljadayel.

Ofcom stated no additional investigation was needed. It had been considering referring the matter to the Competition and Markets Authority.

Full Content: China Daily

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