Politico's $50M Peter Thiel Problem
Is Axel Springer CEO's son the 'German JD Vance'?
This publication exists because 501 readers believe it's worth funding. If you're not already a paid subscriber, please join them. Every subscription helps shine more light where the powerful would rather stay hidden. Click here to join today.
The Point: Thiel makes an investment
Mathias Döpfner, CEO and part-owner of Axel Springer — the German media giant that owns Politico — has developed remarkably close ties to tech billionaire Peter Thiel. His son, Moritz Döpfner, previously served as chief of staff at Thiel Capital, the billionaire’s family office. Now, according to German media, the young Döpfner has started a new venture capital fund – with a $50 million investment from Thiel.
The Backstory: A 'German JD Vance' rises
Drama erupted last week at Politico’s Rosslyn, Virginia, headquarters when reporters came under fire from Axel Springer board member Martín Varsavsky. The Spain-based tech investor lashed out over a story about Israel’s bombing of Gaza.
In tweets he later deleted, Varsavsky wrote that “most journalists are woke and to the left of the general public” and further claimed that “management does not dare to fire them.” But his emotional outburst quickly became an embarrassment. As it turns out, Varsavsky was angry over an Associated Press wire story that had posted on Politico’s website.
The misguided criticism backfired — but it made me wonder whether Politico might soon follow the Los Angeles Times and Washington Post in veering toward reactionary politics under pressure from its ownership. The company’s namesake, the late Axel Springer, is remembered by some as “Germany’s Rupert Murdoch.” In 2022, Foreign Policy reported that the company had “a decades-long record of bending journalistic ethics for right-wing causes.” Today, “the Axel Springer media house under Döpfner continues to pursue political agendas and vendettas with the same tenacity as it did decades ago,” according to FP story.
Then there's the issue of Döpfner's strong ties to Thiel. While a few outlets have mentioned the CEO's connection to Thiel in the past, there’s a major new development. From a Feb. 22 story headlined “How Moritz Döpfner is Building His Own Fund with Help from Peter Thiel” in Germany’s prestigious Manager Magazin:
Anyone who proves themselves as an employee of Peter Thiel can also later rely on the favor of the German-born investor and early supporter of Donald Trump. Thiel has financially helped former employees establish funds such as Valar Ventures – which invests in Europe, among others, in N26 , Taxfix, and Bitpanda…
A German now also appears to be benefiting from this pattern: Moritz Döpfner, one of four sons of Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner. He served Thiel for a few years as an employee, and now he wants to launch his own venture capital fund – and is receiving generous start-up funding from his mentor.
The magazine reports the younger Döpfner “played a central role in the Thiel universe” by serving as chief of staff at Thiel Capital, Thiel’s family office. Now the relationship is paying off with a major investment in Moritz Döpfner's VC fund, Doepfner Capital Fund I, according to SEC documents reviewed by Manager Magazin:
The documents state that he is the Managing Director, and he intends to raise a total of $75 million.
Thiel will contribute the majority of this, several insiders tell Manager Magazin. Thiel will be the anchor investor of the Döpfner fund and will support its development with $50 million. Moritz Döpfner and Peter Thiel declined to comment when contacted.
The magazine reports that “Döpfner Jr. is already being dubbed the ‘German JD Vance’ in the investment community,” pointing to the now-familiar arc of how Peter Thiel essentially created Vance by investing in his career at every step::
Vance initially worked for Thiel's fund, Mithril Capital, and later received seed capital from the multi-billionaire to establish his own fund, Narya. Finally, Thiel also boosted his political career: He reportedly flew to Mar-a-Lago last year specifically to ensure that everything would go smoothly at the first meeting between Vance and Trump.
The elder Döpfner – who “controls nearly half of the multibillion-dollar company personally,” according to Semafor – previously told the Washington Post he has only met Thiel a few times and is not close to him. However, Manager describes Thiel as a “confidant” to the German media baron. No wonder Thiel has invested heavily in his son.
In addition:
Alexander Karp, CEO of Thiel-founded Palantir, also served for several years on the Axel Springer supervisory board.
Though Döpfner claims he wants his publications to be neutral, his reactionary politics seem obvious. In 2020, he made headlines for emailing a request for his colleagues to pray for Trump's re-election. When confronted by the press, Döpfner at first denied the story, then later claimed he was only joking. The story impressed Trump, who responded on social media: “Thank you to the very brilliant Mathias Döfpner.”
Unsurprisingly, Döpfner also holds Elon Musk in high regard, telling the Washington Post Musk is “one of the most inspiring people I’ve ever met.” From a 2022 New York profile of Döpfner:
Earlier this fall, he was caught back-channeling ideas to his friend Musk on how to improve Twitter. (“We run it for you,” Döpfner spitballed over text, “and establish a true platform of free speech. Would be a real contribution to democracy.”)
Analysis: Pressure on Politico
Instead of lashing out at Politico’s reporters, perhaps Axel Springer’s board members should express concern about its CEO-owner’s unusually close ties to Thiel, who has reportedly provided two-thirds of the funding for Moritz Döpfner’s new VC firm. The conflict seems glaring, though this particular development appears to have escaped notice in the U.S. media.
Given the fates of the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times — where the reactionary politics of billionaire owners have undermined editorial integrity — it’s fair to ask whether Politico is next. Thiel’s investment in the Döpfner bloodline hardly seems coincidental. As journalist Eoin Higgins argues in Owned: How Tech Billionaires on the Right Bought the Loudest Voices on the Left, Thiel and his cohort are working to codify, capitalize, and normalize tech billionaire control of the media itself.
Earlier this year, Trump falsely smeared Politico as a “left-wing rag,” making it clear that he’s unhappy with the outlet’s supposedly “neutral” approach. With Trump back in Washington and pro-Thiel forces embedded in both the White House and in media ownership, expect pressure on Politico’s newsroom to grow.
Conclusion: Thiel's spreading influence
Politico’s coverage of Thiel has been relatively thin despite the billionaire’s key role in the tech takeover of government (see excellent Bloomberg story below). Business Insider, in which Axel Springer also owns a majority stake, has done better. On March 11, senior correspondent Adam Rogers offered an unflinching assessment of Thiel’s role in the current administration in an article headlined “From DEI to DOGE: how Peter Thiel foresaw the future.”
The first line of the story should make us all worry: “Peter Thiel has won.”
Let's pay closer attention to Thiel's rapidly expanding influence over both government and media.
Thiel's DC Power Grab
On March 7, Bloomberg ran a must-read piece on Thiel's influence in the Trump Administration:
A billionaire tech entrepreneur who used his wealth and influence in Silicon Valley to help Donald Trump win the presidency has deep connections to the new administration’s efforts to remake the government.
His name? Peter Thiel.
While Elon Musk and a crew of longtime employees and young acolytes have been fanning out across Washington under the banner of the Department of Government Efficiency, more than a dozen people with ties to Thiel — including current and former employees of his companies, as well as people who have helped manage his fortune or benefitted from his investments and charitable giving — have been folded into the Trump administration.
Here's a gift link to read the entire story: “Peter Thiel's Deep Ties to Trump's Top Ranks.” (Link valid for 7 days)
Sophie Alexander and Jamie Tarabay
Thank you to our paid subscribers, whose generous support bought us subscriptions to Bloomberg and Manager Magazin.
