News Corp. Under Assault Finds Defense in Journal Opinion Pages [View All]

[TomCADem]

Source: Bloomberg

While the widening News Corp. (NWSA) phone- hacking scandal sent Rupert Murdoch and son James in front of a U.K. parliamentary committee and unseated senior officials at the company and Metropolitan Police, the media empire found an aggressive defender in the Wall Street Journal’s opinion pages.

Among at least five opinion pieces published so far this week supporting the newspaper’s owner were two signed by editorial board members. A third, a 1,000-word lead editorial, said media organizations commonly “pay sources for information” and “skew their coverage” to influence public affairs. The piece, titled “News and Its Critics,” added that it was “up to British authorities to enforce their laws.”

“This is the first great test of the Wall Street Journal under Murdoch’s ownership,” said Sarah Ellison, whose book “War at the Wall Street Journal” chronicled News Corp.’s 2007 acquisition of Dow Jones & Co. for $5.2 billion from the family that had controlled it for 105 years.

“I think this establishes the Journal as a mouthpiece for News Corp., unfortunately,” Ellison said.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-07-20/news-corp-under-fire-finds-defense-in-wall-street-journal-s-opinion-pages.html

---

Amazing. The Wall Street Journal argues that News Corp's hacking conspiracy is no big deal, and that it is common place (accepted) for the media to skew its coverage! Journalism is truly dead.

This is why we need to be vigilant against the ongoing narrative of the corporate media to Blame Democats, But Give Republicans a Free Pass.