Blast from the six-months-ago past

New York Times May 11, 2010 article about Peter I. Chernin, former Murdoch #2, and a conversation he had with Comcast CEO and Bush fundraiser Brian Roberts:

Mr. Chernin, meanwhile, offered few hints at an unusual meeting on Tuesday with another media mogul, the Comcast chief executive Brian L. Roberts. The two men chatted during a brunch session at the Cable Show, an annual gathering of the cable television industry. One of the more powerful figures in media-as-it-is went toe to toe with a new player in media-as-it-might-be.

Comcast is in line to acquire control of NBC Universal, once regulators sign off on the $30 billion deal. Mr. Chernin asked Mr. Roberts how he planned to handle daily editorial control of such an immense news operation. “Are you saying that you’ll never interfere?” he asked.

Mr. Roberts blanched slightly at the question, which included a hypothetical situation that had Keith Olbermann, an MSNBC host, attacking a couple of Republican congressmen just as the approvals were being finished.

“Let’s have that conversation in six months or 12 months,” Mr. Roberts said.

OK, so it was 6 days short of 6 months. Can't say Roberts didn't warn us.

Does anyone still believe that the Comcast takeover of NBC/Universal won't happen?

(via)