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Article: Media Magnate, Philanthropist Launched the Weather Channel
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- September 11, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2009 The Washington Post. This material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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Frank Batten Sr., 82, a Virginia publishing magnate and
philanthropist who launched the Weather Channel, which improbably
found huge cable television audiences among skywatchers and
travelers, died Sept. 10 in Norfolk.
His company, Norfolk-based Landmark Media Enterprises, said he
had been in failing health but did not release a cause of death. He
had fractured a hip in recent years and in the late 1970s had throat
cancer, which led to the removal of his larynx.
Mr. Batten was 27 when he became publisher of the Virginian-
Pilot newspaper in Norfolk in 1954, and he led the paper and its
sister publication, the Ledger-Star, through decades of steady
growth. His publishing empire, known until ...