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Al-Jazeera Buys Current TV From Al Gore

Former Vice President Al Gore confirmed Wednesday that the left-leaning news network he co-founded, Current TV, has been bought by Al-Jazeera, boosting the Pan-Arab news channel's reach in the U.S. by nearly nine times to some 40 million homes.

Gore said in a statement that Al-Jazeera, which is owned by the government of Qatar, shares Current TV's mission, quote, "to give voice to those who are not typically heard; to speak truth to power; to provide independent and diverse points of view; and to tell the stories that no one else is telling."

Al Jazeera did not disclose the purchase price, but people with direct knowledge of the deal pegged it at around $500 million, indicating a $100 million payout for Mr. Gore, who owned 20 percent of Current. Mr. Gore and his partners were eager to complete the deal by Dec. 31, lest it be subject to higher tax rates that took effect on Jan. 1, according to several people who insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. But the deal was not signed until Wednesday.

It is reported Glenn Beck's media company, The Blaze, wanted to buy the cable TV company Current TV, which is part-owned by Al Gore.

But, according to a WSJ report citing a person familiar with the negotiations, Current TV refused The Blaze's offer because "the legacy of who the network goes to is important to us and we are sensitive to networks not aligned with our point of view."

So instead, it sold to mid-east cable company Al Jazeera for $500 million.

Al-Jazeera plans to gradually transform Current into a network called Al-Jazeera America by adding five to 10 new U.S. bureaus beyond the five it has now. More than half of the content will be U.S. news and the network will have its headquarters in New York. Al-Jazeera English has earned respect for its serious news coverage, for which it's won numerous journalism awards.

Tom's Take: So let me get this straight...Al-Jazeera is 'more aligned' with Current's point-of-view than another American's point-of-view?   Okay, got it.

UPDATE 12NOON 01/03/2013  Glenn Beck comments on his radio show.