Unlock Editorial Digest for Free
FT editor Roula Khalaf chooses her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Sir Paul Marshall put his hands gently on the podium as he pointed at the three enemies of the free market, what he called capitalism's “mutant brothers”: the “cronies” colluding in Davos, monopolies and “woke” corporations.
The British multi-millionaire, co-founder of London hedge fund Marshall Wace, spoke at the inaugural meeting of the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship in the capital last October. The conference, which features controversial Canadian psychologist Jordan Peterson, is the latest in a series of media events funded by Marshall, who has become a passionate warrior in Britain's version of America's culture wars.
Over the past four decades, the 64-year-old evangelical Christian and financier has positioned himself as a philanthropist, political donor and education reformer, pulling the strings behind the scenes at Westminster. Now he's trying to influence the national conversation through the media.
This week, Marshall was forced to inject more money into his growing media empire. Accounts show All Perspectives – a business he co-owns – provided a further £41m to cover loss-making activities at GB News. GB News is an upstart British broadcaster similar to Rupert Murdoch's Fox News.
Marshall's supporters said his Arc speech set out his position as a defender of the free market and pointed to his 38 per cent stake in GB News and ownership of digital media group UnHerd as a commitment to free speech. “He calls himself a classical liberal,” said a close ally. “He is interested in opposing viewpoints and wants to have diverse and robust debates.”
But some media executives worried that the rest of the Arc meeting, which included a discussion of fringe right-leaning ideologies, was more indicative of his politics. GB News pushed the boundaries of UK broadcasting rules, paying sitting MPs to air current affairs programs and inviting controversial commentators. These have sparked condemnation of the channel's lack of impartiality and the spread of misogynistic views. Media regulator Ofcom is conducting around a dozen public inquiries into whether GB News breached its rules.
This shift to right-wing politics was surprising given Marshall's early links with the Lib Dems. Born in London in 1959, he studied at Oxford University and ran for office in Fulham in 1987 on a Social Democratic-Liberal coalition.At one time he was a major donor to the Lib Dems and even helped edit The Orange Book: Restoring Liberalism. But he became increasingly disillusioned with the party, particularly its stance on Europe. He left the Lib Dems in 2015 after the party's coalition with the Conservatives ended and donated £100,000 to the Leave campaign.
After losing the parliamentary bid, he turned to finance, working at Mercury Asset Management, the fund management arm of SG Warburg & Co. In 1997, he founded Marshall Wace with Warburg alumnus Ian Wace. With assets of $50 million, it has become one of the world's leading hedge funds with $62.5 billion under management. USD assets.
While his mother and sister are both journalists, Marshall himself made his first foray into the media industry in 2017, acquiring UnHerd, an online review site that aimed to challenge the mainstream media with a broader range of perspectives. Soon after, he became a major investor in GB News, along with Dubai-based Christian faith investor Legatum Group. He is now interested in taking control of the Daily Telegraph and the Spectator magazine, which if successful would make him the most powerful right-leaning British media tycoon since Rupert Murdoch. His rival, Abu Dhabi-backed RedBird IMI Group, shortened the auction process but now faces a regulatory investigation into its acquisition. If the Redbirds trade falls through, Marshall remains interested.
Industry analyst Claire Enders believes Marshall's growing media interest is more about influence than financial gain – they reflect “his brand of conservatism and give those who adhere to it a role in party politics.” Influence”. His embrace of free speech stems in part from his family's experience: His son Winston withdrew his support for free speech after he vehemently opposed the folk-rock band Mumford & Sons online. reveal the maska book condemning the left-wing anti-French protest movement.
But Marshall's own political views are increasingly being questioned, especially since the advocacy group Hope Not Hate revealed that he had liked and retweeted content from far-right and conspiracy accounts. These included a post on X suggesting that “native” Europeans were “losing patience with fake refugee invaders”.
A spokesman for Marshall said the selection of posts, which have now been deleted, “do not represent his views.” But his influence is important: as the UK election approaches, British news will help shape the national discourse. “Paul Marshall has become an increasingly prominent figure in the far-right ecosystem,” said Joe Mulhall of Hope Not Hate.
Marshall's media empire will give him an influential position in the coming political debates – fulfilling a lifelong ambition to become an influential figure in Westminster – but allies deny he favors any particular party.”He is inconsistent with any conservatism currently being peddled,” one person said. “His stance has always been consistent [as a liberal]. The rest of the world has moved to the left. “
This article has been modified to correct since publication Winston Marshall's support for the book Unmasked, which denounced the leftist anti-fascist protest movement.
danielthomas@ft.com; Harriet.agnew@ft.com
#Paul #Marshall #financier #turned #media #tycoon #finances #British #journalism
