Murdoch's minions reach a new low

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

So where is Pickle?  He was espousing big name magazines a while back as purveyors of Truth and Honesty, namely Fortune 500, and isn't WSJ about the same thing, only a little different? 

Those who trust their masters will inevitably be betrayed.

[Luna]

http://m.thewrap.com/thewrap/pm_105959/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=M7uz1SDr

You can't put a price tag on this shit...  but, I'm glad they're being held responsible.

[Jenne]

Drop in the bucket for Murdoch et al...methinks he sharts $1M a day.

[Cramulus]

James Murdoch, "the first Mafia boss in history who didn't know he was running a criminal enterprise"

source: Cory Doctorow

James Murdoch has been hauled back before Britain's Parliament to answer questions about what he knew and to what extent he is culpable in the News of the World/phone hacking scandal. In the BBC clip linked below, MP Tom Watson asks Murdoch if he knows what "omerta" means (Murdoch demurs). Then Murdoch embarks on a "mistakes were made" (well, "it is regrettable that things went wrong") statement that culminates with Watson asking Murdoch if he felt a comparison between News UK and the Mafia was apt. Murdoch disagrees. Watson finishes by noting that Murdoch must be "the first Mafia boss in history who didn't know he was running a criminal enterprise." To which Murdoch replies, "Mr Watson, please."

It's quite a moment.


video: http://boingboing.net/2011/11/10/james-murdoch-the-first-maf.html

[Precious Moments Zalgo]

So where is Pickle?  He was espousing big name magazines a while back as purveyors of Truth and Honesty, namely Fortune 500, and isn't WSJ about the same thing, only a little different? 

He posted in another thread that he's crazy busy with work lately, and not likely to be around very much for a while.

[Freeky]

So where is Pickle?  He was espousing big name magazines a while back as purveyors of Truth and Honesty, namely Fortune 500, and isn't WSJ about the same thing, only a little different? 

He posted in another thread that he's crazy busy with work lately, and not likely to be around very much for a while.

Yeah, I saw that.

[Cain]

The latest political twist in the Murdoch saga is the role of Jeremy Hunt, the Secretary for Culture, and the precise nature of his relationship with News International, and his willingness to back the takeover of bSkyb, which would have given News International an unshakeable foothold in British media.

This is of particular interest because, originally, it was the Business Secretary, Vince Cable, who should have had the say over the merger.  But Cable was interviewed by undercover reporters, and he made it clear that Murdoch wasn't going to get a thing out of this deal (Cable is a bit of a firebrand...he's known for having left-wing tendencies among the Lib Dems, but also a kind of iconoclastic attitude that rubs the Labour Party the wrong way.  Just to add to the annoyance of the Tories, he is an accomplished businessman with some knowledge of economics.  Making him Business Secretary, as painful as it was, was the only alternative to making him Chancellor, which could not be allowed to happen).

When this was revealed, Vince Cable was accused of being "biased" and then the decision on the merger handed over to Jeremy Hunt. 

For months now, Hunt's private secretary has been unwilling to even confirm the existence of meetings between Hunt and News International executives, let alone divulge dates or records of what was discussed.

It has since been revealed that his special advisor, ironically named Adam Smith, has been in "an inappropriately close relationship with News Corporation."

The Culture Secretary and, to an extent, Cameron are now on the defensive again.  Cameron is standing by Hunt for now...but he stood by Liam Fox and Andy Coulson too, and look how that worked out.

The thing that isn't being talked about here is George Osbourne and his possible role in all of this.  Despite his apparent lack of skills in anything, in addition to being Chancellor, Osbourne is also the Tory chief strategist.  Media relations would therefore be his purview.  Furthermore, Osbourne has been noted as being a member of a "pro-Murdoch caucus" at the heart of the Cabinet (which also included Liam Fox and Michael Gove).

If anything comes out that might threaten Osbourne, Hunt will be dropped without a second thought, I am certain of this.

[Phox]

Hmm. That's interesting stuff, Cain. How likely do you think it is for this takeover to go through, if Hunt goes down?

[Cain]

Oh, the takeover is dead in the water, it has been since this all kicked off.  News International formally dropped their interest in a merger, and without a substansial change in how they work, that is going to remain the status quo.

[Phox]

Oh, the takeover is dead in the water, it has been since this all kicked off.  News International formally dropped their interest in a merger, and without a substansial change in how they work, that is going to remain the status quo.

That's good news, at least. I'll be interested to see how the rest of it plays out.

[Cain]

Oops

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/leveson-inquiry/9241162/The-Murdoch-and-News-Corporation-scandal-wasnt-about-Conservative-Party-sleaze-but-it-is-now.html

A fresh embarrassment concerns Rebekah Brooks, who providentially retained the text messages she received from the Prime Minister, which I'm told could exceed a dozen a day.

This is the former NotW editor Brooks.  That Cameron may have been texting her up to a dozen times a day will not exactly help his image any.

The whole article is worth reading, for those who want a handle on the more political aspects of this.  It also includes wonderful sentences such as

There have long been concerns about the Conservative members of this committee. John Whittingdale, its chairman, has links with News International going back over a number of years. One of his Tory colleagues, Louise Mensch, is an attention-seeker who last year abused parliamentary privilege to make unfounded accusations of illegal conduct involving another newspaper group, thereby widening the scandal beyond News International.