Rupert Murdoch on the printed word…
“You get on a train, public transport? You see anyone with a paper? You see no one. Now they’re reading all the facts, on their phones…”
“I’ve been retired seven years and I’m very happy not working” says Nick Davies as he returns to work on a podcast about a very old Fleet Street topic: phone hacking. Davies – a blast from Guido’s past – is indeed peddling a series of turgid articles in liberal doorstop Prospect magazine, covering every dash and comma of reheated claims about the Murdoch empire. Is the Guardian pension scheme not generous enough…
Interviewed and edited by his erstwhile former editor, Alan Rusbridger, Davies explains in the first episode:
“We have to be quote ‘fair and accurate’… otherwise we could be sued for libel… We are at the stage of allegation and untested evidence. And where the Murdoch company is concerned that’s still waiting for judgement… with Murdoch, it’s untested evidence”.
Rusbridger continues separately:
“The usual legal disclaimer… this is all based on documents that have come out during assorted court cases… and they are allegations. It’s just important to say that… this is a situation where Nick is reporting… what one side says about them”.
So much for the ‘balanced analysis’ Prospect boasts in its marketing copy. It’s an unusual leap out of retirement for Davies, who says of himself in his own website bio: “He was last seen somewhere between a meditation retreat in northern Thailand and an inner city suburb of Medellin, Colombia.” Lovely this time of year…
Rupert Murdoch warns…
“Self-serving bureaucracies are seeking to silence those who would question their provenance and purpose. Elites have open contempt for those who are not members of their rarefied class. Most of the media is in cahoots with those elites, peddling political narratives rather than pursuing the truth.”
Andy Coulson suggests a leaving present for Rupert Murdoch…
“And when it comes to the leaving do (with the obligatory mocked-up Sun front page I hope) the answer to ‘what do we buy him?’ is obvious. With all due respect to the current publishers of this piece, it has to be: The Spectator.”
Rupert Murdoch is stepping down as Chairman of Fox and News Corp as of November, with his son Lachlan succeeding him as sole chair of both. Murdoch will assume the title of Chairman Emeritus of each company:
“Dear Colleagues,
I am writing to let you all know that I have decided to transition to the role of Chairman Emeritus at Fox and News. For my entire professional life, I have been engaged daily with news and ideas, and that will not change. But the time is right for me to take on different roles, knowing that we have truly talented teams and a passionate, principled leader in Lachlan who will become sole Chairman of both companies.
Neither excessive pride nor false humility are admirable qualities. But I am truly proud of what we have achieved collectively through the decades, and I owe much to my colleagues, whose contributions to our success have sometimes been unseen outside the company but are deeply appreciated by me. Whether the truck drivers distributing our papers, the cleaners who toil when we have left the office, the assistants who support us or the skilled operators behind the cameras or the computer code, we would be less successful and have less positive impact on society without your day-after-day dedication.
Our companies are in robust health, as am I. Our opportunities far exceed our commercial challenges. We have every reason to be optimistic about the coming years – I certainly am, and plan to be here to participate in them. But the battle for the freedom of speech and, ultimately, the freedom of thought, has never been more intense.
My father firmly believed in freedom, and Lachlan is absolutely committed to the cause. Self-serving bureaucracies are seeking to silence those who would question their provenance and purpose. Elites have open contempt for those who are not members of their rarefied class. Most of the media is in cahoots with those elites, peddling political narratives rather than pursuing the truth.
In my new role, I can guarantee you that I will be involved every day in the contest of ideas. Our companies are communities, and I will be an active member of our community. I will be watching our broadcasts with a critical eye, reading our newspapers and websites and books with much interest, and reaching out to you with thoughts, ideas, and advice. When I visit your countries and companies, you can expect to see me in the office late on a Friday afternoon.
I look forward to seeing you wherever you work and whatever your responsibility. And I urge you to make the most of this great opportunity to improve the world we live in.”
Huge. Lachlan wins…
Guido has confirmed the truth of a rumour going around News UK that the firm has sought to buy GB News, which is smashing the media corporation’s TalkTV in the news channel ratings battle. Last night Nigel Farage had 150 times the audience of Jeremy Kyle, and Jacob Rees Mogg now regularly wins double or triple the audience of has-been Piers Morgan. Sky News is revamping their line-up too, as it also regularly loses the ratings battle to GB News.
A GB News executive has confirmed to Guido that News UK has twice tried to convince GB News to sell and merge the channels. The owners of GB News have made it clear the channel is not for sale. There is a precedent for Murdoch buying a rival channel, merging it and making it a great success. When Sky first launched it had a rival in the Daily Mail Group-owned British Satellite Broadcasting and their famous “Squarial“. The competition was hurting both channels financially, and eventually Murdoch bought the rival out and merged them to form British Sky Broadcasting and go on to great success. It seems that Rupert will be denied the chance to repeat the trick…
