News International Papers Targeted Gordon Brown (Murdoch Scandal)

[Hissyspit]

Source: Guardian

News International papers targeted Gordon Brown

Newspapers obtained details from the former prime minister's bank account and legal file and his family's medical records

guardian.co.uk, Mon 11 Jul 2011 15.47 BST

Journalists from across News International repeatedly targeted the former prime minister Gordon Brown, attempting to access his voicemail and obtaining information from his bank account, his legal file as well as his family's medical records.

There is also evidence that a private investigator used a serving police officer to trawl the police national computer for information about him.

That investigator also targeted another Labour MP who was the subject of hostile inquiries by the News of the World, but it has not confirmed whether News International was specifically involved in trawling police computers for information on Brown.

Separately, Brown's tax paperwork was taken from his accountant's office apparently by hacking into the firm's computer. This was passed to another newspaper.

Read more: http://m.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/11/phone-hacking-news-international-gordon-brown?cat=media&type=article

[bigworld]

1. This is starting to look really bad for News Corp

as it's moved beyond just the News of the World to Murdoch's other big non-tabloid paper The Times. It's just a matter of time before this scandal hits his American outlets...

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. There's more than can fit into excerpt - medical record of Brown's children

accessing Brown's bank account, targeting of an MP who wouldn't sign on to Rebekah Brooks' campaign for a change in the paeodophile laws (a la "Megan's Law"), and a judge who blocked a police investigation of all this saying it was a waste of public money. Plus targeting of about 10 other Labour ministers.

[beac]

6. And Brooks taunting the Browns DIRECTLY with knowledge of their son's condition.

Gawd, she is SCUM. Hard to believe she isn't a blood-relation of Voldemurdoch. She certainly has his "morals."

[tsuki]

3. Rupert Roo and his media are the lowest of the low. How does

publishing info about a dying child benefit anyone other than the sadists of the media?

[Uncle Joe]

4. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, Hissyspit.

[beac]

5. Rumor going round that Murdoch will dump NI (UK papers) altogether.

Michael Wolff, who wrote a recent biography of Rupert Murdoch, has just been speaking on BBC News about his suggestion that Rupert Murdoch might sell the whole of News International to stem the damage to his wider business (see 2.38pm). Wolff said: "Among the many discussions that are going on within News Corporation, this is one theme." He added:

This is chicken with head cut off time, largely. … The whole world changed for News Corporation last week. Up until then they thought: "OK, we can manage this … It doesn't compromise our business, we don't lose any money, no one named Murdoch is at risk" … Last week that suddenly changed.

It's important for UK listeners to understand that the bulk of this company is concentrated in the US … and the bulk of its revenues do not come from newspapers.

He said that before last week no one in the US was interested in this story - but now that has changed too. "Suddenly there is an enormous interest in this … a growing interest."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/blog/2011/jul/11/news-world-hacking-scandal-live (at the 3:19pm mark)

I think it would be too little too late. I don't see how Murdoch avoids a DOJ inquiry at the minimum.

[fedsron2us]

8. The Murdoch papers in the UK were already in decline before this crisis.

Under the editorship of Rebekah Brooks the flagship tabloid the Sun lost over 500,000 readers between 2003 and 2009. The much vaunted Murdoch press power to decide UK General Elections also appears to have become a busted flush as his vocal support for the Conservatives failed to win them an outright majority in 2010 forcing them into a coalition with Cleggs Liberal Democrats.

The big prize for Murdoch in the UK was outright control of BSkyB and its billions in revenues. The tabloid attack dogs had essentially just become a means to intimidate politicians to gain that end. The truth is that Murdoch has no real interest in British party politics which is why he has swapped sides so often. All he wants is that BSkyB money to fund his ambitions elsewhere.

[beac]

9. I can't imagine anyone would actually BUY a Murdoch paper at this point.

So he'd have to fire all his employees and, with no "redundancy" excuse to fall back on, he'd be in for some mighty big payoffs to the hundreds put out of work. Not to mention adding exponentially to the likelihood that SOME (or MANY) pissed off ex NI reporter(s) would turn crowns evidence in the case.

Wonder if Murdoch still thinks he's teflon enough to risk it?

I absolutely agree w/you that the papers were a means to an end for Murdoch. What delicious irony of those means end up meaning the end of his BSkyB dreams!

[cal04]

7. Ex-British prime minister alleges reporters sought his personal data

Source: CNN

A scandal that already has taken down Britain's best-selling Sunday tabloid and launched an inquiry into journalistic practices in the country widened Monday with startling allegations against two more News International newspapers.

Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown believes journalists from The Sunday Times and The Sun newspapers tried to obtain private information from his financial records and telephone voice messages, a source close to Brown told CNN.

The efforts date back some 10 years, and include periods when Brown was prime minister and chancellor of the exchequer, the source confirmed.

(snip)
Brown had not publicly addressed the allegations as of Monday evening, but his wife, Sarah Brown, found the news troubling, according to a posting from a Twitter account belonging to her.



Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/07/11/uk.phone.hacking.scandal/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

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Newspapers obtained details from the former prime minister's bank account and legal file and his family's medical records
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/11/phone-hacking-news-international-gordon-brown