Why Murdock based his media empire on right-wing, not left wing, populism.

[pampango]

Money, of course! But more specifically to generate great wealth (populism attracts lots of readers) while simultaneously protecting the new wealth by using right wing blame-shifting tactics. Make people believe that society's problems aren't related to rich people and corporations not paying their share of taxes, but are caused by a variety of "others", e.g "union members, gays, foreigners, uppity women, and racial minorities."

http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2011/07/18/jeet-heer-on-murdoch-couldnt-have-happened-to-a-sleezier-guy/

Why has there been such a persistent affinity between right-wing populism and tabloid journalism? A simple economic explanation might suffice: To own a newspaper such as The News of the World, you have to be very rich. To make the paper a going concern, you have to appeal to a wide swathe of readers. Left-wing populism might gather a crowd, but it creates the danger that your own wealth might be expropriated if the message is too successful. So it is safer for a newspaper baron to put out a paper targeting minority groups rather than the rich. Right-wing populism is a way for plutocrats to wear the mask of plebian outrage, pretending to be the voice of the very people they are economically exploiting.

Despite all his pretended faith in the free-market, Murdoch’s success has always owed much to his uncanny ability to align himself with governments that were able to dole out lucrative broadcasting and cable monopolies. Not just in China but in the West as well, Murdoch has been an expert practitioner of crony capitalism. Again, we see the large element of fraud inherent in right-wing populism.

The comedian and actor Steve Coogan, himself an alleged target of the News of the World’s phone hacking antics, described it as “a misogynistic, xenophobic, single-parent-hating, asylum-seeker-hating newspaper.” Coogan’s characterization might be extended to the Murdoch press as a whole, which tends to go after any group that doesn’t adhere to the ideals of middle-class white society. The characteristic stance of a Murdoch newspaper is that of defending putatively “normal” tax-payers against various supposed parasites and weirdos, an eclectic and elastic category that includes union members, gays, almost all foreigners, uppity women, and racial minorities.

What are we to make of this remarkable history of ethnic enmity? First of all, there is no evidence that Murdoch himself is personally bigoted. Murdoch’s third and current wife is of Chinese ancestry. Rather than being a garden-variety bigot, Murdoch is something fouler: an intelligent man who has found a way to make money trafficking in racial animosities he himself doesn’t necessarily share.

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Several things.

Smaller words. Yes, language that someone with a 4th grade education can understand.

Emphasis on pictures instead of lexicon (words). Refer to prior 4th grade education comment.

Appeal to the emotion instead of the intellect under the guise of
"common sense" or "conventional wisdom".

Using simplistic explanations to make complex issues into bite-sized brain morsels.

Appeal to the masses. You're aren't alone. The publishers of the tabloid and thousands of its readers agree with you. Or is it the other way around?

[luckyleftyme2]

3. an astute interpretation?

Hardly more than an overeducated response trying to put down the truth of the subject;or worse yet give that superior attitude of knowing more while in reality having less common sense than an over protected child.
the article is both clear an precise and sounds almost verbatim of the daily tripe we hear from the right.
of course thats just my observation,quite the opposite of yours!

[no_hypocrisy]

6. When you make populist appeals, you need the language and a message

that resonates.

My list incorporates effective use of populist tactics, not condescension.

[mwb970]

8. Why can I not understand your post?

I've read it three times, but I'm getting nowhere. Is it in English? (The first "sentence" has no verb despite its length, and its semicolon. You misspell "and". You don't capitalize or use proper spacing.) But more to the point, I simply cannot make out what you think you are saying.

Are you responding to @no_hypocrisy or to the original National Post article? The article rips Murdoch a new one. @no_hypocrisy provides a concise summary of the Murdoch media game plan. In response, you say the article is "both clear an precise" but then you say it sounds like right-wing tripe. Say wha'?

I think what galls me about your comment this morning is that you have the nerve to mock someone else (whoever it is) as "overeducated" after writing an unintelligible mess like this.

[luckyleftyme2]

to you an ur right wing friend

I find the article true in my opinion; I also noted like you your friend who browbeat undermine the article as well as the poster. But if you want my opinion he is using a
very effective tool of the right to discourage the acceptance of the subject.
something the right has used to hoodwink the public for years!
I hav sen a stuy that regarless of the splin or fomut evn a nerd evenuly kin figu it out!
Ihope that clarifies thye message and the effect it had on me an the majority of
readers in here.
now I have to go play golf with three of my republican friends who's golf game is as good
as their ideas. (translation =I let them win about 6 holes )
I donate the money I win from them to the homeless shelter . ha ha ceya!

[originalpckelly]

2. I've always found it laughable that the company OWNED BY A FOREIGNER...

thinks it can tell Americans what it is to be an American.

There is no question about Murdoch's place of birth: he's a fucking Aussie.

[luckyleftyme2]

5. yes and hardly a liberal

I find it amazing how the right constantly claims the media as liberal while being owned
by the conservatives. Think about it he owns the washington post,Ted turner started cnn
their both strong conservatives. They both let you know where they stand as it's their nature. If you are their employee I'm sure if you are liberal you would want to keep your job so you wouldn't go to far out on the limb of liberalism!

of course that's just my opinion; And another is many of our businesses have foreign investors!
remember money has no heart,no soul, no family and especialy no loyalty to any nation!

[pampango]

9. Murdoch's policy must have been to redefine the term "foreigner" in each country.

Of course, the "foreigners" that Murdoch's media outlets warned about were not, for the most part, Australians, Americans or British. They were Muslims and Africans (in the UK), Hispanics and Muslims (in the US) and Muslims and Asians in Australia.

I'm sure Murdoch was happy making money promoting fear of foreigners (not to mention "union members, gays, ... uppity women, and racial minorities") in all his countries of operation even if it required adapting the target to conform with local fears.

[LeftishBrit]

13. Well, not only was he not born in Britain; he's *not a citizen* and he *doesn't live here*

and yet his papers are full of xenophobia and British jingoism.

Actually most of our newspapers seem to be owned either by foreigners, or by people who are British by origin but choose not to live here so that they don't have to pay British taxes.

[CJCRANE]

4. It isn't about the money, it's about the influence and propaganda

when it comes to Murdoch's newspapers.

Ensuring they're popular (with celebrity stories etc) ensures the propaganda goes further.

It's entirely possible to have a titillating newspaper or magazine that has no political agenda. That isn't the case with Murdoch's papers.

[HopeHoops]

7. He's peddling bullshit - right wing morons are the obvious market.

[Yavin4]

10. For The Left Were To Counter and Mimic Murdoch, They'd Have To...

Have a topless woman interview Norm Chomsky.

[luckyleftyme2]

12. ah yes

like ole barnum said theirs a sucker born every minute and you certainly help to embellish this as fact.

[lame54]

11. it's easier to print lies than to research the truth