The yell of the Carpathians

It goes like this: you sell a dog, you get paid for it, the dog escapes and returns to you and then you sell it again.

A whole team of editors dumping the newspaper in your lap - hey, you work on it, see what it"s like! - and moving to another owner is not a method patented by "Caţavencu", even though those funny guys working there have done this stunt twice.

A press distributor sabotaging the distribution of a publication isn"t exactly news either, so when "Adevărul" Holding is saying that "Access Press" (a company listed on the stock exchange) refused to distribute a magazine called "Kamikaze", made by the former journalists of "Caţavencu", it is not that hard to believe them.

And going even further, it is not that hard to believe the claims of the "Adevărul" group, that the true owner of "Access Press" is Sorin Ovidiu Vîntu, who also owns what"s left of the "Caţavencu" carcass, after the defection of its journalists, who is now taking his revenge against them by refusing to distribute their new publication.

The claim of "Access Press" that, in fact "Kamikaze" tried to go around the distribution group by avoiding negotiations with the owner of the franchise (perhaps the journalists of "Kamikaze", formerly of "Caţavencu", were feeling a little uneasy at the thought of having to meet face to face with their former employer, if Vîntu is indeed the owner of "Access Press").

It all makes sense, in a dirty, but infallible kind of way.

I"m wondering however, what caused "Adevărul" to make this their fight?

Principles?

Freedom of the press?

At first glance, it would seem so.

But when "Adevărul" threatens that if this newly created publication is not distributed, "Access Press" will no longer have the right to distribute the other products of the Holding, that makes you wonder ...

This is suicidal for a publisher.

It is a kamikaze gesture.

It would seem "Adevărul" is throwing its weight behind "Kamikaze", because its business interests require it to do so, not because they want to support the ideal of the freedom of the press.

So it"s possible that the former journalists of Vântu"s Caţavencu, have turned a new leaf and joined Dinu Patriciu"s "Kamikaze".

So all this commotion, which has the Convention of Media Organizations and the Romanian Press Club up in arms, is simply for the benefit of the naive.

In fact, Patriciu and Vîntu are simply strangling each other and choosing any side on this matter would only support one or the other.

Directly.

And this has nothing to do with the freedom of the press.

It"s sickening.