Murdoch's BSkyB Preaches Anti-Americanism to Brits

[moderateindependent]

Here is an excerpt from the story at The Moderate Independent:

Sure, we've all heard and read by now the criticism of FOX News. But FOX is just one gun Australian-born Rupert Murdoch is using in his assault on American values.

To be sure, FOX News is the most obvious offender. As Judge Denny Chin recently commented in regard to FOX's lawsuit against Al Franken, “"It is ironic that a media company that should be seeking to protect the First Amendment is seeking to undermine it.”

But most people ignore the fact that Rupert "Let this foreigner tell you what good American's think" Murdoch also owns and created USA Today, as well as many media holdings around the world, and he uses each of these to further his anti-American crusade.

Take the case of Murdoch-owned BSkyB TV in Britain. Just last week, this Murdoch station launched an all out assault on the BBC for, if you can imagine, spending too much money of American programming.

"I really cannot see why public money is being diverted to those poor struggling Hollywood studios in this way,” said BSkyB chief executive, Tony Ball. “BBC resources should be redeployed to commission more independently produced UK programming."

You can read the rest at: http://www.moderateindependent.com/v1i10murdoch.htm

Maybe the American flags Murdoch's Fox news flies should be burning...

[cprise]

1. People like him thrive on nationalism

Rich conservatives want internationalism all for themselves; They'd rather have average folk hating and fighting each other.

[billyskank]

2. No, it's not that

Murdoch's Sky TV service thinks the BBC should not spend its money buying American shows because Sky thinks it's its job to show all the best US TV programmes.

As far as Murdoch is concerned, the BBC is his worst enemy (in Britain). Hardly surprising - the BBC enjoys a fixed income stream regardless of economic conditions, whilst Sky's other British competitor, ITV, is struggling in an advertising recession, and because of large mistakes it made recently with a venture into digital TV. ITV has only advertising revenue to live on, whereas Sky charges subscriptions as well (expensive ones - a typical subscription is 39 GBP a month, or around $61). With the collapse of ITV's digital TV service, that leaves Murdoch with the only digital TV platform in the UK. The only dark cloud on his horizon is the fact that he is obliged by law to show all BBC channels on his digital satellite platform, free of charge. It is hardly surprising that his minions should thus attack the BBC for any reason possible.

[moderateindependent]

3. Right, his anti-Americanism is just utilitarian

He doesn't really feel pro or against anything but profit. Using his BSkyB against America is really just him trying to kill a competitor, just like he uses Fox to attack the rest of the American media as "biased" and un-American - not out of priciple, but as a business move.

[billyskank]

4. Exactly.

To a one like Murdoch, business is business, and nothing else matters. Not the US, and certainly not Britain (which he used simply as a springboard for his ambitions in America).

[Brian Sweat]

5. USA Today was ceated by and is owned by Gannett Publications

I don't think Murdoch owns Gannett. I could be wrong.

[moderateindependent]

6. You are absolutely correct

It was time for a fact-checker smack and revision. Just goes to show, the DU is the best informed place on the planet.

[Devils Advocate NZ]

7. This isn't Anti-Americanism - its Anti-Public Broadcasting!

The aim of that specific attack is to try and remove BBC as a competitor for American programming, with the idea being that people want to see some Americna programmes, and if the BBC doesn't have them, it will lose market share to those why do - like Sky.

Losing market share means losing income, means becoming a drain on public finances, means being abolished.

Its an old tactic. Hopefully it won't work.