The Six Worst Things to Happen to Rupert Murdoch Today

[deminks]

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/business/2011/07/six-worst-things-happened-rupert-murdoch-today/40062/

How bad has Rupert Murdoch's day been today? Let us count the ways:

1. The New York Times Scotland Yard Report. The New York Times came out with a blockbuster report today on the cozy relationship between News Corp. and the Scotland Yard. The author of the piece, Don Van Nata Jr., points out that "11,000 pages of handwritten notes listing nearly 4,000 celebrities, politicians, sports stars, police officials and victims of crime whose phones may have been hacked" lay for four years in a Scotland Yard evidence room. The details in the piece are highly incriminating: For one, "former editor, Neil Wallis, was reporting back to News International while he was working for the police on the hacking case." Assistant Commissioner John Yates and others "regularly dined with editors from News International papers." Scotland Yard "notified only a small number of the people whose phones were hacked." The evidence goes on and on! As do the adjectives used to describe the actions: "mind-blowing," "embarassing," and "tragic" were some of our favorite.

2. Jude Law's Latest Lawsuit. The last thing the phone-hacking scandal needs is more celebrity involvement. But that's exactly what it's about to get. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Jude Law is suing Murdoch's British tabloid The Sun over allegations of phone-hacking, along with his current lawsuit against News of the World. The company’s lawyers accused the actor of a “deeply cynical and deliberately mischievous attempt” to drag The Sun into the scandal. If The Sun is next to face charges after NOTW, that would pose unmeasurable problems fro News International. And whether the suit has merit or not, it may strike many as being a little early for any member of News Corp. to be accusing someone of being "deeply cynical and deliberately mischeivous."

3. A Scolding from Larry Flynt. Things are really bad when, as a publisher, Larry Flynt thinks you've gone too far. In a passionate op-ed for The Washington Post, Flynt, a huge proponent of the freedom of the press, writes:

If News Corp.’s reported wrongdoings are true, what Murdoch’s company has been up to does not just brush against boundaries — it blows right past them... Simply put, he publishes what he wants, apparently regardless of how he gets information and heedless of the responsibility associated with the power he wields.

(end snip)

Much more at the link

[Kaleko]

1. Keep the fires under this Corps burning

***HOT***

I want to see "public outrage" at a fever pitch on both sides of the Atlantic. ;)

[Rosco T.]

2. I like Larry Flynt...

.. he speaks his mind and doesn't care who he pissed off :)

[July16th-20th]

22. I don't

But I do like the topic. Kick.

[malaise]

3. Yep - the Commish is a goner

and Yates too.

[KaryninMiami]

4. This just keeps getting better and better.

An what a movie it will one day make!

[WhiteTara]

8. ...

as long as you don't let Aaron Sorkin produce it. ;)

[Stuart G]

5. Thanks for posting this, outstanding...K and R

[Faygo Kid]

6. Murdoch will stop at nothing. This is a dangerous situation.

If people must die, so be it. He and Ailes have no scruples about such a small matter as death.

[sce56]

7. K&R I hope Fuax News gets dragged down with this also! n/t

[The Wielding Truth]

18. They are already low and responsible for many rotten things. I just hope

that they start paying soon for their misdeeds.

[izquierdista]

9. Takes me back to my youth

To the summer of '73, when every day, there was a fresh new batch of outrages to get steamed over. If that was any indication, the year to come is going to be quite interesting.

[beac]

10. K&R. Here's hoping each new day is worse than the one before for Voldemurdoch. n/t

[JDPriestly]

11. OK. For me, the importance of this scandal is the potential

for blackmail especially of prominent politicians.

Think about the Blagojevich matter. A lot of the evidence was based on allegations about what he said in phone conversations.

I'm not suggesting that the information was necessarily obtained illegally. I don't remember the facts clearly enough on that detail.

But imagine how often we all say, write or think things that can be interpreted as being way over the top.

Think about the last argument you had with someone who was really important to you and with whom you disagreed about something very important. How easy is it to exaggerate and say things you really don't mean?

Well, what if News of the World or some other Murdoch organization is listening in while you are venting on the phone. It happens. Especially when important people talk to their allies on a matter.

There is a feeling of security when you vent to someone who agrees with you. You know your over-the-top words will not be taken out of context. People often say extremely outrageous things to their lawyers for example.
The statements are not intended to be taken seriously. They are just emotional expressions.

But then think -- what if someone from News of the World was listening in, maybe even preparing a transcript of the call?

Could this be used to blackmail a prominent person? I should think so.

And that is why this is such a serious, unforgivable crime.

This goes to the core of democracy.

He who has the knowledge has the power. Rupert Murdoch knows that.

[Nothing Without Hope]

13. I strongly agree. This is about blackmail, really.

That's one of the ways politicians, judges, and other figures who make policy are controlled. I want to see the investigation expand beyond the intrusion into the private conversations of crime victims and celebrities. That's highly illegal and unethical, but it's only part of the story I believe.

[Pacifist Patriot]

16. I whole-heartedly concur.

I personally think it would explain some political behavior over the last decade and a half.

[Leo 9]

23. There's also potential for insider trading, based on information gathered.

Knowing what insiders were saying would certainly have given him an advantage in placing bets and making business deals.

[DeSwiss]

12. K&R

"Only the man who has enough good in him to feel the justice of the penalty can be punished." ~William Ernest Hocking

[Duer 157099]

14. When he's sick and homeless, then I'll feel there's been justice

until then, he's just a billionaire with some annoyances in his life.

[Qutzupalotl]

15. And the very next day, Rebekah Brooks gets arrested. nt

[Imagevision]

19. K&R

[11 Bravo]

17. Rupe hasn't been able to eat for weeks, and as a result has lost enough weight that ...

today he saw his dick for the first time in 20 years. People in adjacent rooms report that an anguished shout of, "Aaargh, there's an inchworm in me bloody knickers!" indicate a rather high level of disappointment with what he saw.

[KittyWampus]

20. The Comment Section at the link is well worth reading. I LOL'ed!

[stlsaxman]

21. guessing this was yesterday...- they left out Rebecca's areest and that whistleblowers death.