A group of guys who profess to be big fans of The Onion announced today that they bought it for an undisclosed sum.
I can’t speculate as to the amount, but if it’s anything like previous sales of The Onion, a bunch of businessmen in tucked-in polo shirts and blazers who don’t write satire exchanged millions of dollars, and actual writers won’t see a penny of it
With luck, these guys are different. They say they want to share the wealth with the staff, so that’s encouraging.
The real trick will be getting The Onion to weather the rising sea of lookalikes and competitors, especially by new generations who barely know what it is.
The new owners’ first message to readers about the sale was a head-scratcher of an article in The Onion asking people to send money. Maybe they’re trying to do their version of National Lampoon’s “we’ll kill this dog” cover? Not sure.
Ben Collins, former NBC journalist, and Jeff Lawson, former head of Twilio, are the only members of this group who’ve outed themselves. They seem like affable guys. And they seem like they might actually know how to run a business, which would be a first for The Onion.
I hope for the best and wish them good luck—The Onion staff, too.
Hopefully, they'll take good care of your baby.
An article I read made it seem hopeful, like the new owners are big fans of the Onion. My first thought was to wonder how you felt about it, Scott. I hope they do a good job.