GG news of the World

[kinboshi]

The shareholders aren't happy either:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8630545/Shareholders-sue-News-Corp-for-failing-to-take-early-action-on-phone-hacking-scandal.html

[redarmi]

To be fair judging by this somewhat disturbing picture the old fella is pretty relaxed about it all

Click to see full-size image.

[boldie]

Michael Wolff, Vanity Fair contributing editor, tweeted: "#MURDOCHGATE Get out of Dodge strategy being discussed at News Corp: Sell all of News Int."

please let this be true

[redarmi]

This makes some sense given that pretty much all of the News Corp's business is predicated on raising debt through cashflows then sacrificing the papers to get hold of Sky makes some sense from a business perspective.

[thetank]

If the Sun somehow dies I'll take that as a win and he can do whatever he wants from there. Me and him are cool from that point on.

[rex008]

I'm somewhat puzzled by the sudden righteous indignation as the nation realises that a significant proportion of tabloid journalists are scum sucking bottom feeding pondlife. Did we not already know this?

I'm also highly doubtful that the NOTW was the only or even the worst culprit.

I like the Sunday Times. Although I generally only read the News Review. Proper journalism in there (and Jeremy Clarkson), and I think it'd be a shame to lose it. Throwing the baby out with the bathwater would be an error. You get stolen personal information that is most definitely in the public interest (MPs expenses), and stolen personal information that most definitely isn't. Are MPs or even judges really the best to draw the line? I think not. Neither is Murdoch, obv. Unfortunately neither are the general public, for we are mostly idiots and sheep who think that the sex life of footballers is somehow vital information. . Tough one.

Random late night slightly tipsy outpouring over. Sorry.

[redarmi]

I'm somewhat puzzled by the sudden righteous indignation as the nation realises that a significant proportion of tabloid journalists are scum sucking bottom feeding pondlife. Did we not already know this?

Isn't this kinda the point?  We did know but were powerless to see them brought to book or held accountable and now that is happening it is very cathartic.

[Bongo]

I'm somewhat puzzled by the sudden righteous indignation as the nation realises that a significant proportion of tabloid journalists are scum sucking bottom feeding pondlife. Did we not already know this?

Isn't this kinda the point?  We did know but were powerless to see them brought to book or held accountable and now that is happening it is very cathartic.

Well people could have stopped buying them beforehand...

[boldie]

You get stolen personal information that is most definitely in the public interest (MPs expenses), and stolen personal information that most definitely isn't. Are MPs or even judges really the best to draw the line? I think not. Neither is Murdoch, obv. Unfortunately neither are the general public, for we are mostly idiots and sheep who think that the sex life of footballers is somehow vital information. . Tough one.

I agree with your first point obv. But reporters and P.I.s being paid to hack into someone's bank account is just not on. (Let alone what the scum, alledgedly, did to the Brown family's medical records)

[rex008]

You get stolen personal information that is most definitely in the public interest (MPs expenses), and stolen personal information that most definitely isn't. Are MPs or even judges really the best to draw the line? I think not. Neither is Murdoch, obv. Unfortunately neither are the general public, for we are mostly idiots and sheep who think that the sex life of footballers is somehow vital information. . Tough one.

I agree with your first point obv. But reporters and P.I.s being paid to hack into someone's bank account is just not on. (Let alone what the scum, alledgedly, did to the Brown family's medical records)

I think my point was that there is a very fine line between good investigative journalism that sometimes requires possibly shady dealings to get information, and pulp journalism where the end can't justify the means. I'd rather the line wasn't drawn by politicians, who's dodgy activities are frequently exposed by good journalism, although are also sometimes on the wrong end of bad.

I think it's a good thing that people are waking up to the fact that buying crappy tabloids drives bad journalists to do bad things. That might be the only driver the industry needs to clean up it's act. I worry that we're going to end up with more than that, and good journalism will be punished by it.

[boldie]

You get stolen personal information that is most definitely in the public interest (MPs expenses), and stolen personal information that most definitely isn't. Are MPs or even judges really the best to draw the line? I think not. Neither is Murdoch, obv. Unfortunately neither are the general public, for we are mostly idiots and sheep who think that the sex life of footballers is somehow vital information. . Tough one.

I agree with your first point obv. But reporters and P.I.s being paid to hack into someone's bank account is just not on. (Let alone what the scum, alledgedly, did to the Brown family's medical records)

I think my point was that there is a very fine line between good investigative journalism that sometimes requires possibly shady dealings to get information, and pulp journalism where the end can't justify the means. I'd rather the line wasn't drawn by politicians, who's dodgy activities are frequently exposed by good journalism, although are also sometimes on the wrong end of bad.

I think it's a good thing that people are waking up to the fact that buying crappy tabloids drives bad journalists to do bad things. That might be the only driver the industry needs to clean up it's act. I worry that we're going to end up with more than that, and good journalism will be punished by it.

fair point

[david3103]

Am I the only person who thinks, hang on a second here, is Glenn Mulcaire the only Private Investigator in the country who knew how to hack people's voicemails? Is News International the only organisation that ever used stufff obtained illegally?

I take Rex's point that good investigative journalism is important and that some blurring of the lines must take place for wrongdoing to be exposed, but do we really believe that it was News International and only them that has passed the point where the line is not just blurred, but erased, or left diminishing in the rear-view mirror?

[boldie]

Am I the only person who thinks, hang on a second here, is Glenn Mulcaire the only Private Investigator in the country who knew how to hack people's voicemails? Is News International the only organisation that ever used stufff obtained illegally?

I take Rex's point that good investigative journalism is important and that some blurring of the lines must take place for wrongdoing to be exposed, but do we really believe that it was News International and only them that has passed the point where the line is not just blurred, but erased, or left diminishing in the rear-view mirror?

No your not, that's why the thread is 7 pages mate bongo posted a nice graph earlier in the thread that shows the Daily Mail has actually hired P.I's a lot more than NOTW has..and obviously the sun is  a scummy newspaper (at best)

[david3103]

Am I the only person who thinks, hang on a second here, is Glenn Mulcaire the only Private Investigator in the country who knew how to hack people's voicemails? Is News International the only organisation that ever used stufff obtained illegally?

I take Rex's point that good investigative journalism is important and that some blurring of the lines must take place for wrongdoing to be exposed, but do we really believe that it was News International and only them that has passed the point where the line is not just blurred, but erased, or left diminishing in the rear-view mirror?

No your not, that's why the thread is 7 pages mate bongo posted a nice graph earlier in the thread that shows the Daily Mail has actually hired P.I's a lot more than NOTW has..and obviously the sun is  a scummy newspaper (at best)

My bad - obviously missed a couple of pages in the thread

 

[Bongo]

(Let alone what the scum, alledgedly, did to the Brown family's medical records)

The rumour mill is suggesting it wasn't hacking, might have been a leak, might have been a plant by the Browns. Most odd...

Gordon went out of his way not to suggest illegality:
“You’re in public life. And this story appears. You don’t know how it’s appeared. I’ve not questioned how it’s appeared. I’ve not made any allegations about how it’s appeared. I’ve not made any claims about [how it appeared]. But the fact is it did appear. And it did appear in the Sun newspaper.”