Caption
A photo shows US and Israeli flags projected on the historic walls of the Old City near Hebron Gate in Jerusalem on June 22, 2025. (Getty Images)
Caption
(Swell Media/Getty Images)
Is It Time to Rein in Kleptocrats Who Seek to Dominate the World's Information?
It’s an increasingly prevalent phenomenon across the globe: media companies are being taken over by business tycoons and kleptocrats less concerned with honest journalism than with their own political and financial self-interest. Their wealth itself isn’t necessarily a problem. There are genuine philanthropists now sustaining serious news publications and opinion outlets, and serious investors seeking new revenue streams to pay for high-quality news. But the overall trend is disturbing.
What to do? Are there safeguards that governments can put in place? Does that even make sense in a digital age? How might governmental responses be squared with Western faith in free economic competition? Does that still offer a path forward, or is the global erosion of media freedom best described as a market failure?
On Thursday, December 1, Hudson Institute’s Kleptocracy Initiative hosted the first in a series of debates on kleptocracy and democracy. Featuring Hudson Visiting Fellow Martha Bayles of Boston College and Megan McArdle of Bloomberg View, this event was held at the 5th & K Busboys and Poets.
Related Events
27
February 2026
Virtual Event | Online Only
Security, Normalization, and International Cooperation in the Middle East with Sir Liam Fox
Featured Speakers:
Rt. Hon. Sir Liam Fox
Zineb Riboua
27
February 2026
Virtual Event | Online Only
Security, Normalization, and International Cooperation in the Middle East with Sir Liam Fox
Hudson Institute’s Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East will host Sir Liam Fox for a conversation on the evolving geopolitical landscape in the Middle East.
Featured Speakers:
Rt. Hon. Sir Liam Fox
Zineb Riboua
03
March 2026
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Securing Venezuela’s Freedom after Maduro
Featured Speakers:
Leopoldo López
Joel Frushone
03
March 2026
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Securing Venezuela’s Freedom after Maduro
Please join Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López for a discussion on the future of Venezuelan democracy, the role of civil society in credible political and economic reforms, and the pathway to free and fair elections.
Featured Speakers:
Leopoldo López
Joel Frushone
03
March 2026
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
A Strategic Response to Sino-Russian Cooperation: Perspectives from Europe and the Indo-Pacific
Featured Speakers:
Thomas J. Duesterberg
Justyna Szczudlik
Greg Brown
Moderator:
Masashi Murano
04
March 2026
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Securing America’s Critical Mineral Supply Chain: A Conversation with Congressman Rob Wittman
Featured Speakers:
Mike Gallagher
Congressman Rob Wittman
04
March 2026
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Securing America’s Critical Mineral Supply Chain: A Conversation with Congressman Rob Wittman
Join Distinguished Fellow Mike Gallagher and Congressman Rob Wittman (R-VA) for a discussion on the congressman’s recently introduced Securing Essential and Critical US Resources and Elements (SECURE Minerals) Act and Congress’s role in securing America’s economic security.
Featured Speakers:
Mike Gallagher
Congressman Rob Wittman
Related Research
Caption
Luke Coffey and Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States Olga Stefanishyna at Hudson Institute on February 23, 2026.
Caption
A police officer stands near the West Kowloon court where Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai’s national security trial took place on August 28, 2025. (Getty Images)
Caption
Retired Gen. Christopher Gwabin Musa, Nigeria’s minister of defense, and Mr. Brian J. Ellis, U.S. deputy assistant secretary of war for African affairs, sign a defense cooperation roadmap in Abuja, Nigeria, on January 23, 2026. (US Army)
