Cell Phones of people in the news hacked by "News of the World".
July 5, 2011 - 8:11pm
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandteleco...
"The disclosure that the News of the World phone hacking allegations involved the victims of crime as well as high-profile celebrities raised the possibility that other victims’ families were hacked — something police were examining. "Basically every major crime story, every major news event, there was some sort of hacking involved," said a senior police source. "It was systematic." "
Scum.
This story has been in the news for more than a year--at least when News of the World was hacking journalists, politicians and celebrities. But the Guardian has just broke that they have also been targeting the families of crime victims, most notably they hacked the phone of 13-year-old Milly Dowler after she had been abducted and deleted phone messages, leading friends and family members to believe (wrongly) that Milly was still alive.
The list of hacked victims is growing, with other families of murdered children likely targets--as well as victims of the 7/7 terrorist attacks.
Profit and responsible journalism. Like gum and nuts.
But the Guardian has just broke that they have also been targeting the families of crime victims...
...the antecedent of "they" being News of the World, not the Guardian.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/05/phone-hacking-police-review-...
"The move is a direct response to the Guardian's exclusive story on Monday that a private investigator working for the News International tabloid, Glenn Mulcaire, caused Milly's parents to wrongly believe she was still alive – and interfered with police inquiries into her disappearance – by hacking into the teenager's mobile phone and deleting messages."
Wait, there's more:
"Last night, it emerged that News International handed to the Metropolitan Police details of payments made by News of the World to senior police officers between 2003 and 2007, the period when Andy Coulson was the paper's editor.
The development brings the crisis closer to the door of prime minister David Cameron who appointed Coulson as his director of communications when in opposition and then staunchly defended him until Coulson quit in January 2011."
News of the World axed by News International
Sunday's edition of the paper will be the last, News International chairman James Murdoch told News of the World staff on Thursday afternoon.
Murdoch told employees at the 168-year old title: "The News of the World is in the business of holding others to account. But it failed to when it came to itself".
Murdoch said in a statement: "Wrongdoers turned a good newsroom bad and this was not fully understood or adequately pursued."
I think Murdoch is trying to kill the scandle dead by killing the paper. Hmm. If anything, those nearly 200 suddenly unemployed people will have little to lose now and might get chatty.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/rupert-murdoch-shutting-down-t...
"However, some analysts said the decision may make strategic business sense for Rupert Murdoch if it allows him to salvage a controversial bid to fully take over the broadcaster British Sky Broadcast in a deal estimated at 12-billion pounds, ($19-billion). Murdoch might even be able to fill the gap left by the News of the World with one of his other media properties."
Clearly, what's needed is a global approach to Murdoch.
THere are reports (including on CBC) that he is just shutting down the offending rag in order to open it back up again in a re-branded form.
Coincidentally, the domain sunonsunday.co.uk was registered two days ago.
And the comment from his son James Murdoch, "If recent allegations are true, it was inhuman and has no place in our company" has all the sincerity of a guy blaming his own dog for biting people.
Murdoch: the network defeats the hierarchy
A network of subversives would have counted that a spectacular result to achieve in a decade, let alone in a single week. But it was not subversives that achieved it - the wounds are self-inflicted.
As the News of the World scandal gathered momentum it became clear, by midnight on Thursday, that this was not just the latest of a series of institutional crises - the banks, MPs expenses - but the biggest. For this one goes to the heart of the way this country has been run, under both parties, for decades.
It is like a nightmare scripted by Noam Chomsky and Slavoj Zizek: key parts of the political machinery of Britain are wavering.
There is some speculation that James Murdoch might be arrested, as he approved money that went to police bribes. We'll see. If so, it would be difficult to imagine how Rebekah Brooks would escape police interest.
From the "network defeats hierarchy" article, this quote stood out for me:
"But what challenges the theory is first, the role of the social media in breaking the old system. Large corporations pulled their advertising because the scale of the social media response allowed them to know what they are obsessed with knowing: the scale of the reputational threat to their own brands"
In another thread about the P.R. firm Hill and Knowlton, Spectrum unearthed this quote from said firms Thomas Buckmaster: "Managing the outrage is more important than managing the hazard." Seems the speed of social media makes "managing the outrage" a very difficult task.
Well, this story was so fast moving that I didn't know when to add to this. But Friday both Les Hinton and Rebekah Brooks got axed, and it seems the Murdoch empire might have run afoul of the anti bribery laws in the States.
http://www.juancole.com/2011/07/is-murdochs-media-empire-a-cult.html
This one is very funny:
http://www.globaltvedmonton.com/Conrad+Black+slams+Murdoch/5103765/story...
More serious analysis:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/14/hacking-murdoch-paid-us-lobb...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/15/les-hinton-news-corp
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/14/hacking-murdoch-paid-us-lobb...
rabble.ca
Oh, I think there's enough time in the day to revel in the Fall of the House of Murdoch and take a strip off Evan Solomon's P.R. company Infomercial on CBC's "Power and Politics". I find the time-- and I have a day job. :)
This just in:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/
"Rebekah Brooks, Rupert Murdoch's former British CEO, was arrested Sunday by British police investigating phone hacking and police bribery by the defunct tabloid News of the World.
Police said a 43-year-old woman was arrested at a London police station at noon Sunday by appointment. She is being questioned on suspicion of conspiring to intercept communications — phone hacking — and on suspicion of corruption — bribing police for information"
But wait, there's more:
Head of Scotland Yard resigns:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/jul/17/met-chief-quits-over-phone-hack...
"In a stunning statement , Stephenson stressed his integrity and dismissed weekend claims that it was compromised by accepting a free stay at a luxury health spa where Wallis had been hired as a PR consultant."
In Britain, as in Canada, it seems P.R. companies are the puss that currently lubricates the body politic.
Comic Relief:
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2011/0713/1224300654314.html
"Mocking laughter greets former officer's explanations"
"Such social contacts were part of his duties, he asserted, as he rejected charges that there was anything improper in having taken a job as a London Times columnist just two months after he retired and while the News of the World investigation continued.
Should he not now resign , asked the chairman.
Suddenly Hayman, who has clearly no intention of quitting and for whom journalism had been “a boyhood dream”, was belligerent. “If I get suspended or dismissed, I hope I get grounds for that.”
He was incandescent when Conservative MP Lorraine Fullbrook asked if he had taken any money while in uniform: “Good God! I’m not letting her get away with it! I can’t believe you asked that!” he shouted.
By now, MPs sat watching in disbelief, while some in the public gallery sniggered.
“I normally sum up people’s evidence,” said the chairman, “but on this occasion I find your evidence speaks for itself.”
Never underestimate the power of hubris.
Phone-hacking whistleblower found dead
I hope people wake up to the fact that in our age it is not the government that is too be feared the most but the corporate oligarchy who recognize no rule of law on the planet. Anything goes in the search for a profit advantage and citizens rights be damned.
More comic relief. I found this one quite funny.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/jul/17/charlie-brooker-rupe...
Rupert Murdoch: what will MPs do without someone to fear? Britain's politicians have reacted to Murdoch's troubles like medieval villagers realising that God may not exist
Our police will not take orders from politicians to breach the law but many can easily be seduced and bribed by the moneyed elite.
I hope people wake up to the fact that in our age it is not the government that is too be feared the most but the corporate oligarchy who recognize no rule of law on the planet. Anything goes in the search for a profit advantage and citizens rights be damned.
Well, this is the larger issue at hand, that this hacking scandle is just really an illustration of. Whether it is this, or the "bail outs" in Ireland or Greece, or the melt down on Wall Street, it's all about how our democratic governments really have little power any more. They are just card board cut outs for corporate totalitarians.
What we are seeing is a part of the system that is attacking freedom, liberty and the right to persue happiness.
A U.K. parliamentary committee looking into the phone hacking scandal was briefly suspended Tuesday after someone tried to attack News Corp. chief executive Rupert Murdoch with what appeared to be a plate of shaving foam.
Murdoch had been testifying at the hearing when a protester who had been sitting in the audience lunged toward Murdoch.
BBC political editor Nick Robinson reported that Murdoch was apparently hit with a plate of shaving foam by a man shouting: "Greedy." The protester was then struck by Murdoch's wife, Wendi Deng, who jumped up to defend her husband
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/07/19/phone-hacking-hearings.htm...i was at a friends place last night and we got to talking about the news of the world scandel.
my friend stated that over the weekend she saw an interesting post about this story.
simply put i was asked how is this different from wikileaks?
my friend argued -- and i am not sure if i agree totally -- but argued that it is the exact same thing. the only difference is the release of documents vs attack on public individuals but in both cases information was acquired using less then honest methods
so what should i respond with next time we meet for a good scotch.
I agree that there are similarities in the methods.
The difference - Motive.
Not to say that wikileaks is entirely devoid of financial motives, because Assange has spoken about the value of the information as a commodity, and was curiously pissed off when others used legitimate means to get to the "stolen" goods which he felt was his property. But the motives of NOTW was based far more on selling papers and advertising than the importance of the information itself.
Also, the targets were not just government, but private people, and in some cases the victims of crimes and tragedy.
"You cannot hope to bribe or twist
(thank God!) the British journalist.
But, seeing what the man will do
unbribed, there's no occasion to."
--Humbert Wolfe, 1885-1940
wikileaks concerns itself with international matters of the public realm, where countries and their "elites" are playing their citizens for fools and not telling the truth. Whilst NotW and Murdoch alleged phone tapping was/is targeting victimized people to exploit for private financial gain their plights. and/or apparently using the information gained illegally as a means of political control of; elected and hired people responsible to the general public at large.
Had the Murdoch empire concerned itself with exposing governmental corruption as opposed to alledgedly making sure they had control of public officials, or those who would become one. to meet their agenda, they would have been playing their correct role as news media. However, allegedly they were more intereste in enlarging the public focus on the plights of others, as opposed to being an actual news source.
For me. what they are allegedly doing is purely smokescreen to make people look over there, as opposed to over here where corporations like Murdoch's are gaining totalitarian control of the media and people's minds.
When will Murdoch himself be charged or does the buck not stop here in his case? After all he is the CEO or Chairman n'est pas?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/feb/11/sun-journalists-arrested
The Sun has been plunged into its worst ever crisis following the arrest of five of its most senior journalists over corruption allegations, movingRupert Murdoch to pledge his support for the paper amid rumours that it faces closure.
Murdoch's "total commitment" to continue to own and publish the Sun was sent to News International staff by chief executive Tom Mockridge after the journalists, who include the deputy editor, were arrested in connection with an investigation into inappropriate payments to police and public officials.
Mockridge confirmed that the five Sun journalists involved are deputy editor Geoff Webster, picture editor John Edwards, chief reporter John Kay, chief foreign correspondent Nick Parker and deputy news editor John Sturgis.
The Sun's editor, Dominic Mohan, said: "I'm as shocked as anyone by today's arrests but am determined to lead the Sun through these difficult times. I have a brilliant staff and we have a duty to serve our readers and will continue to do that. Our focus is on putting out Monday's newspaper."
A News International source said Mohan was "not resigning" but added that it was "obviously a dramatic day for him".
Sky News reported that Murdoch is flying into the UK to reassure Sun staff that he will not close the paper in the wake of the latest arrests. Murdoch is expected to visit News International staff in London towards the end of next week.
In an email to News International staff, Mockridge said he "had a personal assurance today from Rupert Murdoch about his total commitment to continue to own and publish The Sun newspaper."
He also called on staff to support Mohan at a time when the company was "facing our greatest challenge".
Amid accusations from the National Union of Journalists that Sun staff were being sacrificed to save Murdoch's reputation, Mockridge added that he had written to the Independent Police Complaints Commission to seek clarification on its oversight of the Elveden investigation into the Sun.
The worsening crisis at the tabloid could have wider ramifications for the Murdoch media empire, according to some media experts.
Clive Hollick, former chief executive of United Business Media, said the latest arrests could intensify the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act investigation into News Corp in the US.
In a post on his Twitter account he added that the arrests "may lead to fines, director oustings and asset sales".
He also suggested that the developments could lead to the broadcasting watchdog Ofcom reviewing Murdoch's control of Sky television in the UK.
Hollick tweeted: "Will Ofcom conclude that Sun arrests on top of hacking render NI not fit and proper to hold #Sky license and make them sell shareholding?"
When people do something wrong and they get caught doing it why don't they just admit they did something wrong and take what's coming to them. They always make matters a lot worse for themselves by continuing to tell lies after they are caught. Didn't read the whole email my ass! Does he take us all for complete fools with a comment like that.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/12/world/europe/a-2008-e-mail-at-the-hear...
Hopefully the authorities get this sleazeball Murdoch and put him behind bars with the Conrad Blacks of the world where they belong. These scumbag media owners do serious damage to our societies with their sick reporting tactics which are nothing more than blatant propaganda for the rich to to continue and constantly screw the poor. Are there any links between Murdoch and Sun media in Canada? And what about Fox News - is it connected in some way as well?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/feb/12/murdoch-fresh-crisis-sun-arr...
I have a problem with the thread title and the mainstream media's use of the term "hacking".
Hackers traditionally have modified computer software and other devices to make them do things that they weren't designed to do. Many software programmes wouldn't exist today without hackers. The net and the web itself wouldn't exist without hackers.
What the British tabloids have been doing isn't hacking...it's "cracking". What the tabloids and Faux News have done is similar to what a safe cracker does. They break into things in order to steal personal information.
So let's reject this mainstream media use of the term "hacker" and call these right wing tabloids what they really are...namely "crackers".
Imagine the thought of those dastardly police looking for evidence. What humilation this must be for those charged with these despicable crimes. Hopefully though they will be able to get Murdoch.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17008614
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/feb/13/rupert-murdoch-sun-trevor-ka...
And on and on it goes - now the CEO of News International in the police docket
Rebekah Brooks among six arrested in U.K. phone-hacking raids
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1145146--six-arrested-in-newsp...
CBC, one of the things they seem to get right, is airing a documentary on these, and there is no other word for them, evil people. Try and catch it as it is staggering how the British Met police supported Murdoch against his workers, etc.
Rupert Murdoch: a man of prices, not values
He's a voracious dealmaker and not a very scrupulous one – but if he sold his remaining newspapers, who would buy them?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/blog/2012/mar/27/rupert-murdoch-price...
One by one, the sleazy rats are leaving the Empire.
James Murdoch stepping down as BSkyB chairman
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/World/20120403/20120403-James-Murdoch-steps-do...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/apr/03/james-murdoch-bskyb-live
News Corp shareholders renew call for Rupert Murdoch to step down
Calls for Murdoch to be replaced are reignited following James Murdoch's resignation from British pay-TV giant BSkyB
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/apr/03/news-corp-shareholders-ruper...
Sky News admits hacking emails of 'canoe man'
Broadcaster says accessing of emails of John Darwin, who faked own death, was authorised by executives and in public interest
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/apr/05/sky-news-hacking-emails-cano...
Just a matter of proof now is all that is left to do
Rupert Murdoch to Testify as Case Shifts Its Focus to a Minister
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/26/world/europe/rupert-murdoch-testimony-...
The evil that men do
Rupert Murdoch: myth, memory and imagination
The version of history told by Rupert Murdoch at the Leveson inquiry bears no relation to what actually happened
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/apr/25/rupert-murdoch-leves...
Ha! Ha! Ha!
Rupert Murdoch: I was the victim of phone-hacking cover up
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/rupert-murdoch-i-was-the-victi...
Rupert Murdock the "just say anything" media guy
Evidence of 'undeclared' Murdoch-Cameron meetings withdrawn
News Corp schedule of encounters presented to Leveson inquiry is revised after No 10 finds no evidence of three meetings
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/apr/26/undeclared-murdoch-cameron-m...
Cameron's government must be starting to look shaky what with all these revelations about his party's connections woth Murdock
Alex Salmond criticised over Rupert Murdoch links
From Democracy Live: Alex Salmond at FMQs
Continue reading the main story Related Stories
First Minister Alex Salmond has come under opposition attack over relations with media boss Rupert Murdoch.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-17851263
Harold Evans hits back at 'comic and sad' Rupert Murdoch
Former Times editor accuses News Corp boss of 'spectacular displays of imagination' in his evidence to Leveson inquiry
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/apr/25/harold-evans-comic-rupert-mu...
Enough!
I would like to see Murdoch rot in prison in a jail cell right beside Conrad Black - a fitting place for the two of them who think they are above the law
Rupert Murdoch admits 'cover-up' at News of the World tabloid
http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Rupert+Murdoch+admits+cover+News+Wor...
Pure unalderated scum.
Fox News may be compromised in the USA. What connections does the Murdoch empire have in Canada?
News Corp shareholders 'troubled' by Murdochs' Leveson testimonyUS shareholders worry testimony raises new questions and poses threats to other areas of company's media empire
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/apr/26/news-corp-shareholders-murdo...
http://money.cnn.com//2012/04/26/markets/thebuzz/index.htm?section=money...
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2135704/More-woe-Murdoch-Ofcom-s...
More woe for Murdoch as Ofcom steps up its investigation into whether BSkyB is fit and proper owner of broadcasting licence
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2135704/More-woe-Murdoch-Ofcom-steps-investigation-BskyB-fit-proper-owner-broadcasting-licence.html
Well said Robert
Robert Redford Says He Has Followed Murdoch Evidence 'With Fascination
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/robert-redford-leveson-inquiry-rup...
Oh really!
Murdoch’s Phone-Hacking Tale: I Was Victim of Coverup
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/johncassidy/2012/04/the-full-rupert-2-murdoch-admits-phone-hacking-cover-up.html
he conveniently laid some of the blame at the feet of Colin Myler, a former News of the World editor who now edits The New York Daily News.
My hunch is that Rupert Murdoch is finished.
Once these people who have had their privacy invaded by his organization are finished with their lawsuits there won't be anything left. He's done.
Koo Stark sues Murdoch in US courts over phone hacking
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/world/koo-stark-sues-murdoch-in-us-co...
Rupert Murdoch's woes are far from over
http://zeenews.india.com/news/world/rupert-murdoch-s-woes-are-far-from-o...
How much damage will this do to Cameron?
If the US Democrats were wise they would go after the entire Murdoch empire in the USA including Fox News.
The best time to kick right-wingers is when they are on the floor withering in pain. Obama should puts the boots to Murdoch as soon as possible.
After Murdoch, what of the new digital titans?
Even as the Sun king's reign is over, we should be concerned about the future of internet regulation
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/apr/28/murdoch-sun-internet-regulation?newsfeed=true
Quite the devastating comments. Cameron might want want to consider cutting Hunt loose before the entire Conservative Party gets caught up in this Murdoch scandal Former BBC chief attacks Jeremy Hunt over ties to MurdochsSir Michael Lyons says culture secretary was 'far too close' to News Corporation
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/apr/28/bbc-jeremy-hunt-murdochs-...
Sir Michael Lyons, a former chairman of the BBC Trust, has launched a devastating personal attack on Jeremy Hunt over his relationship with the Murdoch empire, putting fresh pressure on the prime minister to launch an inquiry into the actions of his culture secretary.
In an outspoken intervention, Lyons, who as head of the BBC Trust worked with Hunt until last year, revealed he had long harboured concerns that the cabinet minister was "far too close" to News Corporation. He poured scorn on the minister's claim that his special adviser, Adam Smith, who resigned last week, had acted in any way without the knowledge of the minister during the proposed BSkyBtakeover by News Corp.
In comments likely to raise fresh concerns that Hunt has lost the trust of the wider media industry, Lyons said he did not doubt that there were texts and email messages that connected the culture secretary to his special adviser's alleged collusion with News Corp, at a time when Hunt was supposed to be acting as an impartial judge on the deal.
It just doesn't look good Cammie, it doesn't look good!
Murdoch aide bypassed Lib Dem minister
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=502148...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKFTtYx2OHc
OH, it's coming all right. This is just the lull before the storm.
If this was tough, Rupert Murdoch, wait till the US inquisition starts
After his appearance in London – a mixture of apologies and throwing another few editorial shrimps on the barbi – the mogul should now prepare for an extensive probe at the very heart of his empire
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/if-this-was-tough-rupert-m...
At least the Brits believe Cameron is lying as his party has not polled so low since 2004.
http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/in...
What a surprise!
http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/verdict+Rupert+Murdoch+person+intern...
An all too familiar pattern it seems. I suppose the damage they create before everything blows up in their faces is worth it to the whingers.
http://phys.org/news/2012-05-murdoch-scandal-classic-media-baron.html
Go Mark Lewis Go!
The man who took on the Murdochs
http://www.smh.com.au/world/the-man-who-took-on-the-murdochs-20120506-1y...
Amazin' what one committed person can do.
Why Cameron daren't cast Murdoch adrift
Possible revelations at the Leveson inquiry are striking fear into the Tories
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/may/06/nick-cohen-camerons-...
A web of privilege supports this so-called meritocracyOn both sides of the Atlantic, the social ties that bind our political, legal and corporate forces lie exposed
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/may/06/leveson-murdoch-came...
ssues of alleged criminality will eventually be determined in the courts. But while illegality would be more damning, much of what we now know that is legal is no less corrosive. The evidence has laid bare the intimate, extensive and insidious web of social, familial and personal ties between the political, corporate and legal forces that govern a country: a patchwork of individual and institutional associations so tightly interwoven that to pick at one part is to watch the whole thing unravel. The "sit downs", pay-offs and class camaraderie on display owe more to a cross between Downton Abbey and the Sopranos than the functioning of a 21st-century democracy.
The details of the main narrative bear repeating. We now know thatJames Murdoch met with David Cameron 12 times between January 2006 and January 2010 – eight times for dinner, twice for breakfast, once for lunch and once for drinks. Between May 2010 and July 2011 there were also more than 60 meetings between ministers and either Rupert Murdoch, his son James, the then News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks or James Harding, the editor of the Times. That averages around one a week. We know there were more, but not all were logged as such by Downing Street.
The subplots are stunning. And the forthcoming attractions could yet overshadow the lot. Now that Brooks has agreed to hand over her text messages to Cameron, we are about to learn whether rumours that they exchanged as many as 12 texts a day are true.
Brooks was arrested both on suspicion of phone hacking and corruption last year. She was arrested again this year with her husband, Charlie Brooks, on suspicion of perverting the course of justice. Charlie went to Eton with Cameron – as did the Tory mayor of London, Boris Johnson.
Such is the incestuous nature of the British ruling class and the gene puddle from which it draws its stock. Such is their brazen venality, complicity, contempt and mendacity. Eton, Oxford, Bullingdon, Westminster – if you're looking for a tiny minority who are struggling to integrate, look no further than the cabinet.
Two things make this a matter of import as well as intrigue. The first is the lie it gives to the insistence on meritocracy at a time of acute economic crisis when benefits are slashed, the poor hammered. Cameron and his cabinet insist others pull themselves up by their bootstraps even as they themselves swan around in their parents' expensive pairs of loafers. Today almost 40% of MPs went to private school. In 1997 it was just 30%. In terms of social mobility, we are going backwards. The issue here is not class envy but class entrenchment. The fact that they were born rich is irrelevant. They had no choice in the matter. But the fact that they appear to want to give even more to those who already have a great deal while denying much to those who have little is unforgiveable.
The one job Cameron landed in the private sector was arranged by his wife's mother, Lady Astor, who was friends with Michael Green, then executive chairman of Carlton. Green gave Cameron a starting salary of £90,000. He has no more had to stand on his merits than James Murdoch had to interview for a job at News Corp.
Rocked in the cradle of power from birth so that its rhythms become second nature, these people imbibe their sense of entitlement with their mother's milk. But the personal tutors, private schools, the most expensive universities do not, somehow, suffice. As though the benefits of wealth were not enough, they apparently feel the need to game the very system they already control.
Which brings us to the manner in which these interactions mock the very notion of democracy on which the nation's illusions are based. For the meetings, lunches and visits showcase a parallel, unaccountable universe where actual decisions are made and deals are done. All these informal gatherings took place at a time when the government was supposed to be adjudicating News Corporation's bid to take over BSkyB. With the culture secretary described by Murdoch's lobbyist as a "cheerleader" for News International, it seems as if the takeover was to all intents and purposes a done deal, prevented only by the fallout from the hacking scandal. All the kinks ironed out on horseback and settled in time for the main course. Parliament would have been a mere rubber stamp. Oversight reduced to an afterthought in a House of Commons that may soon more closely resemble a house of cards.
Beyond sick!
Of Course Rupert Murdoch Isn't Fit to Run a Company
Two unsettling thoughts on U.K. lawmakers' condemnation of the media mogul http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/05/of-course-rupert-murdoch-isnt-fit-to-run-a-company/256703/The second point is a little creepier.
Mr. Murdoch's papers have been a malign influence on Great Britain for at least a generation. They have ended careers, marriages, and even lives. They have gleefully exposed individuals to public ridicule. They have outed closeted gay politicians and entertainers, exposed adulterers, revealed details about unruly sex lives and drug abuse. If one reads Piers Morgan's memoirs, which are as disconcertingly entertaining as they are shameful, it's clear that this was always the point of the exercise, this was Mr. Murdoch's notion of what journalism is. All unpleasant enough, one would think, to make the man responsible something of a pariah in respectable circles.
But in addition, Mr. Murdoch's minions have also committed actual crimes. They engaged in something akin to blackmail—threatening vendettas against politicians who opposed them, for example, and frequently making good on those threats—along with bribery and rampant invasions of privacy. (In their testimony before the Parliamentary committee and the Leveson Commission, they undoubtedly added perjury to the list, even if it will never be proved in a court of law.) Although these practices may not have been publicly acknowledged, they could not have been entirely unknown in Fleet Street circles, or in Whitehall, let alone in Scotland Yard. And yet, through a combination of fear and avarice, no one sought to curtail these activities, let alone make them public.
No, what finally brought the whole corrupt system to a grinding halt was this: The News of the Worldhacked into the cell phone of a murdered teenage girl, Milly Dowler. And they compounded the heinousness of the act by erasing some of the messages in her voice mail in order to make room for more messages, misleading her parents into thinking she might still be alive.
I don't mean to minimize the awfulness of such a thing—is there a parent alive who didn't shudder inwardly when learning about it?—but it would appear, finally, to be merely an especially egregious example of things Murdoch's papers had been doing for years. It probably says something about how invulnerable his employees regarded their position that they dared to do something so grotesque. But why had no one blown the whistle on them prior to this? Why was this the thing that brought the whole edifice crashing down on Murdoch's head? It might have been the most poignant example of his journalistic offenses, but it was hardly unique. And there had been other tragic outcomes.
The repercussions of all this remain to work themselves out, but Rupert Murdoch's days of invincibility are clearly behind him, and the stunning power he enjoyed much diminished. But regardless of how it ends, is there any question whether he's a fit person to exercise the stewardship of a major international company? He's barely fit to be considered a person.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKFTtYx2OHc
Is Cameron going to lose his job over this? And will he be replaced by the re-elected Mayor of London?
Let's get this right-wing circus going soon, eh!
IoS exclusive: Revealed - Cameron's secret summit with News Corp
Murdoch lobbyist dismissed as a 'fantasist' set up talks between the PM and the News Corp board
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/ios-exclusive-revealed--ca...
Don't believe it for a second because if Murdoch's US empire was not being threatened it wouldn't even be talked about.
The USA has to do the right thing here and kick the scumbag out.
Murdoch's Fox TV licenses seen surviving UK scandalhttp://ca.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idCABRE84614A20120507
It's Not Just About Murdoch - The Whole System Needs Fixing
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/des-freedman/murdoch-leveson-enquiry-pre...
Do you remember the days before Fox News? Wouldn't it be great to go back there again? That may well happen, although I'm sure more scum will rise to take its place.
Murdoch’s Pride Is America’s Poison
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/06/opinion/sunday/keller-murdochs-pride-i...
Steering Murdoch in Scandal, Klein Put School Goals Aside
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/08/business/media/scandal-distracts-klein...
I suppose media like the NYT and the Guardian have been looking forward to this day for some time now
No kidding!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/may/08/leveson-inquiry-witness-stat...
Oh, oh. Trouble in paradise?
Rupert Murdoch's big backer sounds News Corp warningNews Corporation's second-biggest shareholder says phone-hacking scandal is damaging company's name
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/may/08/murdoch-big-backer-news-corp...
David Cameron texted Rebekah Brooks before she quit NI, claims biography
Prime minister texted Brooks in the week she quit over the phone-hacking scandal to tell her to keep her head up
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/may/09/david-cameron-texted-rebekah...
WTF?
Private eye convicted of phone hacking asks U.K. Supreme Court to let him keep his silence
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/world/ex-tabloid-editor-in-uk-phone-hac...
Quite sad actually.
UK police lawyer: Officer suspected that tabloid had hacked missing girl’s phone back in 2002
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/police-lawyer-officers-suspec...
What slimeballs - they don't even know how to spell the word "ethics"
Rupert Murdoch's payout to Dowlers 'not related to voicemail deletions'
Family's solicitor says discussions related to phone hacking, not allegations News of the World had erased schoolgirl's messages
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/may/09/rupert-murdoch-payout-dowler...
Maybe heading for North America sooner than we expected:
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/comment/2012/05/murdochs-shakespea...
http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/media/2012/03/5588239/why-next-new...
I suppose this is the polite way of being called a liar
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/may/10/rupert-murdoch-selective-amn...
Just a slight oversight forgetting to mention he held News Corp shares while working for Cameron
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/leveson-inquiry-andy-coulson-...
Just a slight oversight forgetting to mention he held News Corp shares while working for Cameron
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/leveson-inquiry-andy-coulson-...
Just a slight oversight forgetting to mention he held News Corp shares while working for Cameron
Conflict of interest anyone - it is obviously not relevant to right-wingers
And as if anything coming out of his mouth is believable.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/leveson-inquiry-andy-coulson-admits-he-held-news-corp-shares-7733441.html
David Cameron's former spin doctor denied any "grand conspiracy" between the Government and Murdoch empire today as he gave evidence to the Leveson inquiry.
But Andy Coulson admitted that he failed to declare a £40,000 shareholding in News Corporation while he was in Downing Street.
He also disclosed that Mr Cameron did not directly challenge him about his knowledge of phone hacking at the News of the World after July 2009, despite a stream of revelations indicating the problem went deeper.
The details emerged as Mr Coulson spoke publicly for the first time since being arrested on suspicion of phone hacking and corruption last year. He has been released on police bail while the investigation continues.
Welcome to Fox News, eh!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/may/12/news-of-the-world-made-up-st...
Welcome to Murdoch's Fox News, eh!
Former News of the World reporter claims journalists 'made up' storiesSunday tabloid was driven by culture of fear and unethical practices were rife, BBC told
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/may/12/news-of-the-world-made-up-stories
A former News of the World reporter has claimed that journalists at the now defunct newspaper regularly made up stories and unethical practices were rife because of a "culture of fear" at the tabloid.
Graham Johnson, who worked at the newspaper between 1995 and 1997, said many employees carried out illegal operations and fabricated articles due to pressures from the top.
He told the BBC: "You can't get through the day on a tabloid newspaper if you don't lie, if you don't deceive, if you're not prepared to use forms of blackmail or extortion or lean on people, you know, make people's lives a misery. You just have to deliver the story on time and on budget, and if you didn't then you'd get told off.
"The News of the World culture was driven by fear, because it's a hierarchy, it's a military operation, it's a seamless operation."
In the wake of the phone hacking scandal, News International insisted illegal activities at the Sunday tabloid were only carried out by a few rogue reporters.
However, Johnson claims that many employees regularly obtained information for stories through the use of unethical practices and journalists would make up stories.
"Almost all stories that you worked on involved the use of private detectives and accessing various records, which were either illegal or confidential," said Johnson. "So for instance, medical records, bank accounts, telephone records – this kind of data. It was all a phone call away. Within a few days of working at the News of the World I was given several numbers for private detectives.
"I fabricated stories about drug dealers, neo-Nazis, people who were selling guns, people who were selling fake documents."
Now we're talking but where is North America's msp in all of this:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/14/fcc-rupert-murdoch-fox-broadcas...