Richard Mellon Scaife
Encyclopedia
Richard Mellon Scaife is an American
newspaper
publisher and billionaire. Scaife owns and publishes the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
. With $1.2 billion, Scaife, a principal heir to the Mellon banking, oil, and aluminum fortune, is No. 283 on the 2005 Forbes 400
.
Scaife is also known for his financial support of conservative public policy organizations over the past four decades. He has provided support for conservative and libertarian
causes in the U.S., mostly through the private, nonprofit foundations he controls: the Sarah Scaife Foundation
, Carthage Foundation
, and Allegheny Foundation
, and until 2001, the Scaife Family Foundation
, now controlled by his daughter Jennie and son David. Scaife also helped fund the Arkansas Project
, which ultimately led to the impeachment proceedings of President Bill Clinton
.
, who was a member of the influential Mellon family, one of the most powerful families in the country. Sarah Mellon Scaife was the niece of former United States Secretary of the Treasury
Andrew W. Mellon
. She and her brother, financier R.K. Mellon
, were heirs to the Mellon fortune that included Mellon Bank and major stakes in Gulf Oil
and Alcoa
aluminum.
Scaife attended high school at Deerfield Academy
in Deerfield, Massachusetts
. He was expelled from Yale University
in the aftermath of a drunken party, and later attended University of Pittsburgh
where his father was chairman of the board of trustees. Scaife graduated with a bachelor's degree in English in 1957.
Scaife inherited positions on several corporate boards in 1958 when his father Alan died unexpectedly. However his family had become estranged from his uncle, R.K., who retained control of the companies. His mother encouraged him to get involved in the family's philanthropic foundations, and he did so. (See management of Scaife family foundations.)
He inherited a good part of the Mellon fortune when his mother died in 1972. A portion of the fortune was placed in trust funds and the rest in foundations. The trusts expired in 1985 and, per tax law, the foundations must give away 5% of their assets per year. Disbursements from each foundation are done through boards of directors.
In 1973 he became estranged from his sister Cordelia Scaife May
and he took control of many of the family foundations while Cordelia supported her own charities, including Planned Parenthood
and the National Aviary
in Pittsburgh. Shortly before her death, the siblings reconciled and he eulogized her in January 2005, lauding "Cordy" for devoting her life and resources to "worthwhile causes."
, a county seat of about 15,000 people located about 30 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. For a number of years, the paper was published and distributed in the small Greensburg market.
Scaife made headlines in the fall of 1973, when a Tribune-Review reporter was fired for making the remark "one down and one to go" during the Watergate era when Vice President Spiro Agnew
resigned over corruption charges dating back to his days as Governor of Maryland
. When the reporter's fellow staffers demanded an explanation at a meeting with Scaife, his defiant response led a number of them to quit (a few later returned). The paper was frequently accused of bias, especially toward the overwhelmingly Democratic political officeholders in Westmoreland County
.
In 1992, the two main newspapers in Pittsburgh were embroiled in a lengthy labor dispute that ultimately led the larger paper, the Pittsburgh Press
, to cease operations, and for the remaining paper, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, to suspend publication for nearly six months until the Post-Gazette acquired the Press late that year. During this time frame, Scaife expanded operations of the newspaper into Pittsburgh and renamed the paper the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
. Though the name changed, and there are several satellite offices in and around Pittsburgh, the newspaper's headquarters remain in Greensburg, about 35 miles east of Pittsburgh near Scaife's home.
continues to challenge the Post-Gazette in the Pittsburgh media market. Twelve years after Scaife's newspaper began publishing, the Post-Gazette reported major financial losses, and the unions representing its employees agreed to wage concessions to keep it afloat. Unlike Scaife, the owners of the Post-Gazette, the Block family, were unwilling to sustain major losses year after year. According to the Scaife divorce papers, Richard Scaife has consistently spent between $20 and $30 million per year to cover the Tribune-Reviews losses. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulation, the Trib has a combined 221,000 regional circulation, about 7,000 subscribers fewer than its competitor.
In 2005, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
announced that operations of its suburban editions would be consolidated, with "staff reductions" in the newsrooms, business, and circulation departments. Two managers were laid off immediately along with several other staff members later in 2005.
With Scaife as publisher, the small circulation newspaper was the chief packager of editorials and news columns claiming that then United States
President Bill Clinton
or his wife, then First Lady Hillary Clinton were responsible for the death of Deputy White House counsel Vincent Foster. Scaife paid freelancer Christopher W. Ruddy to write about the Foster case for the Tribune-Review and other right-leaning media. Special Prosecutor Kenneth Starr
, appointed to investigate Clinton, concluded that Foster committed suicide.
In 2004, Scaife was reported to own 7.2% of NewsMax Media
, a news-based website with conservative political content founded by Ruddy in 1998. In 2009, Scaife reportedly "controlled" 42% of NewsMax, with Ruddy the 58% majority owner, CEO and editor.
Scaife also owns a majority interest in Pittsburgh-based all-news radio station KQV
.
The inherited Mellon fortune allowed Scaife to pursue his political activism. In 1965, when Sarah Scaife died, Scaife inherited not only financial increase but also a new influence over the family foundations.
to donate US$990,000 to the 1972 re-election
campaign
of U.S. President Richard Nixon. Scaife was not charged with a crime, but about $45,000 went to a fund linked to the Watergate scandal
. Scaife later said he was repulsed by the scandal and refused to speak with Nixon after 1973. Following Duggan's suicide and then Watergate, Scaife shifted his political giving from politicians' campaigns to anti-communist research groups, legal defense funds, and publications.
.
Regardless of his role, the project not only accused Clinton of financial and sexual indiscretions (some later verified, others not), but also gave root to conspiracist notions that the Clintons collaborated with the CIA to run a drug smuggling operation out of the town of Mena, Arkansas
and that Clinton had arranged for the murder of White House
aide Vince Foster
as part of a coverup of the Whitewater scandal. The possibility that money from the project had been given to former Clinton associate David Hale, a witness in the Whitewater investigation, led to the appointment of Michael J. Shaheen as a special investigator. Shaheen subpoena
ed Scaife, who testified before a federal grand jury
in the matter.
In the fall of 2007, however, Ruddy published a positive interview with former President Clinton on Newsmax.com, followed by a positive cover story in the magazine. The New York Times
noted with reference to the event that politics had made "strange bedfellows".
Newsweek
reported that Ruddy praised Clinton for his Foundation's global work, and explained that the interview, as well as a private lunch he and Scaife had had with Clinton (which Ruddy says was orchestrated by Ed Koch
), were due to his shared view, with Scaife, that Clinton was doing important work representing the U.S. globally while America was the target of criticism. He also said that he and Scaife had never suggested Clinton was involved in Foster's death, nor had they spread allegations about Bill Clinton's sex scandals, although their work may have encouraged others.
, Scaife's Pittsburgh Tribune Review endorsed Hillary Clinton for president.
and various political campaigns such as Santorum 2000 and the Santorum Victory Committee for Rick Santorum
, he has also supported Political Action Committees such as the Pro-Growth Action Team, the Free Congress PAC (formerly: Committee For the Survival Of a Free Congress), and the Club For Growth Inc. PAC. Scaife also funded the Western Journalism Center
, headed by Joseph Farah. He was named to the PoliticsPA
list of "Pennsylvania's Top Political Activists."
on War, Revolution, and Peace at Stanford University
.
Through contacts made at Hoover and elsewhere, Scaife became a major, early supporter of the Heritage Foundation
, which has since become one of Washington's
most influential public policy research institutes. He currently serves as vice-chairman of the Heritage Foundation board of trustees.
Later, he supported such varied conservative and libertarian organizations as:
By 1998 his foundations were listed among donors to over 100 such groups, to which he had disbursed some $340 million by 2002.
. Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr
was named the first dean of this school, although Pepperdine denies any connection between Scaife and the selection of Starr. Starr accepted the post in 1996, but in the ensuing controversy, he gave up the appointment in 1998 before ever having started at Pepperdine. However, once the investigation was behind him, Starr was appointed to head Pepperdine's law school in 2004 and became president of Baylor University
in 2010.
dubbed him "funding father of the Right" in 1999.
However, he has also supported policy research groups which are not explicitly conservative, such as the Center for Strategic and International Studies
(CSIS), the National Endowment for Democracy
, and the Foreign Policy Research Institute
at the University of Pennsylvania
, among others.
Scaife has also been a major donor to abortion
rights advocates, including Planned Parenthood
, giving "million
s" to the organization, though most such giving stopped in the 1970s, according to The Washington Post.
In the late 1990s, during the height of the Clinton scandals, Scaife nevertheless continued to provide more than $1 million to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
, the prime benefactor of the Public Broadcasting Service
(PBS). His donations to restore and beautify the White House led to an invitation by Hillary Clinton for a black-tie celebration. She warmly received him and posed for a photograph on the same day her husband's sex scandal hit the press. Scaife told the New York Post
that he appreciated Mrs. Clinton's invitation. "I'm honored," he said. "Lord knows, it's more than I got from George Bush."
Scaife has also supported non-political groups. He is a key benefactor of a number of Pittsburgh-based arts organizations. Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
, the Sarah Scaife Galleries at the Carnegie Institute of Pittsburgh art museum, the Brandywine Conservancy, the Phipps Conservatory, and the National Gallery of Art
in Washington, DC, as well as Goodwill Industries
of Pittsburgh. He and his foundations have contributed to Sarah Scaife's favorite causes: population control (e.g. Planned Parenthood
), environmental conservation, and hospitals; Jonas Salk
developed his polio vaccine
in a Sarah Scaife-funded laboratory. He also supports a variety of educational institutions, notably the University of Chicago
, the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University
, Carnegie Mellon University
, Boston University
, the University of Pittsburgh
, the University of Rochester
, Smith College
, and Bowling Green State University
.
In June 1991, he married his longtime companion Margaret “Ritchie” Battle Scaife (born February 15, 1947), who had influenced the giving pattern of the Scaife foundations and made the couple active in the social and cultural life of patrician Pittsburgh.
The couple subsequently separated, and on December 27, 2005, the Pittsburgh Police
responded to a call placed by Richard Scaife reporting trespassing at Scaife's residence in the prestigious Shadyside section of Pittsburgh
. They arrived to find Ritchie Scaife, his estranged wife, pounding on doors and peeking in windows of the couple's mansion. Mrs. Scaife refused to leave the property, and was arrested and charged with defiant trespass
.
On April 8, 2006, the Tribune-Review published an article describing a fight between Scaife's estranged wife and three of his servants over a dog that Scaife told the New York Daily News his wife had given him. Both newspapers reported that Scaife’s servants went to the hospital for scrapes and bruises after the fracas. Afterwards, Scaife placed a sign on his lawn: “Wife and dog missing - reward for dog.”
On April 11, 2006 Scaife confided to a gossip columnist that he and Margaret "Ritchie" Battle Scaife, 58, plan to divorce and that their marriage began without a prenuptial agreement. The New York Daily News column estimated his vulnerable assets at half of $1.2 billion.
In September 2007, the Post-Gazette and reporter Dennis Roddy
found that the Scaife divorce papers, which had been under seal, were available to the public on the website of the Allegheny County Prothonotary's office. The Post-Gazette has made the divorce papers available in full on its website. The papers include a full list of all of the possessions Mrs. Scaife alleged Richard Scaife had taken and was keeping from her.
He was named to the PoliticsPA
list of "Sy Snyder's Power 50" list of influential individuals in Pennsylvania politics in 2002 and 2003.
specialist turned progressive writer Steve Kangas
committed suicide less than 60 feet from Scaife's office door inside the One Oxford Center, Pittsburgh
. He had been an outspoken critic of Scaife and believed that Scaife-funded initiatives posed a danger to the nation. Scaife hired Rex Armistead
and a reporter from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
to investigate whether or not Kangas had been out to kill Scaife. Conspiracy theories concerning the death of Kangas continued to flourish in the period afterwards, with some commentators noting the irony when compared with Scaife's own material support of conspiracy theories regarding the suicide of Vince Foster.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
publisher and billionaire. Scaife owns and publishes the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, also known as "the Trib," is the second largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
. With $1.2 billion, Scaife, a principal heir to the Mellon banking, oil, and aluminum fortune, is No. 283 on the 2005 Forbes 400
Forbes 400
The Forbes 400 or 400 Richest Americans is a list published by Forbes Magazine magazine of the wealthiest 400 Americans, ranked by net worth. The list is published annually in September, and 2010 marks the 29th issue. The 400 was started by Malcom Forbes in 1982 and treats those in the list like...
.
Scaife is also known for his financial support of conservative public policy organizations over the past four decades. He has provided support for conservative and libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
causes in the U.S., mostly through the private, nonprofit foundations he controls: the Sarah Scaife Foundation
Sarah Scaife Foundation
The Sarah Scaife Foundation is one of the American Scaife Foundations. It is controlled by Richard Mellon Scaife. The foundation does not award grants to individuals. It concentrates its efforts towards causes focused on public policy at a national and international level...
, Carthage Foundation
Carthage Foundation
The Carthage Foundation is one of the American Scaife Foundations. It is controlled by Richard Mellon Scaife. The foundation does not award grants to individuals. It concentrates its efforts towards causes focused on public policy at a national and international level. From 1985 to 2003 the...
, and Allegheny Foundation
Allegheny Foundation
The Allegheny Foundation is a philanthropic organization in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and part of the Scaife Foundations. Richard Mellon Scaife endowed the foundation and serves as the chairman. It makes grants to historical, educational, political, and environmental organizations, especially...
, and until 2001, the Scaife Family Foundation
Scaife Family Foundation
The Scaife Family Foundation is one of the American Scaife Foundations. The foundation does not award grants to individuals. It concentrates its efforts towards causes focused on families, women, children, and animal welfare. From 1985 to 2001 the organization awarded over $77 million USD to...
, now controlled by his daughter Jennie and son David. Scaife also helped fund the Arkansas Project
Arkansas Project
The Arkansas Project was a series of investigations that were initiated with the intent of damaging and ending the presidency of Bill Clinton...
, which ultimately led to the impeachment proceedings of President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
.
Early life
Scaife was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Alan Scaife, the head of an affluent Pittsburgh family, and Sarah MellonSarah Mellon
Sarah Mellon was the niece of Andrew W. Mellon . She was one of the heirs to the Mellon fortune, including Mellon Bank and major investments in Gulf Oil and Alcoa...
, who was a member of the influential Mellon family, one of the most powerful families in the country. Sarah Mellon Scaife was the niece of former United States Secretary of the Treasury
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...
Andrew W. Mellon
Andrew W. Mellon
Andrew William Mellon was an American banker, industrialist, philanthropist, art collector and Secretary of the Treasury from March 4, 1921 until February 12, 1932.-Early life:...
. She and her brother, financier R.K. Mellon
Richard King Mellon
Richard King Mellon , commonly known as R.K., was an American financier from Ligonier, Pennsylvania.-Biography:The son of Richard B. Mellon, nephew of Andrew W...
, were heirs to the Mellon fortune that included Mellon Bank and major stakes in Gulf Oil
Gulf Oil
Gulf Oil was a major global oil company from the 1900s to the 1980s. The eighth-largest American manufacturing company in 1941 and the ninth-largest in 1979, Gulf Oil was one of the so-called Seven Sisters oil companies...
and Alcoa
Alcoa
Alcoa Inc. is the world's third largest producer of aluminum, behind Rio Tinto Alcan and Rusal. From its operational headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Alcoa conducts operations in 31 countries...
aluminum.
Scaife attended high school at Deerfield Academy
Deerfield Academy
Deerfield Academy is an independent, coeducational boarding school in Deerfield, Massachusetts, United States. It is a four-year college-preparatory school with approximately 600 students and about 100 faculty, all of whom live on or near campus....
in Deerfield, Massachusetts
Deerfield, Massachusetts
Deerfield is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,750 as of the 2000 census. Deerfield is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area in Western Massachusetts, lying only north of the city of Springfield.Deerfield includes the...
. He was expelled from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in the aftermath of a drunken party, and later attended University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
where his father was chairman of the board of trustees. Scaife graduated with a bachelor's degree in English in 1957.
Scaife inherited positions on several corporate boards in 1958 when his father Alan died unexpectedly. However his family had become estranged from his uncle, R.K., who retained control of the companies. His mother encouraged him to get involved in the family's philanthropic foundations, and he did so. (See management of Scaife family foundations.)
He inherited a good part of the Mellon fortune when his mother died in 1972. A portion of the fortune was placed in trust funds and the rest in foundations. The trusts expired in 1985 and, per tax law, the foundations must give away 5% of their assets per year. Disbursements from each foundation are done through boards of directors.
In 1973 he became estranged from his sister Cordelia Scaife May
Cordelia Scaife May
Cordelia Scaife May known as "Cordy" to her family and friends, was a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-area philanthropist and one of the wealthiest women in the United States....
and he took control of many of the family foundations while Cordelia supported her own charities, including Planned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood Federation of America , commonly shortened to Planned Parenthood, is the U.S. affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and one of its larger members. PPFA is a non-profit organization providing reproductive health and maternal and child health services. The...
and the National Aviary
National Aviary
The National Aviary, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is America's only independent indoor nonprofit aviary. It is also America's largest aviary, and the only accorded honorary "National" status by the United States Congress.-Location and features:...
in Pittsburgh. Shortly before her death, the siblings reconciled and he eulogized her in January 2005, lauding "Cordy" for devoting her life and resources to "worthwhile causes."
Purchase of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
In 1970, Scaife purchased a small market newspaper, then known as the Tribune-Review. The paper was based in Greensburg, PennsylvaniaGreensburg, Pennsylvania
Greensburg is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States, and a part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The city is named after Nathanael Greene, a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War...
, a county seat of about 15,000 people located about 30 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. For a number of years, the paper was published and distributed in the small Greensburg market.
Scaife made headlines in the fall of 1973, when a Tribune-Review reporter was fired for making the remark "one down and one to go" during the Watergate era when Vice President Spiro Agnew
Spiro Agnew
Spiro Theodore Agnew was the 39th Vice President of the United States , serving under President Richard Nixon, and the 55th Governor of Maryland...
resigned over corruption charges dating back to his days as Governor of Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. When the reporter's fellow staffers demanded an explanation at a meeting with Scaife, his defiant response led a number of them to quit (a few later returned). The paper was frequently accused of bias, especially toward the overwhelmingly Democratic political officeholders in Westmoreland County
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 369,993 people, 149,813 households, and 104,569 families residing in the county. The population density was 361 people per square mile . There were 161,058 housing units at an average density of 157 per square mile...
.
In 1992, the two main newspapers in Pittsburgh were embroiled in a lengthy labor dispute that ultimately led the larger paper, the Pittsburgh Press
Pittsburgh Press
The Pittsburgh Press is an online newspaper in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, currently owned and operated by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Historically, it was a major afternoon paper...
, to cease operations, and for the remaining paper, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, to suspend publication for nearly six months until the Post-Gazette acquired the Press late that year. During this time frame, Scaife expanded operations of the newspaper into Pittsburgh and renamed the paper the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, also known as "the Trib," is the second largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
. Though the name changed, and there are several satellite offices in and around Pittsburgh, the newspaper's headquarters remain in Greensburg, about 35 miles east of Pittsburgh near Scaife's home.
Leadership and media interests
The Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewPittsburgh Tribune-Review
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, also known as "the Trib," is the second largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
continues to challenge the Post-Gazette in the Pittsburgh media market. Twelve years after Scaife's newspaper began publishing, the Post-Gazette reported major financial losses, and the unions representing its employees agreed to wage concessions to keep it afloat. Unlike Scaife, the owners of the Post-Gazette, the Block family, were unwilling to sustain major losses year after year. According to the Scaife divorce papers, Richard Scaife has consistently spent between $20 and $30 million per year to cover the Tribune-Reviews losses. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulation, the Trib has a combined 221,000 regional circulation, about 7,000 subscribers fewer than its competitor.
In 2005, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, also known as "the Trib," is the second largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
announced that operations of its suburban editions would be consolidated, with "staff reductions" in the newsrooms, business, and circulation departments. Two managers were laid off immediately along with several other staff members later in 2005.
With Scaife as publisher, the small circulation newspaper was the chief packager of editorials and news columns claiming that then United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
or his wife, then First Lady Hillary Clinton were responsible for the death of Deputy White House counsel Vincent Foster. Scaife paid freelancer Christopher W. Ruddy to write about the Foster case for the Tribune-Review and other right-leaning media. Special Prosecutor Kenneth Starr
Kenneth Starr
Kenneth Winston "Ken" Starr is an American lawyer and educational administrator who has also been a federal judge. He is best known for his investigation of figures during the Clinton administration....
, appointed to investigate Clinton, concluded that Foster committed suicide.
In 2004, Scaife was reported to own 7.2% of NewsMax Media
NewsMax Media
Newsmax Media is a conservative American news media organization founded by Christopher W. Ruddy and based in West Palm Beach, Florida. It operates the news website Newsmax.com and publishes Newsmax Magazine.Christopher W...
, a news-based website with conservative political content founded by Ruddy in 1998. In 2009, Scaife reportedly "controlled" 42% of NewsMax, with Ruddy the 58% majority owner, CEO and editor.
Scaife also owns a majority interest in Pittsburgh-based all-news radio station KQV
KQV
KQV is a radio station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The station, which is the only broadcast station owned by Calvary, Inc., broadcasts at 1410 kHz, with 5000 watts of power day and night. KQV's call letters reportedly stand for King of the Quaker Valley...
.
Politics and philanthropy
Scaife's interest in politics was influenced by several factors.- His father served with the Office of Strategic ServicesOffice of Strategic ServicesThe Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
(OSS) during World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and the family lived in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
for a time. (The various functional units of the OSS were reconstituted in 1947 as the Central Intelligence AgencyCentral Intelligence AgencyThe Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
; see How the OSS became the CIA in the OSSOffice of Strategic ServicesThe Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
article.) - He was influenced by Robert Duggan, his sister Cordelia's fiance who later became her husband. Scaife worked on Duggan's political campaigns and Duggan was twice elected Allegheny County District Attorney. Duggan helped Scaife become a committeeman in the Allegheny CountyAllegheny County, PennsylvaniaAllegheny County is a county in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,223,348; making it the second most populous county in Pennsylvania, following Philadelphia County. The county seat is Pittsburgh...
Republican Party in 1956. In 1974, however, Duggan killed himself with a shotgun, hours before he was indicted by a grand jury for income tax evasion and racketeering. - Scaife involved himself in the 1964 presidential campaign of Barry GoldwaterBarry GoldwaterBarry Morris Goldwater was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party's nominee for President in the 1964 election. An articulate and charismatic figure during the first half of the 1960s, he was known as "Mr...
, with whom his mother was acquainted.
The inherited Mellon fortune allowed Scaife to pursue his political activism. In 1965, when Sarah Scaife died, Scaife inherited not only financial increase but also a new influence over the family foundations.
Support for Richard Nixon
Scaife gained notoriety for making an end-run around weak campaign finance lawsCampaign finance in the United States
Campaign finance in the United States is the financing of electoral campaigns at the federal, state, and local levels.At the federal level, the primary source of campaign funds is individuals; political action committees are a distant second. Contributions from both are limited, and direct...
to donate US$990,000 to the 1972 re-election
Creep
Creep may refer to:* CREEP, the Committee for the Re-Election of the President, associated with the Watergate scandal of U.S. president Nixon's administration....
campaign
United States presidential election, 1972
The United States presidential election of 1972 was the 47th quadrennial United States presidential election. It was held on November 7, 1972. The Democratic Party's nomination was eventually won by Senator George McGovern, who ran an anti-war campaign against incumbent Republican President Richard...
of U.S. President Richard Nixon. Scaife was not charged with a crime, but about $45,000 went to a fund linked to the Watergate scandal
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
. Scaife later said he was repulsed by the scandal and refused to speak with Nixon after 1973. Following Duggan's suicide and then Watergate, Scaife shifted his political giving from politicians' campaigns to anti-communist research groups, legal defense funds, and publications.
Opposition to Bill Clinton
Scaife's publications were substantially involved in coverage against then-President Bill ClintonBill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
.
- Scaife was the major backer of The American Spectator, whose Arkansas ProjectArkansas ProjectThe Arkansas Project was a series of investigations that were initiated with the intent of damaging and ending the presidency of Bill Clinton...
set out to find facts about Clinton and in which Paula JonesPaula JonesPaula Corbin Jones is a former Arkansas state employee who sued U.S. President Bill Clinton for sexual harassment. The lawsuit was dismissed before trial on the grounds that Jones failed to demonstrate any damages...
' accusations of sexual harassmentSexual harassmentSexual harassment, is intimidation, bullying or coercion of a sexual nature, or the unwelcome or inappropriate promise of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. In some contexts or circumstances, sexual harassment is illegal. It includes a range of behavior from seemingly mild transgressions and...
against Clinton were first widely publicized. - In a 1999 series of articles on Scaife and foundations that support conservative causes, the Washington Post named a close Scaife associate, Richard Larry, and not Scaife himself as the man who drove the Arkansas Project
Regardless of his role, the project not only accused Clinton of financial and sexual indiscretions (some later verified, others not), but also gave root to conspiracist notions that the Clintons collaborated with the CIA to run a drug smuggling operation out of the town of Mena, Arkansas
Mena, Arkansas
Mena is a city in Polk County, Arkansas, United States. It is also the county seat of Polk County.It was founded by Arthur Edward Stilwell during the building of the Kansas City, Pittsburg and Gulf Railroad . It was Stilwell who decided Mena would be the name of this new town along the route to...
and that Clinton had arranged for the murder of White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
aide Vince Foster
Vince Foster
Vincent Walker Foster, Jr. was a Deputy White House Counsel during the first few months of President Bill Clinton's administration, and also a law partner and friend of Hillary Rodham Clinton...
as part of a coverup of the Whitewater scandal. The possibility that money from the project had been given to former Clinton associate David Hale, a witness in the Whitewater investigation, led to the appointment of Michael J. Shaheen as a special investigator. Shaheen subpoena
Subpoena
A subpoena is a writ by a government agency, most often a court, that has authority to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of subpoena:...
ed Scaife, who testified before a federal grand jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
in the matter.
In the fall of 2007, however, Ruddy published a positive interview with former President Clinton on Newsmax.com, followed by a positive cover story in the magazine. The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
noted with reference to the event that politics had made "strange bedfellows".
Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
reported that Ruddy praised Clinton for his Foundation's global work, and explained that the interview, as well as a private lunch he and Scaife had had with Clinton (which Ruddy says was orchestrated by Ed Koch
Ed Koch
Edward Irving "Ed" Koch is an American lawyer, politician, and political commentator. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 1969 to 1977 and three terms as mayor of New York City from 1978 to 1989...
), were due to his shared view, with Scaife, that Clinton was doing important work representing the U.S. globally while America was the target of criticism. He also said that he and Scaife had never suggested Clinton was involved in Foster's death, nor had they spread allegations about Bill Clinton's sex scandals, although their work may have encouraged others.
Endorsement of Hillary Clinton
On April 20, 2008, two days before Pennsylvania's presidential primaryPennsylvania Democratic primary, 2008
The 2008 Democratic primary in Pennsylvania was held on April 22 by the Pennsylvania Department of State in which voters chose their preference for the Democratic Party's candidate for the 2008 U.S. Presidential election. Voters also chose the Pennsylvania Democratic Party's candidates for various...
, Scaife's Pittsburgh Tribune Review endorsed Hillary Clinton for president.
Political donations
According to campaignmoney.com, from 1999 through 2006, Scaife has, under the name "R. Scaife," made 10 contributions of over $200 to political campaigns, for a total of $19,000. Under the name "R.M. Scaife" he made 4 donations, for a total of $22,000. Under the name Richard Scaife, he made 23 donations over this period, for a total of $142,904. Besides donations to the Republican National CommitteeRepublican National Committee
The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...
and various political campaigns such as Santorum 2000 and the Santorum Victory Committee for Rick Santorum
Rick Santorum
Richard John "Rick" Santorum is a lawyer and a former United States Senator from the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Santorum was the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference -making him the third-ranking Senate Republican from 2001 until his leave in 2007. Santorum is considered both a social...
, he has also supported Political Action Committees such as the Pro-Growth Action Team, the Free Congress PAC (formerly: Committee For the Survival Of a Free Congress), and the Club For Growth Inc. PAC. Scaife also funded the Western Journalism Center
Western Journalism Center
The Western Journalism Center was founded in 1991 by Joseph Farah and James H. Smith. It is based in Sacramento, California.-Projects:...
, headed by Joseph Farah. He was named to the PoliticsPA
PoliticsPA
- Content :The website focuses on news aggregation, linking to major political news making headlines across the state. The editors write occasional features, like the weekly "Up & Down" scorecard and one-off lists like "Harrisburg's Smartest Staffer" and "Best Dressed Lobbyist" lists...
list of "Pennsylvania's Top Political Activists."
Management of the Scaife family foundations
When Scaife refocused his political giving away from individuals and toward anti-communist research groups, legal defense funds, and publications, the first among these was the Hoover InstitutionHoover Institution
The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace is a public policy think tank and library founded in 1919 by then future U.S. president, Herbert Hoover, an early alumnus of Stanford....
on War, Revolution, and Peace at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
.
Through contacts made at Hoover and elsewhere, Scaife became a major, early supporter of the Heritage Foundation
Heritage Foundation
The Heritage Foundation is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C. Heritage's stated mission is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong...
, which has since become one of Washington's
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
most influential public policy research institutes. He currently serves as vice-chairman of the Heritage Foundation board of trustees.
Later, he supported such varied conservative and libertarian organizations as:
- American Enterprise InstituteAmerican Enterprise InstituteThe American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research is a conservative think tank founded in 1943. Its stated mission is "to defend the principles and improve the institutions of American freedom and democratic capitalism—limited government, private enterprise, individual liberty and...
- Atlas Economic Research FoundationAtlas Economic Research FoundationThe Atlas Economic Research Foundation, also known as the Atlas Network, is a non-profit organization based in the United States which organizes and convenes workshops, offers training, runs prize programs, and provides advisory services in order to continue growing and strengthening an informal...
- David Horowitz Freedom CenterDavid Horowitz Freedom CenterThe David Horowitz Freedom Center is a conservative foundation founded in 1988 by political activist David Horowitz and his long-time collaborator Peter Collier...
- Committee for a Constructive TomorrowCommittee for a Constructive TomorrowThe Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow is a conservative Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization whose stated mission is to promote free market solutions to environmental problems...
, which advocates for free-market solutions to environmental issues and dissent on anthropogenic global warming - Commonwealth Foundation for Public Policy AlternativesCommonwealth Foundation for Public Policy AlternativesThe Commonwealth Foundation for Public Policy Alternatives is an independent, non-profit research and educational institute based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania...
- a Harrisburg-based libertarian think tank - Federalist SocietyFederalist SocietyThe Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies, most frequently called simply the Federalist Society, is an organization of conservatives seeking reform of the current American legal system in accordance with a textualist and/or originalist interpretation of the U.S. Constitution...
- Foundation for Economic EducationFoundation for Economic EducationThe Foundation for Economic Education is one of the oldest free-market organizations established in the United States to study and advance the freedom philosophy. Murray Rothbard recognizes FEE for creating a "crucial open center" that he credits with launching the movement...
- Free Congress FoundationFree Congress FoundationThe Free Congress Foundation , is a conservative think tank founded by Paul Weyrich. It was based near Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C...
(headed by Paul WeyrichPaul WeyrichPaul M. Weyrich was an American conservativepolitical activist and commentator, most notable as a figurehead of the New Right. He co-founded the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank and the Free Congress Foundation, another conservative think tank...
) - Freedom HouseFreedom HouseFreedom House is an international non-governmental organization based in Washington, D.C. that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human rights...
- GOPACGOPACGOPAC is a Republican state and local political training organization. Although often thought of as a PAC, or Political Action Committee, it is actually a 527 organization. It describes itself as "the premier training organization for Republican candidates in elected office on the state and local...
(headed by Newt GingrichNewt GingrichNewton Leroy "Newt" Gingrich is a U.S. Republican Party politician who served as the House Minority Whip from 1989 to 1995 and as the 58th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999....
) - Independent Women's ForumIndependent Women's ForumThe Independent Women's Forum is an American conservative, non-profit, non-partisan research and educational institution focused on domestic and foreign policy issues of concern to women...
- Intercollegiate Studies InstituteIntercollegiate Studies InstituteThe Intercollegiate Studies Institute, Inc., or ', is a non-profit educational organization founded in 1953 as the Intercollegiate Society of Individualists...
(which operates the Collegiate NetworkCollegiate NetworkThe Collegiate Network is a non-profit, non-partisan tax-exempt 501 organization that provides financial and technical assistance to student editors and writers of almost 100 independent, conservative and libertarian publications at leading colleges and universities around the country. The project...
) - Judicial WatchJudicial WatchJudicial Watch is an organization that describes itself as "a conservative, non-partisan American educational foundation that promotes transparency, accountability and integrity in government, politics and the law." According to its mission statement, Judicial Watch "advocates high standards of...
- Landmark Legal FoundationLandmark Legal FoundationThe Landmark Legal Foundation is non-profit 5013 conservative legal advocacy group, with a $1 million annual budget. The President is Mark Levin. Through litigation and direct interfacing with government agencies, it advances a platform of limited government...
- Media Research CenterMedia Research CenterThe Media Research Center is a content analysis organization based in Alexandria, Virginia, founded in 1987 by conservative activist L. Brent Bozell III...
(headed by Brent Bozell) - Pacific Legal FoundationPacific Legal FoundationPacific Legal Foundation is the first and oldest conservative/libertarian public interest law firm in the United States. PLF was established for the purpose of defending and promoting individual and economic freedom in the courts...
- World Affairs CouncilWorld Affairs Councils of AmericaThe World Affairs Councils of America represents and supports the largest national non-partisan network of local councils that are dedicated to educating, inspiring and engaging Americans in international affairs and the critical global issues of our times. The network consists of 94 councils in 40...
of Pittsburgh - Reason FoundationReason FoundationThe Reason Foundation is an American nonprofit think tank founded in 1978 that also publishes Reason magazine. Based in Los Angeles, Reason is self-described as nonpartisan and publishes a statement of values that can best be described as libertarian...
By 1998 his foundations were listed among donors to over 100 such groups, to which he had disbursed some $340 million by 2002.
Pepperdine University
Scaife also endowed a new school of public policy at Pepperdine UniversityPepperdine University
Pepperdine University is an independent, private, medium-sized university affiliated with the Churches of Christ. The university's campus overlooking the Pacific Ocean in unincorporated Los Angeles County, California, United States, near Malibu, is the location for Seaver College, the School of...
. Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr
Kenneth Starr
Kenneth Winston "Ken" Starr is an American lawyer and educational administrator who has also been a federal judge. He is best known for his investigation of figures during the Clinton administration....
was named the first dean of this school, although Pepperdine denies any connection between Scaife and the selection of Starr. Starr accepted the post in 1996, but in the ensuing controversy, he gave up the appointment in 1998 before ever having started at Pepperdine. However, once the investigation was behind him, Starr was appointed to head Pepperdine's law school in 2004 and became president of Baylor University
Baylor University
Baylor University is a private, Christian university located in Waco, Texas. Founded in 1845, Baylor is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.-History:...
in 2010.
Other philanthropic support
Scaife is identified with his contributions to conservative and libertarian causes. The Washington PostThe Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
dubbed him "funding father of the Right" in 1999.
However, he has also supported policy research groups which are not explicitly conservative, such as the Center for Strategic and International Studies
Center for Strategic and International Studies
The Center for Strategic and International Studies is a bipartisan Washington, D.C., foreign policy think tank. The center was founded in 1962 by Admiral Arleigh Burke and Ambassador David Manker Abshire, originally as part of Georgetown University...
(CSIS), the National Endowment for Democracy
National Endowment for Democracy
The National Endowment for Democracy, or NED, is a U.S. non-profit organization that was founded in 1983 to promote US-friendly democracy by providing cash grants funded primarily through an annual allocation from the U.S. Congress...
, and the Foreign Policy Research Institute
Foreign Policy Research Institute
The Foreign Policy Research Institute is an American neoconservative think tank based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is "devoted to bringing the insights of scholarship to bear on the development of policies that advance U.S...
at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, among others.
Scaife has also been a major donor to abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
rights advocates, including Planned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood Federation of America , commonly shortened to Planned Parenthood, is the U.S. affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and one of its larger members. PPFA is a non-profit organization providing reproductive health and maternal and child health services. The...
, giving "million
Million
One million or one thousand thousand, is the natural number following 999,999 and preceding 1,000,001. The word is derived from the early Italian millione , from mille, "thousand", plus the augmentative suffix -one.In scientific notation, it is written as or just 106...
s" to the organization, though most such giving stopped in the 1970s, according to The Washington Post.
In the late 1990s, during the height of the Clinton scandals, Scaife nevertheless continued to provide more than $1 million to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a non-profit corporation created by an act of the United States Congress, funded by the United States’ federal government to promote public broadcasting...
, the prime benefactor of the Public Broadcasting Service
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
(PBS). His donations to restore and beautify the White House led to an invitation by Hillary Clinton for a black-tie celebration. She warmly received him and posed for a photograph on the same day her husband's sex scandal hit the press. Scaife told the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
that he appreciated Mrs. Clinton's invitation. "I'm honored," he said. "Lord knows, it's more than I got from George Bush."
Scaife has also supported non-political groups. He is a key benefactor of a number of Pittsburgh-based arts organizations. Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The orchestra's home is Heinz Hall, located in Pittsburgh's Cultural District.-History:...
, the Sarah Scaife Galleries at the Carnegie Institute of Pittsburgh art museum, the Brandywine Conservancy, the Phipps Conservatory, and the National Gallery of Art
National Gallery of Art
The National Gallery of Art and its Sculpture Garden is a national art museum, located on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets at Constitution Avenue NW, in Washington, DC...
in Washington, DC, as well as Goodwill Industries
Goodwill Industries
Goodwill Industries International is a not-for-profit organization that provides job training, employment placement services and other community-based programs for people who have a disability, lack education or job experience, or face employment challenges...
of Pittsburgh. He and his foundations have contributed to Sarah Scaife's favorite causes: population control (e.g. Planned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood Federation of America , commonly shortened to Planned Parenthood, is the U.S. affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and one of its larger members. PPFA is a non-profit organization providing reproductive health and maternal and child health services. The...
), environmental conservation, and hospitals; Jonas Salk
Jonas Salk
Jonas Edward Salk was an American medical researcher and virologist, best known for his discovery and development of the first safe and effective polio vaccine. He was born in New York City to parents from Ashkenazi Jewish Russian immigrant families...
developed his polio vaccine
Polio vaccine
Two polio vaccines are used throughout the world to combat poliomyelitis . The first was developed by Jonas Salk and first tested in 1952. Announced to the world by Salk on April 12, 1955, it consists of an injected dose of inactivated poliovirus. An oral vaccine was developed by Albert Sabin...
in a Sarah Scaife-funded laboratory. He also supports a variety of educational institutions, notably the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
, Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
, Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
, the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
, the University of Rochester
University of Rochester
The University of Rochester is a private, nonsectarian, research university in Rochester, New York, United States. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The university has six schools and various interdisciplinary programs.The...
, Smith College
Smith College
Smith College is a private, independent women's liberal arts college located in Northampton, Massachusetts. It is the largest member of the Seven Sisters...
, and Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green State University, often referred to as Bowling Green or BGSU, is a public, coeducational research university located in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. The institution was granted a charter in 1910 by the State of Ohio as part of the Lowry Bill, which also established Kent State...
.
Personal life
Scaife's first marriage was to Frances L. Gilmore (born December 2, 1934). The couple had two children, Jennie K. Scaife (born July 8, 1963), and David N. Scaife (born February 5, 1966). The couple subsequently divorced.In June 1991, he married his longtime companion Margaret “Ritchie” Battle Scaife (born February 15, 1947), who had influenced the giving pattern of the Scaife foundations and made the couple active in the social and cultural life of patrician Pittsburgh.
The couple subsequently separated, and on December 27, 2005, the Pittsburgh Police
Pittsburgh Police
The Pittsburgh Police, or officially the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, is the largest law enforcement agency in Western Pennsylvania and the third largest in Pennsylvania...
responded to a call placed by Richard Scaife reporting trespassing at Scaife's residence in the prestigious Shadyside section of Pittsburgh
Shadyside (Pittsburgh)
Shadyside is a neighborhood in the East End of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It has zip codes of both 15232 and 15206, and has representation on Pittsburgh City Council by the council member for District 8...
. They arrived to find Ritchie Scaife, his estranged wife, pounding on doors and peeking in windows of the couple's mansion. Mrs. Scaife refused to leave the property, and was arrested and charged with defiant trespass
Trespass
Trespass is an area of tort law broadly divided into three groups: trespass to the person, trespass to chattels and trespass to land.Trespass to the person, historically involved six separate trespasses: threats, assault, battery, wounding, mayhem, and maiming...
.
On April 8, 2006, the Tribune-Review published an article describing a fight between Scaife's estranged wife and three of his servants over a dog that Scaife told the New York Daily News his wife had given him. Both newspapers reported that Scaife’s servants went to the hospital for scrapes and bruises after the fracas. Afterwards, Scaife placed a sign on his lawn: “Wife and dog missing - reward for dog.”
On April 11, 2006 Scaife confided to a gossip columnist that he and Margaret "Ritchie" Battle Scaife, 58, plan to divorce and that their marriage began without a prenuptial agreement. The New York Daily News column estimated his vulnerable assets at half of $1.2 billion.
In September 2007, the Post-Gazette and reporter Dennis Roddy
Dennis Roddy
Dennis Brian Patrick Roddy is a prominent journalist in Pennsylvania, working for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.-Education:A native of Johnstown, Roddy was born the 4th of 5 children to an Irish American family. His father, Robert Roddy, Sr., was a steelworker and negotiator for the United...
found that the Scaife divorce papers, which had been under seal, were available to the public on the website of the Allegheny County Prothonotary's office. The Post-Gazette has made the divorce papers available in full on its website. The papers include a full list of all of the possessions Mrs. Scaife alleged Richard Scaife had taken and was keeping from her.
He was named to the PoliticsPA
PoliticsPA
- Content :The website focuses on news aggregation, linking to major political news making headlines across the state. The editors write occasional features, like the weekly "Up & Down" scorecard and one-off lists like "Harrisburg's Smartest Staffer" and "Best Dressed Lobbyist" lists...
list of "Sy Snyder's Power 50" list of influential individuals in Pennsylvania politics in 2002 and 2003.
Steve Kangas incident
On 8. February 1999 former military intelligenceMilitary intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
specialist turned progressive writer Steve Kangas
Steve Kangas
Steve Kangas was a journalist, political activist and chess teacher known for his website Liberalism Resurgent and highly political usenet postings. Until 1986 he worked for military intelligence. His stay in Berlin turned him from a conservative into an outspoken liberal militant...
committed suicide less than 60 feet from Scaife's office door inside the One Oxford Center, Pittsburgh
Oxford Centre
One Oxford Centre is one of the major distinctive and recognizable features of Downtown Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, United States. Although it is mainly identified by its main tower, it is actually a complex of six "buildings," all of matching glass and steel design...
. He had been an outspoken critic of Scaife and believed that Scaife-funded initiatives posed a danger to the nation. Scaife hired Rex Armistead
Rex Armistead
Rex Armistead, born 1930 in Lula, Mississippi is a private detective and former Mississippi state police officer and leading operative for the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission, who was heavily involved in the Arkansas Project, a co-ordinated attempt in the 1990s to investigate former U.S...
and a reporter from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, also known as "the Trib," is the second largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
to investigate whether or not Kangas had been out to kill Scaife. Conspiracy theories concerning the death of Kangas continued to flourish in the period afterwards, with some commentators noting the irony when compared with Scaife's own material support of conspiracy theories regarding the suicide of Vince Foster.
External links
- Scaife Foundation Official Web Site
- Richard Mellon Scaife's campaign contributions
- "World's Richest People", Forbes magazine, October 2004
- Richard Mellon Scaife profile at CNNCNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
- Richard Mellon Scaife profile at SourcewatchSourceWatchSourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...
- Scaife Foundation profile at Media TransparencyMedia transparencyMedia transparency is the concept of determining how and why information is conveyed through various means.As used in the humanities,the topic of media transparency implies openness and accountability...
- Scaife Family Foundations at People for the American WayPeople For the American WayPeople For the American Way is a progressive advocacy group in the United States. Under U.S. tax code, People For the American Way is organized as a tax-exempt 501 non-profit organization.-Purpose:...
- "The Trib Goes Post-al", Pittsburgh City PaperPittsburgh City PaperThe Pittsburgh City Paper is Pittsburgh's leading alternative weekly newspaper which focuses on local news, opinion, and arts and entertainment...
, 2001. - "Arkansas Project Led to Turmoil and Rifts", The Washington Post, May 2, 1999.
- "Low Road to Splitsville" A detailed report of the events leading up to Scaife's divorce