--- alias: - Philadelphia Inquirer - Inquirer - The Pennsylvania Inquirer - Inquirer.com category: Media & Entertainment created: 2026-09-23 location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania relations: - fn: 1 reverse: true start: 1936 type: owned with: '[[Moses Annenberg]]' - end: 1969 fn: 1 reverse: true type: owned with: '[[Walter Annenberg]]' - fn: 1 reverse: true type: owned with: '[[Knight Ridder]]' - fn: 5 reverse: true start: 2006 type: owned with: '[[Brian P. Tierney]]' - fn: 5 reverse: true start: 2010 type: owned with: '[[Alden Global Capital]]' - fn: 5 reverse: true start: 2012 type: owned with: '[[Lewis Katz]]' - fn: 5 reverse: true start: 2012 type: owned with: '[[George E. Norcross III]]' - end: 2016 fn: 5 reverse: true start: 2012 type: owned with: '[[H.F. Lenfest]]' - fn: 2 reverse: true start: 2016-01-12 type: owned with: '[[Lenfest Institute for Journalism]]' start: 1829-06-01 summary: Philadelphia daily founded in 1829, owned by the Annenbergs, Knight Ridder, local investors and H.F. Lenfest, and since 2016 by a nonprofit institute under the Philadelphia Foundation. tags: - Organization - Media - Newspaper - Philadelphia - Annenberg - OlneyHouseInvestigation - RCHorsch updated: 2026-09-23 --- *The Philadelphia Inquirer* is a daily newspaper in Philadelphia, founded on Monday, June 1, 1829, as the *Pennsylvania Inquirer*. Since 2016 it has been owned by a tax-exempt institute created at the request of H.F. "Gerry" Lenfest by the Philadelphia Foundation. Since June 2026 it has reported the [Olney House Investigation](/events/olney-house-investigation/) into women connected to the pornographer [R.C. Horsch](/people/rc-horsch/), and its files from 1969 to 1975 record the closing of his [Underground Cinema 16](/organizations/underground-cinema-16/) and the cancellation of his film [Black Mass](/misc/black-mass-1975-film/).[^1][^2][^3][^4] ### Annenberg Moses Annenberg announced in 1936 that he had bought the paper for four million dollars, with the assumption of 6.8 million dollars in debt. His son Walter Annenberg inherited the business, and in 1957 bought the *Philadelphia Daily News* for three million dollars from the Philadelphia builder Matt McCloskey. In 1969 the two papers were sold for 55 million dollars to John S. Knight's company, Knight Newspapers, which later merged with Ridder Publications to form Knight Ridder.[^1] ### Tierney, the Hedge Funds, and the 2012 Group Investors led by the public relations executive Brian P. Tierney bought the papers in 2006 for 515 million dollars. Hedge funds led by Alden Global Capital and Angelo, Gordon and Company bought the company out of bankruptcy in 2010 for 139 million dollars. In April 2012 a local group led by Lewis Katz and George E. Norcross III, with Lenfest, Krishna P. "Kris" Singh, William P. Hankowsky, and Joseph Buckelew, agreed to pay 55 million dollars for the papers and their website, the same price Walter Annenberg had received in 1969.[^5] In May 2014 Lenfest and Katz won the company at auction for 88 million dollars, outbidding their co-owner Norcross and his associates.[^2] ### The Lenfest Institute On January 12, 2016, Lenfest announced that he had donated the *Inquirer*, the *Daily News*, and philly.com to a newly created tax-exempt organization, the Institute for Journalism in New Media, operating under the TPF Special Assets Fund of the Philadelphia Foundation, and would contribute 20 million dollars to its endowment. The operating company, Philadelphia Media Network, was converted to a public benefit corporation and remained a self-governing, for-profit company. "Of all the things I've done, this is the most important. Because of the journalism," Lenfest said. The foundation's president, Pedro Ramos, said: "We're not getting into the newspaper business," and "In a democracy, great cities need and depend on quality journalism."[^2][^6] ### Coverage of the Horsch Cases On October 30, 1969, the paper reported that the [Philadelphia Department of Licenses and Inspections](/organizations/philadelphia-department-of-licenses-and-inspections/) had ordered Cinema 16 closed.[^3] On February 28, 1975, it reported that *Black Mass* had been cancelled at the [Arcadia](/organizations/arcadia-theatre-philadelphia/) "after reported pressure by the Philadelphia Archdiocese" and would be shown at the [Bandbox Theater](/organizations/bandbox-theater/).[^4] From June 2026 its reporters, among them Ellie Rushing, Barbara Laker, Max Marin, and Ryan W. Briggs, reported the search of the house on West Chew Avenue, the prosecutions of [Eugene Horsch](/people/eugene-horsch/), R.C. Horsch's access to the crematorium of the [Garzone Funeral Home](/organizations/garzone-funeral-home/), and his 2009 conviction for luring a child. On August 28, 2026, the paper reported, citing unnamed sources, that investigators believed a video showed Horsch killing a woman.[^7][^8] [^1]: "The History of the Philadelphia Inquirer," Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia. https://www.broadcastpioneers.com/inquirerhistory.html [^2]: Gammage, Jeff. "Lenfest donates newspapers, website to new media institute," *The Philadelphia Inquirer,* January 11, 2016. https://www.inquirer.com/philly/business/20160112_Lenfest_donates_newspapers__website_to_new_media_institute.html [^3]: "Police to Inspect Building: Cinema 16 Shut Down In License Dispute; Owner Is 'Confused'," *The Philadelphia Inquirer,* October 30, 1969, p. 19. https://www.newspapers.com/image/169186622/ [^4]: [Society and nightlife column], *The Philadelphia Inquirer,* February 28, 1975, p. 21. https://www.newspapers.com/image/173366667/ [^5]: Armstrong, Mike. "Local investors buy Inquirer, Daily News, website," *The Philadelphia Inquirer,* April 2, 2012. https://www.inquirer.com/philly/business/20120402_Local_group_to_buy_Phila__Media_Network_for__55_million.html [^6]: The Lenfest Institute for Journalism, "H.F. Lenfest Launches Institute for Journalism in New Media, Donates Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News and Philly.com, Makes $20 Million Gift to New Endowment," press release, January 12, 2016. https://www.lenfestinstitute.org/solutions-resources/h-f-lenfest-launches-institute-journalism-new-media-donates-philadelphia-inquirer-daily-news-philly-com-makes-20-million-gift-new-endowment-ensure-future/ [^7]: Rushing, Ellie, Barbara Laker, Ryan W. Briggs, and Max Marin. "Raymond Horsch was convicted of luring a 9-year-old girl to his car in 2009. Now those court records could be destroyed." *The Philadelphia Inquirer,* September 22, 2026; Briggs, Ryan W., Max Marin, Barbara Laker, and Ellie Rushing. "Raymond Horsch had access to a Kensington crematorium linked to illegal body parts sales, years before missing persons investigation," *The Philadelphia Inquirer,* September 21, 2026. https://www.inquirer.com/crime/raymond-horsch-child-luring-kensington-records-expunged-20260922.html ; https://www.inquirer.com/news/raymond-horsch-missing-women-kensington-bodies-crematorium-20260921.html [^8]: "Police believe a new video shows violent pornographer Raymond 'R.C.' Horsch killing a woman on camera, sources say," *The Philadelphia Inquirer,* August 28, 2026. https://www.inquirer.com/crime/raymond-horsch-woman-killed-snuff-film-olney-20260828.html