Tag: NAFTA

Jeremy Halbreich to head Sun-Times Media

Former Dallas Morning News Manager and CEO of American Consolidated Media (my former employer), Jeremy Halbreich, is heading to the Windy City.

According to the Chicago Tribune ::

The management shakeup at Sun-Times Media Group Inc. continued Wednesday, as the Chicago newspaper publishing company’s newly installed board tapped one of the company’s directors to serve as chairman and interim chief executive officer.

The new chairman is Jeremy Halbreich, former general manager of the Dallas Morning News and one of three directors elected last month when a dissident shareholder’s successful proxy fight ousted all but one of Sun-Times Media’s sitting directors. As chairman, Halbreich succeeds Raymond Seitz, who lost his seat in January in the proxy fight.

Halbreich founded American Consolidated Media roughly 10 years ago after he left the Dallas Morning News. The newspaper group grew and was sold to Macquarie Media Group (for $80 million) a few months before I left the Waxahachie Daily Light (an ACM owned paper).

With the money and backing of the Australian Macquarie Media Group Halbreich told the Dallas Business Journal that “ACM has grown into the fifth-largest community newspaper group in the U.S.”

Halbreich remained as CEO of American Consolidated until August 2008 when he stepped down and Liam Stewart, an ACM asset manager, was appointed interim CEO.

“Now that the planned acquisition and expansion phase of ACM is complete, it is an appropriate time for me to step down from full-time responsibilities,” Halbreich said at the time of his resignation.

Some have suggested that the Macquarie Media Group purposely purchased up many of the smaller-town newspapers along I-35 in order to help control the local media as it relates to the Trans-Texas Corridor (aka the suggested Mexico to Canada toll road). Macquarie Bank (MMG’s parent company) is heavily invested in toll projects around the US and many expect them to play a roll in many future projects as well.

Glen Rose too?

D Mag editor Wick Allison is reporting that Jeremy Halbreich and American Consolidated Media (owner of the Waxahachie Daily Light) are buying another small town paper – the Glen Rose News.

People were suggesting early on that Macquaire Media Group, Australian company and parent company of Halbreich’s American Consolidated Media were going to buy up every weekly paper they could along the proposed Trans-Texas/American Corridor. Many of the loudest voices against the Trans Texas Corridor have been seen in the editorial pages of the small town weekly papers along the proposed route. GOP Presidential candidate Ron Paul has voiced major opposition to the project, calling it the “NAFTA Superhighway” and saying the road would lead towards a North American Union.

Now here’s where that gets interesting – Macquaire Media Group is owned by Macquaire Bank, which also owns Macquarie Infrastructure Group.

Macquarie Infrastructure Group is aggressively pursuing infrastructure investments in the Texas. Together with their Spanish partner Cintra, Macquarie has already engaged in large projects including the Indiana Toll Road, Chicago Skyway, and 407 ETR.

Wait – Cintra? Haven’t we heard that name before? Cintra is planned to have the lead role with Texas on TTC-35 (Trans Texas Corridor). So, many would suggest, it is certainly plausible that Macquarie is a potential financial partner as individual facility development agreements are negotiated.

Here’s just a few of the other areas Macquarie has a hand in – just in the U.S.:

  • Commodity and energy markets
  • Debt markets
  • Electricity trading
  • Emerging markets
  • Energy capital
  • Equipment leasing
  • Institutional stockbroking and research
  • Macquarie Capital Advisors
  • Macquarie Capital Funds
  • Natural gas trading
  • Private equity funds management
  • Real estate capital
  • Real estate structured finance
  • Residential community development
  • Residential mortgages

Hmmm… guess they don’t have much to gain after all if the TTC is built.

ACM is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Macquarie Media Group (“MMG”), a publicly-traded investment vehicle listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. MMG is based in Sydney, Australia and holds a portfolio of media businesses globally including 100% interest in Macquarie Regional Radioworks, owner and operator of 87 rural and regional radio stations located throughout Australia; 60% interest in Taiwan Broadband Communications, one of three leading cable television broadcasters in Taiwan; and, 13.8% interest in Southern Cross Broadcasting, a publicly-traded company with holdings in radio and television broadcasting located in the larger cities of Australia.