Norcross' new role as newspaper owner has some worried

George E. Norcross III said he would no longer comment on Inquirer stories about him. AKIRA SUWA / Staff

By James Osborne

Inquirer Staff Writer

Earlier this year, Trenton-based Republican consultant Rich Ambrosino's phone started ringing off the hook.

It had just become public that one of New Jersey's most powerful political figures, George E. Norcross III, was part of an investor group looking to buy Philadelphia Media Network, the parent company of The Inquirer, and other politicians were worried, Ambrosino said.

"The political culture being what it is, there's always going to be Republicans saying, 'He's doing it to influence public policy outcomes,' " he said.

Now that Norcross, a Democratic power broker with a reputation for combative relationships with reporters, is a managing partner of the newspaper's new ownership group, questions about his intentions are swirling in the state capital and beyond.

Will the more-than-180-year-old newspaper continue to cover New Jersey and regional politics in the way it has done for years? Will articles be steered to favor causes supported by Norcross, which in the last year have included charter schools, the proposed merger of Rutgers-Camden and Rowan University, and the slashing of government worker benefits?