robert allbritton wife

Our dream, VandeHei and Harris wrote in a September 2015 memo, is a Politico journalistic presence in every capital of every state and country of consequence by 2020.. We implemented the good ones and killed the dumb ones., Allbritton believed that VandeHeis vision for the domestic expansion was muddled and that, without changes, Politico wouldnt be open in every state capital by 2020 as VandeHei and Harris predicted. On Wednesday, November 15, the week before Thanksgiving, they arranged a meeting in Grahams office. He was a Post lifer. Allbritton was sold. That year, its website averaged 3.1 million unique visitors a month; only 11 US newspapers logged higher traffic. Sure enough, there he was: The lanky kid who once covered high-school sports for a tiny paper in an anonymous Midwestern city was now the star political reporter at the most glamorous newspaper in America. VandeHei began playing poker with GOP staffers and breaking stories of national consequence: House Republicans were using a secret fund to explore the possible impeachment of President Clinton; Congressman Bob Livingston was ending his campaign for speaker of the House because of an extramarital affair. "Barbie" is Allbritton's wife, Barbara, who was a director of Riggs Bank until early 2004,when she and her husband resigned as directors. A final clashover the future of the companyruined the relationship for good. It also hurt when VandeHei delivered to Allbritton a budget proposal that contained several errors. Inside Politico, VandeHei and his top lieutenantsAllen, Kim Kingsley, Roy Schwartzhuddled to brainstorm new business lines and became close. I know he has a commitment to a high level of quality.. 5530 Wisconsin Avenue #820 I dont know, maybe., There were reasons to lose confidence. He considered himself a citizen of the Washington Post. Don Graham had had a hand in hiring him in 1985. If VandeHeis vision had been realized, Politico would have joined forces with a European media giant. Federal regulators said Riggs had violated federal money-laundering laws. He worked on the 27th floor of the companys office tower in Rosslyn, a corporate power center so sequestered from the newsrooms that some journalists thought of it as the Kremlin. For a time, he displayed model jets on his desk that were similar to the aircraft he owned and sometimes piloted, according to a former Politico executive. He turns out to have a lot of steel.. As Politicos reporters scoured the Hill for anything resembling news, congressional press aides gained leverage. Riggs was the meal.. Jim thought it would be insane not to take advantage of this moment, says a former member of Politicos leadership. Friedman was curious. It made runs at four others. The Washington City Paper called it a bloodbath. He assured the remaining employees that their jobs were secure, but newsroom directors told them that afternoon they would have to accept a pay cut and a subsequent salary freeze. According to a source familiar with the discussions, VandeHei believed Axel Springer would pay three times Politicos assessed value for whatever portion of the company it acquired. [7], Allbritton received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Wesleyan University in 1992,[8] and has served as a member of its board of trustees. Political reporting means long and unpredictable hours, and thats fine. [9] [10] With his wife Elena, Allbritton donated funds for the establishment of the school's Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life. Politicos identity as a singular scoop factory faded. Cash-rich at the time, it owned eight TV stations, led by WJLA, its flagship ABC affiliate in Washington, and NewsChannel 8, a cable station here. We were in a constant rolling conversation about ideas. Robert Allbritton is a None. "[5] He is a trustee of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum. They were oblivious to the owner losing confidence in his executives, the leading executives losing faith in the owner, and the protracted dispute over Axel Springer. In a glass-enclosed office at the far end of the newsroom, CEO Jim VandeHei was hunkered down alongside chief operating officer Kim Kingsley and chief revenue officer Roy Schwartz, hurriedly crafting a statement announcing that theyalong with marquee reporter Mike Allenwere leaving the company. The only thing I couldnt give him was ownership, Allbritton told the crowd. In 1992, he sold the Los Angeles based Pierce National Life Insurance Co. that he had owned since 1958. But it was not the level of quality I wanted to attach my name to, he says. We worked and filed midnights on Saturday because thats when Henry Paulson was meeting and making decisions. The burnout factor is high, says one Politico writer. I cant take it anymore, he said. VandeHei said Harris was concerned they would lack exposure and lose their standing as top political reporters. Dr. Allbrittons approach to patients is holistic and includes examining the role that diet, mindfulness and exercise play in ones overall health. You need a newspaper at least as a bridge, if not forever. 1969) Law School: LLB, Baylor University (1949) Allbritton, 52, is the son of Joe Allbritton, a Texan who made money in real estate and finance and began accumulating Washington media properties in the 1970's. Robert began running the. Theodore Roosevelt Island is in the foreground, the White House, Washington Monument, and Capitol just beyond. [Robert] Allbritton has been studying the Washington . In the end, the riftwhether it was over how best to manage growth or how best to compensate the people who had built the company into a behemothwas too much for the partnership to bear. According to a former member of Politicos leadership, Mike Allen and Schwartz backed VandeHei as he repeatedly tried to persuade Allbritton to explore a sale; Harris initially supported the idea, too. You either do something big, concentrate on the Internet, or go home.. Allbritton and Fred Ryan started negotiating with James Finkelstein, owner of the Hill.They made an offer, and Finkelstein seemed ready to accept. Whats different about working for the Huffington Post? The Justice Department and FBI looked into Riggss international-banking practices and charged it with criminal failure to report numerous suspicious transactions. Riggs pleaded guilty and agreed to pay another $16 million in fines. According to a source familiar with the discussions, VandeHei concluded that a bubble in the industry would inflate Politicos value, too. Instead, this source says VandeHei thought a deal would provide the capital infusion Politico needed to reach its aggressive growth targets. Pediatric Dermatology Jim VandeHei walked through the rain from the Post to the Jefferson Hotel for a lunch meeting with CBS News executive Paul Friedman. But theyd come to the conclusion that the Post under Downie wasnt nimble enough to produce the Internet and newspaper publication they hoped to create. It doesnt really work for me, VandeHei said. Dr. Allbritton lives in Georgetown with her husband Robert, publisher of Politico, and three children. a blog by Jack Limpert, Editor of The Washingtonian for more than 40 years. There were handshakes all around. Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Allbritton surname lived. And there are still plans to conquer new markets. In fact, he doesnt wear a watch. Reports of wages in the $200,000 range are fiction, VandeHei says. As a young man, Allbritton bought and sold land. It was 1996. He also chaired Houston International Bank, Houston Citizens Bank and University Bankshares. Allbritton felt that Jim became intolerant to any ideas but his own, says a Politico executive. Instead, he often works alongside top editors and executives, at a desk with a view of Politicos newsroom. He has written about the Koch Brothers attempt to take over The Cato Institute, David Gregorys ouster as moderator of NBCs Meet the Press, the collapse of Washingtons Metro system, and the conflict that split apart the founders of Politico. He graduated from Wesleyan in 1992 and went directly into Riggs Banks investment-management side. There are also days when only six of 28 pages are paid ads. VandeHei described his vision for a political newsroom that would publish on the Web and in print. He was two days shy of 32. VandeHei and Harris, by contrast, received what are called phantom shares. (Mike Allen, Times White House reporter who would soon join the venture, had phantom shares as well.) There was one problem: VandeHei and Harris wanted to publish only on the Web. We had no clue where it was heading.. Were competing against everyone out there. In Politicos early days, Harris was forced to apologize in print for an inaccurate article or two. E: [email protected], Skin Cancer Treatment Center LLC He had met Elena Christine Hardy at Wesleyan, but they didnt date. Upon graduation, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the U. S. Air Force. Allbritton chose a different course: He arranged public debates and forums, paid for by Politico, to promote Politicos brand. With an idea, no staff, and no money, VandeHei and Harris began talking with friends, who in turn set up meetings with venture capitalists. You hate to see an institution that was around for 150 years go away, Allbritton says, but it still lives on with new owners. Bush. In the old days, reporters would cover a crime scene, phone the paper, and say, Rosie, give me rewrite. Now reporters type the stories and send them over the Internet, but the essential reporting remains the same. And that ran counter to the secrets of Politicos success, where a lot of good ideas came from batting ideas around., Says VandeHei: This makes no sense. His professors were Allbritton executives. Using his initials, he changed the call letters to WJLA. Politicos PR staff makes sure scoops show up on other Web sites and reporters get time on cable TV. [6], In October 2011, Allbritton was included on The New Republic's list of Washington's most powerful, least famous people. Just out of loyalty, I thought, Lets give it a shot. . No, he said. Mike Allen plans to join them after the election. Allbritton makes a circle with his thumb and forefinger. A trio of reportersJake Sherman, Anna Palmer, and Daniel Lippmanrecently inherited the Playbook franchise from Allen. He wanted to go to give speeches and tell the Politico story. A former member of Politicos leadership says VandeHei made public appearances to promote the companynot himself. We both had the belief that Washington journalism was not living up to its reputation, VandeHei says. He jumped off at Dupont Circle, plugged his air card into his laptop, and filed for the Web site. The dispute made life in Politicos executive ranks uncomfortable during December and January. Other criticism was more legitimate. Im a pretty happy guy. She has been published in several journals and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology and member of the American Society for Dermatological Surgery and the American Medical Association. Two years after its launch, Allbritton shuttered TBD. Like generations of reporters before them, Politico would prioritize scoops above all else. She has a special interest and training in the diagnosis of pigmented lesions, dermoscopy, and melanoma detection. When Fred Ryan stepped down as CEO (hes now publisher of the Post), VandeHei got the job. But tonight, January 28, Politicos biggest story was about itself. American chief executive, publisher and editor, FCC approves $1B Allbritton TV sale to Sinclair, "Robert Allbritton Resigns as CEO of Riggs Ahead of Merger", "Washington's Most Powerful, Least Famous People", Alumni Pledge $5M to Create New Center on Campus, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Robert_Allbritton&oldid=1147954034, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 3 April 2023, at 06:32. A day later, they took Mike Allen to Rosslyn for a meeting. Could the same scenario unfold? Father: Lewis A. Allbritton Mother: Ada Carpenter Wife: Barbara Jean Balfanz (m. 23-Feb-1967, one son) Son: Robert Lewis Allbritton (b. Joe bought the Washington Star and WMAL-TV, the ABC affiliate, in 1974 for $35 million. In 2011, for example, AOL bought the Huffington Post for $315 million. The company raised $200 million in the public debt market. *, Home Lawn Care Has Become an Issue in Neighborhoods, Pamela Turnure Timmins: Press Secretary to Jackie Kennedy, Biden Gleefully Mocks Fox News at the WHCA Dinner, Scenes and Best Lines From the WHCA Dinner, Jeffrey Epsteins Private Calendar Reveals Prominent Names Including CIA Chief. In 2013, Robert Allbritton, now the chief executive of the privately held Allbritton Communications, sold the family's TV stations and devoted himself to his own baby, Politico. Hed been skiing since he was a kid, but he fell and broke a bone in his neckand wound up wearing a collar brace at his wedding in May. And though he still owned the TV stations his dad had assembled, he took particular pride in his headline-making new-media outlet. I even did some on-air reporting, he says. One night, he woke up with a panicked thought: I cant put out a third-place newspaper.. He continues to pay top dollar for top journalists. In 1978, Mr. Albritton joined Texas American Bank as Senior Vice President. Rick Berke, whod been hired away from the New York Times as top editor, abruptly resigned after less than a year. Walking through the rain back to the Post, VandeHei said to Harris: Dude, this is meant to be. But their alliance transformed Washingtons media landscape, reshaping the way news organizations cover politicians, creating a new cast of local celebrities, and, in the process, becoming a digital bible for political insiders. Among them was Jerry Fritz, who is still with the company. Give me the six bestreporters people must read.. He had that look and demeanor and attitude of the son of an extraordinary wealthy and successful father, who was determined that hes got to find his own way.. As far as most people knew, they still were. The four met regularly to knock around ideas. Allbritton and his wife, Barbara, were major contributors through to numerous organizations through the Allbritton Foundation. The subscription service, which cost users thousands of dollars a year, revolutionized the companys balance sheet. Allbritton, who personally bankrolled the new company, retained ownership of 100 percent of its stock. It became all-consuming for a few months.. This story is from the August issue of Washingtonian, on newsstands July 21. Meanwhile, throughout the summer and fall of 2015, VandeHei and Allbrittons relationship unraveled. Last week,. She and a few friends were planning a monthlong trip to Europe; she invited him to join them. The sources of tension included all the pitfalls that have driven apart other successful collaborations: power, ambition, ego, glory. I absolutely admire what hes been able to do with himself and his life. Eventually, he reached Zane Zander, who owned a paper in the small town of Brillion. The ESPN of Politics, as Allbritton Communications then-president, Fred Ryan, describes it. In May 2005, Pennsylvania-based PNC bought Riggs. Allbritton sought advice from Bob Barnett, a lawyer and literary agent for many top journalists. The [only] other one that was really in the running was Power and Politics, VandeHei says. In late 2009, Allbritton announced plans to take the lessons hed learned and create another digital start-up, this one focusing on local news. They have done a very good job of establishing themselves as one of the go-to sites for Washington political coverage, says Brian Kelly, editor of U.S. News. A lot of it was pedestrian, a myth. But it wasnt until he accepted Zanders offer that he realized hed found his calling. In high school, his guidance counselor was so underwhelmed that he recommended that VandeHeison of an accountant and a stay-at-home motherconsider trade school or the Army. According to Allbritton, its a financial success in an industry littered with bankrupt newspapers. Theyre publishing 600,000 copies; were putting out 35,000. It was a bit like a state visit, Harris recalls. He said they risked losing their high-profile appearances on TV talk shows; they would drop into oblivion. He feared they would wind up playing on computers in their basement in a version of Waynes World. When Riggs sold to PNC, it was not what everyone dreamed of, but it was a plausible price.. The news industry was changing, he says. Robert thought Jim was interested in the shiny new object, says a Politico executive, but he wasnt interested in actually running it.. Allbritton dismisses the negative ratinghe says his company is in great shape and wont miss one bond payment. He was probably the most powerful businessman in the city, says Bill Regardie, the former publisher of Regardies, Washingtons monthly business magazine at the time. Determined to restore prestige to the family name, Allbritton returned to the media company full-time and began thinking about ways to generate new business. Bio Maral Skelsey, MD They talked for an hour about how they would hire a band of reporters to break news and dominate coverage. This was a way out.. He remembers standing near the pilot and marveling at the dials and gauges. He began urging Allbritton to consider selling a chunk of the company. They paid a decent price for it., Says Trachtenberg: He saved everybodys bacon. Our salaries are competitive with the New York Times but not way above.. They met in the basements of homes in Northern Virginia about starting a company that would publish on the Web only. [11] When Robert was seven, the Allbrittons pulled up stakes and moved to a house in Georgetown. The most Allbritton families were found in USA in 1880. Now, as publisher of Politico, hes taking on a more public role. This article first appeared in the August 2009 issue of The Washingtonian. Gary Peck, MD He chooses the latter. For many people in DC, the most important thing is what they project, how they dress, which party they were invited to. Photo-illustration by Miles Donovan. The day-to-day banking operations were being handled by veteran executives, but someone had to run the board. She has been published in several journals and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology and member of the American Society for Dermatological Surgery and the American Medical Association.

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