politicalowl

The Financial Times of London has argued that the Murdoch controlled Fox’s second bid for The UK's Sky television deserves proper scrutiny. In an editorial the FT argues that while with most products, at most times, market competition does an excellent job supplying consumers’ appetites, in a democracy, information is not just any product. The market may give consumers the information they want, but there is little economic reason to think it will supply citizens the information they need. A wide variety of information and opinion must be available. It is a key job of democratic institutions to ensure that this happens. This is why media mergers are exposed to intense scrutiny. The editorial concludes: When it comes to the fit and proper test, the allegations of sexual harassment at Fox News, following as they do the phone hacking scandal at the newspaper arm of the Murdoch empire, raise serious questions. In both cases, failings of corporate culture were endemic, with senior...

Rupert Murdoch, fearing company’s future, told Sun journalists to get ‘act together’ on Labour coverage  - The News Corp chairman –  who owns The Sun, The Times and The Sunday Times – visited London at the end of February, and reportedly warned journalists on his tabloid newspaper of the threat a Labour government would have on the company. Last week, in its manifesto, Labour pledged to ensure that no “one media owner should be able to exert undue influence on public opinion and policy makers”. It said: “No media company should have so much power that those who run it believe themselves above the rule of law.” This appears to be a reference to the News UK (the UK’s biggest national newspaper publisher) and the hacking scandal. The Independent reports this morning that the News Corp boss, who has made no secret of his dislike of the Labour leader, told the editor of The Sun, David Dinsmore, that he expected the paper to be much sharper in its attacks...

@sprocket___ Abbott knighthood a joke and embarrassment. Time to scrap all honours everywhere, including UK. — Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch) January 27, 201 @sprocket___ Abbott knighthood a joke and embarrassment. Time to scrap all honours everywhere, including UK. — Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch)  Be afraid Tony Abbott, be very afraid. The worm has well and truly turned. See  The Abbott nightmare came on waking up

Monday, 9th May, 2005    - Richard Farmer   Less than a month ago Rupert Murdoch gave a speech in which he declared that "too many of us editors and reporters are out of touch with our readers." It was no wonder, the News Corporation boss told the American Society of Newspaper Editors, that people, in particular the young, were ditching their newspapers. Today's teens, twenty- and thirty-somethings "don't want to rely on a god-like figure from above to tell them what's important." So what did I find in this morning's Australian previewing its 2005 Budget Special Edition? The promise that 10 of "the nation's most experienced political, economic and business writers" would be featured. All but one of them covered their first budget at least 22 years ago. I could not tell you what the 20-somethings of my acquaintance think of the likes of Paul Kelly (first budget 1973), Alan Wood (first budget 1967) and Mike Steketee (1970)...