Ex British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has alleged News International used “known criminals” to get access to personal information when Labour was in power, in an exclusive interview with the BBC. The former prime minister accused the newspaper group of having links to the “criminal underworld”. He also told BBC correspondent Glenn Campbell that he was “in tears” over reports published in the Sun, revealing that his son Fraser has cystic fibrosis. The Sun maintains that the information was not obtained by illegal means.
Fe, I cannot guess, but I truly HOPE it is at least Murdoch. Within the past decade I had noticed a 1 1/2 INCH column stuck somewhere inside (not front or last page) the Plain Dealer that Mudoch’s syndicate had bought out the last of the Chicago newspaper publishers (when I lived there it was at least two, if not three, Daily’s that were published by different owners).
It was noted in this microscopic article that the “anti-monopoly” regulation for all Chicagoan news sources (including radio and television) had been overturned so that this could take place. I grew up in the Chicago area and lived there for quite a few years as an adult. I love the city of The Big Shoulders. A city that did the pushing around, not one that was “pushed around”–but, lo, this wasn’t about pushing, it was about being bought out, it was about being sold.
When I read that article, hidden as it was among non-news, not finding it on the front page everywhere, a curtain fell over my heart and soul. Some things began to seem just too fucking big to deal with by us little guys and gals. I mentioned it to some people and just got shrugs.
Paul Hill’s sentiments in his comment yesterday are “Amen”ed by me whole heartedly (the ones about taking Murdoch down, not the anti-American-ish stuff, but I can understand his sentiments at this point). If it takes a Government of a country to take him down, then, may it be so.
I will be going over Murdoch’s charts in the podcast that airs tonight at midnight ET. I will be taking some guesses then.
Is anyone following coverage over at The Guardian? I could sure use some help keeping up with details. If you would like to help over the next two days please drop a reply in the comment field.
This has the feel of metastases.
The body (News Corp) has consumed so much by way of publications, and pushing to sell news (made up or not) that its poisoned itself in the process. Murdoch is a Pisces, Cap on the Ascendant, and by the sign of the fish, he’s namely a shark.
Its fascinating to watch, and difficult to crystallize at the moment. NotW really fucked around with everyone’s life in Britain: Hugh Grant, another victim of tabloid journalism, was interviewed last night by Sky News and he was quite articulate about the extent to which NotW would systematically get “news”.
How far the fall? Will there be a fall? Murdoch or Cameron? Anybody willing to take a guess?