Few 'Forbes' Billionaires Have Newspaper Roots

By: Updated at 2:25 p.m. EST

A handful of the richest people on the planet have newspaper publishing connections, the latest Forbes magazine reveals. But the Forbes-list families with newspaper roots long ago diversified into other types of media.

At No. 13 on the list is Kenneth Thomson and family of Canada, with $14.9 billion in estimated assets. His father Roy founded what became the Thomson Corp., which recently sold all of its newspapers in North America and now concentrates on electronic and business-to-business publishing.

Sharing the No. 21 spot on the list are two women from Atlanta's Cox family, Barbara Cox Anthony and Anne Cox Chambers, each estimated to be worth $10.1 billion. Cox Enterprises still owns newspapers, such as The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, but the company is also a major player in cable, radio, and car auctions.

Rupert Murdoch is No. 45 on the list with an estimated worth of $5.7 billion. His News Corp. owns newspapers around the world, but also owns or has major interests in Fox Broadcasting, Fox Entertainment Group, HarperCollins, and cable and satellite operations. Murdoch's family owns about 30% of News Corp., according to Hoover's Online.

Tied for No. 55 are brothers Donald E. Newhouse and Samuel I. "Si" Newhouse Jr. Forbes estimates that each is worth $5 billion. The Newhouses own Advance Publications, a collection of about two dozen dailies, American City Business Journals, Parade magazine, and magazine publishers Conde Nast and Fairchild Publications, plus interests in cable TV.

Bill Gates is No. 1 on the list and No. 2 is Warren E. Buffet, who owns the Buffalo (N.Y.) News.

Another Forbes billionaire who made some of his money from the newspaper industry, at least indirectly, is Michael R. Bloomberg, currently mayor of New York City. His $4.4 billion fortune came from Bloomberg News, which provides financial news and information to the corporate and investing worlds and other media.

Mortimer B. Zuckerman, owner of New York's Daily News, is No. 413, at $1.1 billion. William R. Hearst III is No. 445, at $1 billion.

To see the complete Forbes list, visit http://www.forbes.com/billionaires.