By Azi Paybarah 7/13/11 12:22pm

2013

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'Tom Who?' Publisher Allon Explains His Ink-Stained Mayoral Run

Publisher Tom Allon said, in hindsight, it was a mistake to support Mayor Bloomberg’s push to extend term limits, putting the newly announced 2013 mayoral candidate at odds with two of the leading Democrats in that race.

“I think at the time I was in favor of the extension,” Allon said. “I didn’t think it was a bad idea, even though the will of the people knocked it down, twice. I hate to say it but in retrospect, I think it was a mistake. And I think maybe even in his heart of hearts the mayor thinks it’s a mistake.”

Allon, who declared that he was running for mayor earlier this week, has a very different kind of profile, and a very different kind of record, than most of his would-be opponents in 2013.

As the publisher of Manhattan Media, he has overseen a slew of political and lifestyle publications throughout the city, making his candidacy something of a surprise to the political establishment.  But, Allon said, he “jumped in with two feet” when he decided to run as a “Cuomo Democrat.” Read More

By Azi Paybarah 7/12/11 1:03pm

2013

What Tom Allon Told Employees About Running for Mayor

Tom Allon’s campaign for mayor is creating some obstacles for employees of the newspapers he runs, which he and the company’s chairman acknowledge in a pair of memos to employees, passed along by a reader.

Allon wrote: “This potential candidacy does not mean that I will be any less focused on Manhattan Media,” but “I will no longer be involved in the day-to-day editorial process of City Hall or any mayoral political coverage.”

Chairman Richard Burns wrote: “We have asked an attorney to lay out the set of regulations that respect the distinction between Tom the employee and Tom the candidate.”

The memos are after the jump. Read More

By Azi Paybarah 7/12/11 9:17am

2013

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How Tom Allon's Newspaper Covers Tom Allon's Candidacy: Skeptically

With phrases like “vanity run,” “pet issue,” and “long shot.” From City Hall News and The Capitol’s morning email:

* The field of mayoral candidates may get a little bigger as Tom Allon, president and CEO of Manhattan Media, considers a run for the office. What seems like a vanity run to push his pet issue of improving city schools is a long shot at best, and it complicates matters for us as he’s the head of our parent company. We’re putting up a wall between Allon’s aspirations and our coverage of New York politics, and we’ll cover him like any other candidate – which means we’ll wait to see if he’s taken seriously before we do.