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Media Integrity > Published by Daniel Elton, July 8th 2011 at 4:32 pm

Murdoch’s empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US

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The momentum behind the phone hacking scandal is starting to spread from the News of the World (NotW) and infect other tectacles of Rupert Murdoch’s empire. Renault, for example, have not just pulled advertising from the ex-newspaper, but from all News International (NI) titles.

Rupert-Murdoch-plottingThe Institute of Fundraising is warning its members to be very wary before accepting any donations from the organisation, which pledged to donate proceeds from the last edition of the News of the World to good causes.

And now anti-Murdoch campaigners in America are starting to sniff blood. Their target: Les Hinton, current publisher of the Wall Street Journal, which is owned by NI’s parent company News Corporation. Mr Hinton was executive chairman of News International while Coulson edited News of the World.

Media activists Media Matters for America have written:

“As we noted this week, when Murdoch purchased the Wall Street Journal in 2007 he immediately selected his loyal aide and longtime confidant Les Hinton to run the Dow Jones company and become publisher of the newspaper.

“But prior to taking over Murdoch’s American publishing jewel, Hinton ran the mogul’s British newspapers, including News of the World. And Hinton ran the newspapers at a time when the tabloid was hacking mobile phones at an astonishing rate…

“But perhaps even more troubling is the fact that Hinton oversaw News Corp’s initial internal investigation into the phone hacking scandal and came away convinced there was no evidence of widespread wrongdoing in the company, and that the hacking had been confined to just one reporter. (The company went to “extraordinary lengths” to uncover any crimes, Hinton boasted at the time.)

“And that’s the happy line Hinton told to members of Parliament who pressed him in 2009 about the long-simmering controversy…

“Hinton, a veteran journalist himself, was tasked with finding out the truth about phone hacking inside News Corp’s tabloid. He came away with Pollyannaish findings, claiming Murdoch’s operation was clean, except for one bad apple.

“As I noted previously, it’s  an investigation that, in light of recent developments, looks to have been incompetent at best, and a fraud at worst. In fact, it looks to have been part of a failed cover-up.

“For the record, Hinton also authorized payments to the News of the World reporter at the heart of the hacking scandal, as well as for the private detective that reporter hired. Hinton authorised the payments after both men had been jailed.

“Given all that, is Les Hinton really qualified to be publisher of one of the largest and most prestigious newspapers in America?” 

Many anti-Murdoch campaigners around the world have been waiting for a moment like this. Now they are going to attack the media moghul’s empire at every opportunity.

  • http://twitter.com/digitalraven/status/89356461397917696 Stew Wilson

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/donmackeen/status/89356666973339648 donmackeen

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/jamesmills1984/status/89356721222451201 James Mills

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/dianehain/status/89357083048280064 Diane Hain

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/njgard/status/89357122067898368 Nigel Gardner

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/davidmheathcote/status/89357261578833921 David Heathcote

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/tonydowling/status/89357898538426369 Tony Dowling

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/arbolioto/status/89357986211971072 Pabs

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/deardaveandnick/status/89358618931113984 Bern O’Donoghue

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/anonymoosh/status/89359147035922433 Ceehaitch

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/t1kath/status/89359837363838976 kathT

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/arcpdur/status/89359902300053504 Peter Durant

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/chrisjbd/status/89359962660278272 Chris

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/jofloss/status/89360068658741248 Jo Phillips

    RT @leftfootfwd: Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://t.co/S7a2kyl

  • http://twitter.com/salctrprog/status/89361115934502912 Norman Nicholson

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/edwardclarke/status/89363287225020416 Edward Clarke

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/mydavidcameron/status/89364137758572544 MyDavidCameron

    RT @leftfootfwd: See how Hackergate is starting to gain traction in the US: http://t.co/tQrLLhG

  • http://twitter.com/rattlecans/status/89364682011455488 Ma

    A certain Mr Hinton who works at the Wall Street Journal must be swigging back the whisky today, surely? http://bit.ly/pHrmah

  • http://twitter.com/ldtuc/status/89365460826599424 L DTUC

    RT @leftfootfwd: Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://t.co/9E6YC1G

  • http://twitter.com/paul_damien/status/89365967339126784 Paul James

    RT @leftfootfwd: Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://t.co/LGYANbF

  • http://twitter.com/quozza/status/89367332731879424 Simon Quance

    RT @leftfootfwd: Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://t.co/fIrtAzK

  • http://twitter.com/thegingermenace/status/89369177856548865 amanda bentham

    See how Hackergate is starting to gain traction in the US: http://t.co/S7a2kyl

  • http://twitter.com/sean_gittins/status/89369607776907264 Sean Gittins

    See how Hackergate is starting to gain traction in the US: http://t.co/S7a2kyl

  • http://twitter.com/englishfolkfan/status/89370445941456897 Lesley

    @detous WSJ target? RT @leftfootfwd: See how Hackergate is starting to gain traction in the US: http://t.co/tQrLLhG /via @mydavidcameron

  • http://twitter.com/therightarticle/status/89371959019843584 Michael

    Murdoch’s empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://tinyurl.com/6kqgoab

  • http://twitter.com/jblresearch/status/89372562257231872 John Lever

    See how Hackergate is starting to gain traction in the US: http://t.co/S7a2kyl

  • Selohesra

    Lets all crow a bit more as more low paid workers in the Murdoch empire lose their jobs

  • http://twitter.com/paulstpancras/status/89375023252512768 paulstpancras

    Murdoch’s empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://tinyurl.com/6kqgoab

  • http://twitter.com/jpofgwynedd/status/89375108719841280 J P

    RT @TheRightArticle: Murdoch’s empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://tinyurl.com/6kqgoab

  • http://twitter.com/joanr1425/status/89375885953736704 JOANR1425

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/vickiwhelan/status/89376359717158912 vicki whelan

    Murdoch’s empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://tinyurl.com/6kqgoab

  • http://twitter.com/bobirving99/status/89378730325180417 Bob Irving

    Murdoch’s empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://tinyurl.com/6kqgoab

  • http://twitter.com/vickiwhelan/status/89378748230668288 vicki whelan

    #notw #hackgate #murdoch Wall St J ed Les Hinton prev ed notw conducted 1st int enq told parl'ment 2009 one bad apple http://t.co/zXuE68G

  • http://twitter.com/mikesimpsonuk/status/89380834624274432 Mike Simpson

    Murdoch’s empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://tinyurl.com/6kqgoab

  • http://twitter.com/wheatear9/status/89381913709641728 Phil Whittaker

    Murdoch’s empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://tinyurl.com/6kqgoab

  • http://wheresthebenefit.blogspot.com DavidG

    Those would be the self-same Murdoch workers who routinely portray disabled people as benefits scroungers and crooks for their masters’ convenience? (The Sun is at it again today). Forgive me if I smile as the karma comes home to roost.

    But more than the small-minded little men who were ‘only following orders’, this job won’t be finished until it has been pursued into the highest echelons of News International, NewsCorp, and any other paper, of whatever political allegiance, which has engaged in similar practices.

  • http://twitter.com/sterlingscharm/status/89397200903352320 SterlingSilvr

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://www.anarchistnews.org/ttruk derrick gaskin

    Surely in the midst of all this Rebekah Brooks job is untenable. When she was editor of the News of the World she was either useless and did not know what was going on around, above and below her or she was complicit in the hacking. Either way she cannot stay in her job, which begs the question, what hold as she over the two Murdochs? Many questions left unanswered – she is one big question without an answer.

  • http://twitter.com/woolfiesmith/status/89406546886397953 Citizen K

    See how Hackergate is starting to gain traction in the US: http://t.co/S7a2kyl

  • http://twitter.com/mariabarrett/status/89407391166242816 Maria Barrett

    RT @leftfootfwd: See how Hackergate is starting to gain traction in the US: http://t.co/FHNiXJZ

  • http://twitter.com/patrickhadfield/status/89407974958825472 Patrick Hadfield

    RT @leftfootfwd: See how Hackergate is starting to gain traction in the US: http://t.co/FHNiXJZ

  • Dave Citizen

    When an organisation presides over such disgusting behaviour as in this case the people who have benefited most from that behaviour should pay a price. The fact that Murdoch and co have been so willing to off-load that price onto a largely innocent workforce comes as no surprise to me.

    I don’t think the Great British public are done with them yet though!

  • http://twitter.com/detous/status/89419502609108992 Laurie

    @detous WSJ target? RT @leftfootfwd: See how Hackergate is starting to gain traction in the US: http://t.co/tQrLLhG /via @mydavidcameron

  • Ed’s Talking Balls

    What a disgusting view of karma.

  • Mr. Sensible

    Derric, Coulson tried that one, did he not, and got found out. I expect that at some point Brooks will go the same way.

  • http://fotozine.eu Rae Merrill

    News International journos, using the word journo reservedly, are bleating about losing their jobs. Not many folk will be shedding a tear for them. You could say this is divine retribution for all those libeled in the gutter press and members of the underclass who are frequently maligned by this scum simply for being unemployed in a country where 5 people chase every job.

  • http://twitter.com/meezer_mom/status/89659447806398464 Susan Reimers

    Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US: http://bit.ly/q4It9H writes @DanielElton #hacking #NotW

  • http://twitter.com/cllrkrichards/status/89748006039076864 Kevin Richards

    RT @leftfootfwd: Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://t.co/DVbwkn3

  • Selohesra

    Rae and DavidG – do you not see beyond your blind hatred? – it is not just tabloid journalists losing their jobs it is all sorts of people with no journalistic or editorial input at all. Where is the caring face of socialism?

  • http://twitter.com/welshandfree/status/90432188935442432 David C Thomas

    RT @leftfootfwd: Murdoch's empire is turning gangrenous – here and in the US http://t.co/BtQvJkw