Billionaire's purchase of paper seen as a power play

Las Vegas

TWO days after Sheldon Adelson's lawyers lost in their attempts to have a judge removed from a contentious lawsuit that threatens his gambling empire, a call went out to the publisher of this city's most prominent newspaper.

Almost immediately, journalists were summoned to a meeting and told they must monitor the courtroom actions of the judge and two others in the city. When the journalists protested, they were told that there was no choice in the matter. It is unclear whether Mr Adelson, who was then in talks to buy the newspaper, The Las Vegas Review-Journal, or his associates were behind the directive or even knew about it. But it was an ominous coincidence for many in the city who worry what will become of the paper now that it is owned by Mr Adelson, a billionaire casino magnate and prominent Republican donor with a history of aggressively pursuing his interests.