# I have to pit Rupert Murdoch, as if he hasn't always wallowed there **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 9, 2011, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366 "2011-07-09T01:07:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2011, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/21 "2011-07-09T15:45:03Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Frankly, I thought that decision, coming only three days or so after the news broke, was a pretty good example of Murdoch manning up and doing the right thing. Frankly, do you ever stay awake at night? Howling yourself to sleep, perhaps? Is there any right-wing demagogue that you would not fellate **Starving Artist**. Fucking idiot. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2011, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/22 "2011-07-09T15:50:08Z")
Fuck’s sake, I wouldn’t even wipe you off my shoe. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2011, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/23 "2011-07-09T18:09:12Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > I find it suspicious that Fox News referred to it as “News Of The World (D)” Speaking of which, how has Fox News covered this? ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2011, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/24 "2011-07-09T18:12:46Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > News International’s other UK titles devoted the front pages, and several inside pages, to the _NotW_ closure. That’s because the story erupted to the point where serious questions would have been asked if they didn’t run with it. A better question is why only The Guardian, with occasional support from The Independent, has been running the story for the past couple of years (IIRC). Every time there was a major revelation it was conspicuous in its absence from the front pages of all other papers. They tried and tried and tried to ignore it and hope that it would go away but thank fuck for The Guardian, they just wouldn’t let it. NOTW “journalists”, watch how The Guardian dealt with this story. That’s actual journalism. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2011, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/25 "2011-07-09T18:18:50Z")
Rupert could have been trying to pretend he was horrified by the newspapers actions to stem off responsibility in potential law suits. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2011, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/26 "2011-07-09T18:24:01Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Well, it’s not like the whole world doesn’t already know he’s folding _News of the World_. > > Frankly, I thought that decision, coming only three days or so after the news broke, was a pretty good example of Murdoch manning up and doing the right thing. > > But expecting him to trumpet that decision in all his other publications strikes me as a bit much. The right thing would be to expose those at the top to it. The right think would be to fire Rebekah Brooks. Contrary to what you seem to think, the situation was salvageable, but just not in a way that Mr Murdoch likes. The obvious comparison is to the witchhunt regarding the BBC when the Jonathan Ross/Russell Brand story was on. The Sun - along with the Mail on Sunday - was screaming for heads to roll and that was just for a silly phone prank on the radio. This, THIS, is just so much more serious it is embarrassing to try and make a comparison. To put it simply, making 200 people redundant just to protect Rebekah Brooks is disgusting. Closing a newspaper with 168 years of history behind it just to protect Rebekah Brooks is obscene. If he’d come down swiftly on the management that he KNOWS signed off all these illegal activities then we’d have a completely different story and, most likely, still a News of the World. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2011, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/27 "2011-07-09T18:30:10Z")
_News of the World_ may have been popular, but was it profitable? I can see ditching it as just being the quickest way for the corporation to rid itself of a nuisance that is little more than a rounding error on its income statement. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2011, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/28 "2011-07-09T18:31:56Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > _News of the World_ may have been popular, but was it profitable? I can see ditching it as just being the quickest way for the corporation to rid itself of a nuisance that is little more than a rounding error on its income statement. All the discussions on TV regarding it and the money lost (the news channels have been comparing the small amount of revenue from NOTW with the greater amount that is possible with BskyB) has suggested that it is profitable. Let’s face it, it does sell about 2.6 million copies weekly. ---
**Author:** ![DeptfordX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DeptfordX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeptfordX)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2011, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/29 "2011-07-09T22:15:32Z")
It was one of the most profitable titles in the UK. ---
**Author:** ![Moonshine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5e9695/32.png) [@Moonshine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonshine)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/30 "2011-07-11T12:08:23Z")
NotW was profitable and the most widely read paper in Britain, though IMHO it was a sleaze rag that survived off titilation and scandal, catering to the lowest common denominator. I think you’ve got to see the sudden closure of the NotW but retention of Rebbecah Brooks, against a different background. That background is A) News International is listed in the US where corporate bribery is pursued much more seriously than in the UK, and B) the purchase of Sky (worth over £1.64bln in earnings), if it is refered to the regulator, will hinge on whether James Murdoch is a fit and proper person to own a broadcaster. NotW has made substantial pay offs in the past, both to the Metropolitan Police and to plaintiffs who have had their phones hacked, and at least one of the latter was directly signed off by James Murdoch in 2009. Now, it’s easy to see a scenario where such a payoff (in the region of £100k) is authorised by both the News International (UK) chief executive Rebeca Brookes and the European chief executive James Murdoch. Rebekah Brookes was editor at the time that Milly Dowler’s phone was hacked and messages deleted from it and it’s hard to believe that she didn’t know what was going on. If James Murdoch is asked to authorise a cheque for £100k to settle a lawsuit out of court (and that much is on the record) then it’s not a stretch to see him asking her what exactly has been going on, and why it’s costing him so much money. If Rebecca goes, she is the one link that would be able to confirm or deny what James Murdoch knew. If James Murdoch knew what was going on it’s unlikely he’d be a fit and proper person to own a broadcaster and the Sky takeover is finished. Further, if he also knew that his newspaper has regularly been making payments to the police (and Rebeccah openly admitted this to a Parliamentary select committee) then it’s quite possible that the US regulatory authorities would want to investigate that themselves, opening up the risk of huge fines. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/31 "2011-07-11T12:21:26Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Sure he did. The advertisers were leaving in droves, so it was dead. He’s just going to reopen it under the name of the Sunday Sun in a few months - plus he wants to finish the satellite deal. In fact, a few weeks earlier Murdoch Jr had already made reference to going to “seven-day working” for NI publications (The Sun being Monday-Saturday and NotW being Sunday only) and the domain for “sunonsunday” was registered two days before the closure of NotW was announced. This scandal probably just hastened the restructuring they were already going to do. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/32 "2011-07-11T12:23:27Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > In fact, a few weeks earlier Murdoch Jr had already made reference to going to “seven-day working” for NI publications (The Sun being Monday-Saturday and NotW being Sunday only) and the domain for “sunonsunday” was registered two days before the closure of NotW was announced. This scandal probably just hastened the restructuring they were already going to do. But possibly made the launch of the Sunday edition of The Sun more problematic as, I’m guessing, there will be many loud voices reminding everyone why the NOTW closed down. And that’s assuming that nothing more comes out of NI, which is probably not how things will play out. ---
**Author:** ![PrettyVacant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/49beb7/32.png) [@PrettyVacant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PrettyVacant)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/33 "2011-07-11T12:45:05Z")
Is it being reported widely in the USA - or even somewhere in the business section - that Murdoch staff wanted to hack the voicemail of families of 9/11 victims? ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/34 "2011-07-11T13:34:31Z")
> [@PrettyVacant](#): > > Is it being reported widely in the USA - or even somewhere in the business section - that Murdoch staff wanted to hack the voicemail of families of 9/11 victims? That’s coming from a report in today’s Daily Mirror in the UK. > **[Phone hacking: 9/11 victims 'may have had mobiles tapped by News of the World...](https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/phone-hacking-911-victims-may-140898)** > > HIS media empire is crashing around him, he’s just shut down a scandal-hit newspaper and his BSkyB bid is in tatters, but Rupert Murdoch still came out grinning yesterday. ---
**Author:** ![R.P.McMurphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@R.P.McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R.P.McMurphy)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2011, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/35 "2011-07-11T23:24:14Z")
When I posted the OP I had no idea that it was, or could get, this bad. [http://news.yahoo.com/allegations-besiege-murdoch-media-empire-212626058.html](http://news.yahoo.com/allegations-besiege-murdoch-media-empire-212626058.html) I always thought the guy and his “empire” were a piece of crap. Now I realize that it is truly a criminal operation. The only justice would be for the whole house of cards to come down and the whole bunch of them get sent to prison for life. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2020, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366/36 "2020-11-08T15:31:39Z")
_Bump_ There is no reason why this shouldn’t have 10,000 posts. The 9 year gap in this thread is a stunning oversight and needs to be addressed. Murdoch has undermined Australian democracy for all of his career, British democracy for most of his career, and American democracy for half his career. He does it all in his own self-interest, an empire building narcissist. When will the world stop suffering from the effect of privileged men with terrible fathers and damaged minds? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-to-pit-rupert-murdoch-as-if-he-hasnt-always-wallowed-there/588366.md?page=1)