ALLIES

Georgian Candidate Recruits Americans

Larry King and others join advisory board of news channel.

Billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili—a pro-Russian candidate in Georgia—has recruited three powerful Americans to join the advisory board for Georgian live news channel TV9, owned by his wife, reports Buzzfeed. The three recruits, former CNN host Larry King, Council of Foreign Relations president Leslie Gelb, and former congressman Lee Hamilton, will be paid “nominally” for a year of service on the board. Former U.S. ambassador to Morocco Marc Ginsberg says the goal of the advisory board is to foster “media freedom in Georgia” using TV9. In spite of its close ties to Ivanishvili, the station claims it will not side with either candidate in the upcoming October election.