The actions of the Murdoch empire have inflicted criminal damage upon British life. In addition to phone tapping and hacking, they have led public opinion of the lowest common denominator via their tabloids The Sun and the now defunct News of the World.
What in fact are they responsible for? How many lives have been ruined by irresponsible journalism?
See The Media Conglomerate on Media Nightmare (a Disturbing Trends site) for more on the Murdoch Scandal
Monopolies only serve the elite that own them. They reduce choice while increasing unjustified costs to the consumer. As long as they work “within the law” these increasingly global and increasingly bland enterprises reduce the quality of communication and considered action. Morality is given a bad name by all the false moralising, but the constant reminders that a tabloid may invade anyone who dares to rise into the public eye is a powerful reason to fear changing the status quo.
The committee seemed to want to simply ask for an admission that there was complicity with law breaking; crime by an individual is the assertion given in the defence of corporate malfeasance, but you only need look at the product of the organisation to realise our emotional responses are what they have become so expert at producing, because there is no other real value in exposing celebrity underwear than inducting a path for the lowest common values we all fear.
When you balance the thousands and thousands of unknown individual affected by privacy intrusion, it is a corporate liability of billions that Murdoch has confirmed is still to be settled. It happened as a result of the organisation’s goals and activity. It is not a culture of corruption, that is still a euphemism. It is policy and it must start at the very top as the entire organisation is in the business of emotional manipulation, also known as entertainment.
Rebbekah Brooks or Wade offered the police to be a witness in the crimes of News of The World. Witness? She was the Editor at the time of some of them. She claims the hacking was news to her, and then she warned more and worse was to come. Her instincts seem to be borne out by treasonable behaviour of News of the World – bugging senior Government ministers, in this case, the Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
Who do they expect will take responsibility for this? Rebekkah Brooks or Rebekkah Wade should start admitting to something as it becomes increasingly obvious to everyone in the world that she is still responsible for an important role in the news media and has voiced previously how she would take down politicians. Murdoch should be charged with criminal negligence. I am not sure how Rebekkah Wade or Brooks will defend her reputation. Interference with bank records and medical records of a sitting PM. Someone appears to believe they are beyond the law.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/11/phone-hacking-news-international-gordon-brown
News International share holders are getting uneasy with the Murdoch way.
With the wilful demise of The News of the World, we have witnessed the worst catastrophe in journalism’s history. With it comes the mass rejection of malign journalism. That is the line we must draw.
The Murdoch brand may be damaged beyond comprehension. Any Government that is cavalier enough to approve BSkyB will be remembered by history alongside King John.
Our country does not benefit by any corporate criminal activity. The media affects how we perceive things. Therefore political alliances with the media is corruption.