Willkommen, Toni Morrison

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This month, the Los Angeles Dodgers began another season playing America's game. Their paychecks will come from Australian media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who no doubt defines a "squeeze play" as a deft move at the negotiating table. Though born in the USA, pop music stars Bruce Springsteen and Mariah Carey generate profits for Japan's Sony. Now, African-American writer Toni Morrison, whose prose throws light into the country's dark corners, will submit her luminescent manuscripts to a corporate giant headquartered in Gueters-loh, Germany.

The recent acquisition of Random House by German media conglomerate Bertelsmann A.G. has prompted a familiar cry - another independent …