Robertson Seeks to Buy Critical Paper

The Virginian-Pilot, located in Norfolk, VA, has long provided excellent, in-depth coverage of Pat Robertson and his various activities. In particular, Pilot journalists Steven Vegh and Bill Sizemore have regularly covered Robertson, often generating national news coverage of his exploits - including his yearly predictions, his health claims, his charities, his buisness dealings, and his outrageous statements. And now the Pilot was the first to report another Robertson-related scoop - the televangelist is trying to buy the newspaper:

Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson, who has sharply criticized The Virginian-Pilot in the past, is considering making a bid to buy the newspaper, an associate said Thursday ... "I am considering a potential bid for the Pilot and have asked my attorneys to look into it," Robertson said in an e-mail forwarded by his personal assistant, G.G. Conklin. "It would be particularly helpful to provide internships for Regent University journalism students."

As the article notes, "Robertson has objected to articles in The Pilot that he has said unfairly characterized his pursuits." Presumably, should Robertson succeed in purchasing the paper, Vegh and Sizemore will both be out of jobs and the interns from Regent won't be particularly committed to carrying on their legacy of exposing Robertson's lunacy.