Philip Anschutz snags Weekly Standard from Rupert Murdoch

Clarity Media Group, the publishing company owned by conservative media mogul Philip Anschutz, has bought the right-wing political magazine the Weekly Standard from Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.

The deal, first reported by Company Town, will give Anschutz a powerful voice in Washington. Although the Weekly Standard has a small circulation of just more than 80,000, its readership is very influential on Capitol Hill.

In a statement, Weekly Standard Editor William Kristol thanked Murdoch for "his generous support and, if I may use the term, liberal disposition have made whatever we've accomplished possible."

Launched in 1995, the Weekly Standard may have become less vital to Murdoch after he acquired the Wall Street Journal, which carries much more clout in Washington.

-- Joe Flint