The UK Guardian reports that Sean Hoare, a former reporter for News Corp’s Sun and News of the World was found dead in his home today. Hoare was the first reporter to expose the systemic use of phone hacking while under then-editor Andrew Coulson. The cause of death has not been announced.
It was Hoare’s revelations to the New York Times that first brought the News of the World phone hacking scandal to light late last year. The story remained low on the news media’s event horizon until the hacking into the cell phone voicemail of murder victim Millie Dowler hit the front page. The revelation resurrected Hoare’s story, uncovering the industrial-level hacking that took place on a massive scale against private citizens, noted celebrities, heads of government, and members of the Royal Family by News of the World.
The phone hacking scandal has continued to grow more legs since last weekend. Beginning with Friday’s resignation of Wall Street Journal’s editor-in-chief and former News of the World editor Les Hinton, the scandal has expanded to include Sunday’s arrest of News International chief Rebekah Brooks and the same day resignation of Scotland Yard’s Chief Paul Stephenson. Stephenson’s resignation was followed by today’s resignation of Scotland Yard’s top officer in charge of terrorism investigations, John Yates.
For more on the Sean Hoare’s death, here is coverage by the UK Guardian, and an op-ed by one of Hoare’s colleagues, Guardian columnist Nick Davies, who writes:
In the saga of the phone-hacking scandal, he (Hoare) distinguished himself by being the first former NoW journalist to come out on the record, telling the New York Times last year that his former friend and editor, Andy Coulson, had actively encouraged him to hack into voicemail.
That took courage. But he had a particularly powerful motive for speaking. He knew how destructive the News of the World could be, not just for the targets of its exposés, but also for the ordinary journalists who worked there, who got caught up in its remorseless drive for headlines.
Suzanna:
As Jon Stewart said:
“Well, I guess if the guys who were bribed don’t think there’s anything suspicious in the death of the guy who blew the whistle on the company providing the bribes, I’m satisfied.”
Hey has the cause of death been announced yet? In Hoare’s “non-suspicious” death?
You’re right Fe. It’s totally Orwellian!
Huffy:
The WSJ editorial you’ve linked to may be the one The Guardian referred to a couple of days ago. It’s Orwellian associations: love is hate, lies are truth, wikileaks = News of the World sounds alot like James Murdoch, Rupert’s son and heir.
Here’s an interesting link on WSJ, Paola.
http://blog.indexoncensorship.org/2011/07/18/wsj-blames-news-corp-critics-confuses-phone-hacking-with-wikileaks-revelations/
Eric said it perfectly re: “‘Death of Sean Hoare – not being treated as suspicious.’ No, it’s not suspicious at all. In fact, it’s perfectly obvious.”
Perfectly Obvious.
fontanelle33,
ya, but if you use the “kill” word in grade school you get sent to kiddie prison-school.
where you can learn lots of innappropriate things but not much good learnin’.
damn repression.
This story has more legs than a centipede.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/18/sun-website-hacked-lulzsec
And we get to see Ailes do the perp walk!
May it be on Bill O’Reilly’s show — that’s my fantasy take down of Fox News Channel.
Fe – all the more so since we now know that News Corp was/is not above using the weaknesses of others to accomplish their goals – no matter the cost.
I have this recurring daydream right now: FBI agents show up on Fox, live and on the air, to shut them down completely. All as the result of painstaking investigative work of course, in which Fox was found to be completely unlawful to the very core. Maybe during Hannity’s show, when he’s interviewing Palin yet again?
I can dream, can’t I? 🙂
Brendan:
It does have that feel, doesn’t it? Made to look like suicide, and the agency responsible for handling the investigation is being investigated for Hackapalooza.
This almost reminds me of the death of David Kelly, the yellowcake uranium story and the sexed-up rationales to Iraq War II. There’s so much more to get to the bottom of this. We’re digging up the grave of a mass execution. So many bodies.
My first thought on reading of his death on another thread was that someone enabled him in his addiction(s) and caused his death. All the better to have it look accidental, and not suspicious at all, given his reported history. Poor guy.
When I cast a horary chart for the moment I heard about Sean Hoare’s death (4 pm today, Brooklyn), I got Gemini on the 8th. Mercury is currently in a tight opposition (something like 6 arc minutes) to Nessus from Leo to Aquarius. In the horary chart, Mercury was in the 9th and Nessus in the 3rd, both intercepted. Indications of a very private transaction that is nevertheless about something very public in nature, and with great public ramifications. The 3rd house is ruled by Saturn (Capricorn). Moon rules the 9th. News institutions opposite public principles, public faith, a messenger on behalf of the public. Oh yeah, and the south node and Mars are sitting right on the 8th house cusp.
Oh oh – the Wall Street Journal belongs to the Murdoch group too, I just learned…
And if this scandal went beyond the borders of spying celebrities and invested the news on world economy/financial matters?
Wow. So interesting. Assange and Murdoch seem really nearer and nearer, like throwing the same thing down (the “truths” we are told) from opposite directions.
I hear people say, “I’m going to kill him” a lot. There is quite a lot of aggression and less creative outlet… in your average American workplace I’d say. We have too much politicizing going on in our “leadership”.