February 18, 1980 Th . Monopoly: The Thor Lord Kennneth Thomson owns fifty one newspapers in Canada Written by Mike McEvoy of the Uniter and vice-president elect of Canadian University Press. The sight of a hard-hit- ting corporate expose in your daily newspaper is as rare as the politician who keeps a promise. It’s not that corporations don’t make scandalous de- cisions adversely affecting people’s lives. They do. Muckraking journals like Mother Jones, which rely on donations from _ sub- scribers to survive, have exposed corporate corrup- tion regularly. Revelations about the deadly Ford Pin- to, and a company whose distribution of defective contraceptive devices caused several deaths are but a few examples. But daily newspapers generally choose not to track down these stories themselves, mainly _ be- cause they depend on cor- porate advertizing revenue to make a profit. As such, newspapers are themselves corporations; corporations growing larger and becoming more con- centrated. The Thomson newspaper chain isa good example Like a starving wolf in a pit of rabbits, British Lord and multi-millionaire Ken- neth Thomson has de- voured fifty-one papers in Canada’s publishing hutch. Thomson’s latest $165 million takeover of F.P. Publications netted him another eight daily news- papers including the prest- igous Toronto Globe and Mail. The acquisition was fi- nanced largely by profits from his North Sea oil investments. (These same revenues’ also __ helped Thomson buy out the Hud- son’s Bay, Zellers and Sim- psons Sears department stores last year). But snot a whimper of protest was heard from Canada’s communications ‘establishment. No one suggested that this might represent:too much control over the media by too few a Ss THE THOMSON COLLECTION From the Financial Post — Thompson Newspapers Ltd., (Toronto)— Founded by Canadian-born Lord Thomson of Fleet. Chair- man and principal owner is son K.R. Thomson who lives in Canada and is also joint chairman, Interna- tional Thomson Organiza- tion. The latter’s interests include The Times and Sun- days Times London. Company specializes in small circulation dailies. Also owns 71 newspapers in the U.S. through sub- sidiary Thomson News- papers Inc. Dailies: Barrie Examiner Belleville Intelligencer Brampton Daily Times Cambridge Daily Reporter Charlottetown Guardian Charlottetown Evening Patriot Chatham Daily News Corner Brook Western Star Cornwall Standard-Free- holder Guelph Daily Mercury Kamloops Daily Sentinel Kelowna Daily Courier Kirkland Lake Northern Daily News Moose Jaw Times-Herald Nanaimo Daily Free Press New Glasgow’ Evening News Niagara Falls Review Orillia Daily Packet & Times Oshawa Times Pembroke Observer Penticton Herald Peterborough Examiner Prince Albert Daily Herald ~ St. John’s Evening Tele- gram St. Thomas Times-Journal Sarnia Observer Simcoe Reformer Sudbury Star Sydney Cape Breton Post Thunder Bay Times-News/ Chronicle-Journal Timmins Daily Press Truro Daily News Vernon Daily News Welland Evening Tribune Woodstock Daily Sentinel- Review Weeklies: Bathurst Northern Light F.P. Publications Ltd., To- ronto. Private Company. Owners: John W. Sifton estate 22.5%; Bell Foun- dation 22.5%; Newsco In- vestments Ltd. (Holding company for the Webster family) 22.5%; R.S. Ma- - lone 7.5%; Starlaw Invest- ments 25%. Malone, chairman of F.P. Publications was formerly publisher of the Toronto Globe and Mail. Webster and Starlaw investments have extensive business in- terests outside publishing. Owns daily newspapers in Quebec, Ontario, Mani- toba, Alberta and British Columbia. Holds 3% of the class A shares of Selkirk Holdings Ltd. Daily newspapers: Calgary Albertan Lethbridge Herald Montreal Star“ Ottawa Journal Toronto Globe & Mail Vancouver Sun s Victoria Daily Colonist Victoria Daily Times Winnipeg Free Press Weekly: . Free Press Weekly Report on Farmin, Weekend Ma- gazine. Job Printing: Montreal Standard Ltd. Ronalds_ Federated Ltd. (51.6%) Subsidiaries (wholly owned): F.P. Publications (Wes- tern) Ltd., F.P. Publications (Eastern) Ltd. Collingwood Bulletin Dunnville Chronicle Elliott Lake Standard Georgetown Herald Hanover Post Leamington Post Yorkton Enterprise Tri-weekly: Trenton Trentonian & Tri- County news Semi-Weeklies _ Midland Free Press Orangevill Banner Swift Current Sun Enterprise Lord Kenneth Thomson including the Vancouv Victoria Daily Times a people. Globe and Mail publisher Roy Megarry said the changing of the guard ‘‘au- gers well’’ for the paper. Likewise, Winnipeg Free Press boss Don Nichol said the takeover coup would be ‘beneficial’ for his paper. But what does the future hold for the new Thomson aquisitions? The British magnate has notorious reputation for transforming reputable community newspapers in-