The liberal ladies of The View were over joyed during their conversation with tech journalist and Elon Musk hater, Kara Swisher during their Thursday interview with her. What had them so excited was the notion that Swisher could buy The Washington Post “out from under” under billionaire owner Jeff Bezos. But there was only one teensy tiny problem with the whole scheme: the paper wasn’t for sale.
Leading into the conversation about trying to buy the paper, co-host Joy Behar whined that Bezos was “overhauling everything,” such as “he wouldn't endorse Kamala Harris” for president. She falsely claimed: “He's eliminating the whole opinion section, unless you agree with him.”
“A lot of people are canceling their subscriptions. I'm one of them, and I like that paper,” Behar commended herself.
Behar went on to boast about Swisher’s apparent scheme to acquire the paper, with the cast and the audience celebrating:
BEHAR: Now, I understand that you are trying to buy the paper out from under him!
SWISHER: I am. I am.
WHOOPI GOLDBERG: Yes! Yes! Yes!
“Show me the money,” Behar quipped. Apparently not realizing it was a joke, Swisher felt compelled to try and convince them, “I can get the money.”
Her source for the money? Her wealthy millionaire and billionaire friends would apparently give it to her:
SWISHER: There are good billionaires, you know. And there are a lot of hundred millionaires. I know –
BEHAR: I never hear. Where are they?! What aren’t they?!
SWISHER: There are –
[Crosstalk]
GOLDBERG: They're doing stuff under –
[Crosstalk]
BEHAR: I’d like to hear them speak out a little more.
SWISHER: Well, Mark Cuban does. I had dinner with him.
Unfortunately, there was a bigger issue than scrapping together the change from between the cushions of Mark Cuban’s couch.
Swisher broke the bad news that the paper just wasn’t for sale. “The money is not the issue. The issue is Jeff Bezos doesn't want to sell it because he see it as a tool now. You know, Musk has X, and he has this,” she chided.
“Now, what's happening, though, is all the really good people are leaving,” she lamented. “And it's due to Jeff's things. He likes to blame the reporters, they don't like to change. And I would have agreed ten years ago. But the reporters do understand.”
As moderator Whoopi Goldberg was floating the idea of obtaining the funds through crowdsourcing, Swisher teased: “Do you want in, Whoopi? Down for a million?”
Goldberg went on to suggest that Swisher should think about starting her own paper through crowdsourcing; Swisher seemed open to the idea:
GOLDBERG: I think lots of people would love to be part of a newspaper that had something to say that was – that was – told us a story. I've watched crowdfunding do amazing things. Maybe this is part of it, or maybe it's time for a new newspaper.
SWISHER: Well, that's what I'm thinking now. I have to say. Because he doesn't want to sell.
“[Bezos] doesn't want to sell to me,” she huffed. She then suggested that Bezos was too embarrassed to sell the paper to her: “But I think he doesn't want to sell. There's lots of reasons why not to, including embarrassment, right? Like that things aren't working out.”
That was might strong hit of copium to get over the fact that there was no way she could buy the paper “out from under” Bezos.
The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read:
ABC’s The View
March 13, 2024
11:31:25 a.m. Eastern(…)
JOY BEHAR: And it’s [The Washington Post] under scrutiny now because of changes under Jeff Bezos which is very disturbing. He's eliminating the whole opinion section, unless you agree with him.
KARA SWISHER: Right.
BEHAR: He also -- remember he wouldn't endorse Kamala Harris, took the whole –
[Crosstalk]
SWISHER: They had the endorsement ready.
BEHAR: But they didn't do it. So, he's overhauling everything. A lot of people are canceling their subscriptions. I'm one of them, and I like that paper.
SWISHER: 375,000.
BEHAR: Now, I understand that you are trying to buy the paper out from under him!
SWISHER: I am. I am.
WHOOPI GOLDBERG: Yes!
[Applause]
GOLDBERG: Yes! Yes!
BEHAR: Show me the money.
SWISHER: Right. I can get the money. There are good billionaires, you know. And there are a lot of hundred millionaires. I know –
BEHAR: I never hear. Where are they?! What aren’t they?!
SWISHER: There are –
[Crosstalk]
GOLDBERG: They're doing stuff under –
[Crosstalk]
BEHAR: I’d like to hear them speak out a little more.
SWISHER: Well, Mark Cuban does. I had dinner with him.
[Crosstalk]
GOLDBERG: This I --
SWISHER: The money's not the issue.
GOLDBERG: What is the issue?
SWISHER: The money is not the issue. The issue is Jeff Bezos doesn't want to sell it because he see it as a tool now. You know, Musk has X, and he has this.
Now, what's happening, though, is all the really good people are leaving. Ruth Marcus just left. Terrific columnist. The head of PR just left, the head of communications just left yesterday. And they're just losing subscriptions. And it's due to Jeff's things. He likes to blame the reporters, they don't like to change. And I would have agreed ten years ago. But the reporters do understand.
GOLDBERG: Yeah.
SWISHER: That they need to change.
GOLDBERG: So maybe –
SWISHER: Do you want in, Whoopi?
GOLDBERG: I do. I do. And maybe the idea –
SWISHER: Down for a million? Like Trump.
GOLDBERG: Yeah. But maybe the idea is to -- What do you call it when you're self-funded?
SUNNY HOSTIN: Crowd uh –
GOLDBERG: Crowdfunding. Because I think lots of people would love to be part of a newspaper that had something to say that was – that was – told us a story. I've watched crowdfunding do amazing things. Maybe this is part of it, or maybe it's time for a new newspaper.
SWISHER: Well, that's what I'm thinking now. I have to say. Because he doesn't want to sell. He doesn't want to sell to me. We had a lot of testy relations when I was covering. But I think he doesn't want to sell. There's lots of reasons why not to, including embarrassment, right? Like that things aren't working out. And if he can use it, he can use it.
BEHAR: What’s that slogan –
GOLDBERG: Wait Joy. Before you do it because we have to go but we'll be back with more Kara Swisher.
