FORTUNE — Rich guys used to boost their status by purchasing professional sports franchises. Now the game of 1 percentmanship has extended into the newspaper realm.
Amazon (AMZN) founder and CEO Jeff Bezos today announced that he will acquire The Washington Post newspaper and related properties from The Washington Post Co. (WPO). The deal is valued at $250 million, and includes several regional and special-interest publications like the Express newspaper and El Tiempo Latino. Not included are Slate magazine, TheRoot.com or Foreign Policy.
Washington Post Co. will change its name — no specifics yet, but suggestions are already flying on Twitter — and retain its WaPo Labs, SocialCode and Classified Ventures businesses. It also holds onto the company’s headquarters real estate, Kaplan, Post–Newsweek Stations and Cable ONE.
Bezos appears to be keeping most senior WaPo executives on board, including CEO Katharine Weymouth and executive editor Marty Baron.
“I understand the critical role the Post plays in Washington, DC and our nation, and the Post’s values will not change,” said Bezos in a prepared statement. “Our duty to readers will continue to be the heart of the Post, and I am very optimistic about the future.”
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