|
|
News of the World, part of Rupert’s empire has been well and truly caught out. On so many levels, but particularly with regard to their role in the Milly Dowler case we see the unfettered appetite for sensation and a complete absence any ethical or moral behaviour. Quoting Michael Wolff (via Crikey) who sums it up this way
Hacking is not at all an aberration, or a what-were-they-thinking error of judgment and strategy, but an expression of the company’s fundamental identity: it’s not just that they did it, but, more importantly, this is what they do
Unfortunately as the Gaurdian also reports, the public scandal surrounding this blatant misuse of power by NotW (is a misuse of power tautological?) has not stopped any deal that allows News Corp to purchase BSkyB and increase their stranglehold on the UK media market. But then Cameron is a Tory and he knows which side his bread is buttered and it isn’t the side that gets upset about having a murdered 13year old schoolgirl’s phones hacked by a newspaper.
Hopefully, as Stephen Maine noted, the idea of News Ltd being paid to represent Australia’s image overseas via the Australia Network has been dealt a serious blow. Do we really want a mob like this projecting our image to the world?
Clearly NotW and its parent, News Corp believe they are not constrained by the laws of the land, rather the laws of the land exist to protect their financial interests and entrench their monopolistic tendencies. Looking forward to reading more about this in the Oz…
Phone hacking | Media | guardian.co.uk.
In an article that raises serious questions about the credibility of the Fairfax press. at least the commentary provides some “balance”
My personal faves
by Jase
Come on guys, there is other stuff to report, rather than rehashing the same article from two years ago.
http://www.theage.com.au/national/volcano-eruption-overdue-20090920-fwvp.html
by Robin
You forgot Julia Gillard’s mantra Adonis. “Under my government there will never be a volcanic eruption”.
The opportunity for political comment wasn’t lost on O’Rourke either
Tony Abbott: “We will reveal our policy on volcanoes shortly before the next eruption. The Government’s policy is just a new tax, and wil cost jobs and destroy industries. We demand an eruption immediately.”
whereas Katie thinks
Clearly it is time we start sacrificing people to appease the Volcano Gods.
and GeorgeS observes
Victoria, perfect place to study cones, there is lot of test data
and being Victorians there is always the football angle…
nathan
You can bet your life they will erupt before Richmond win another flag
and Occam’s Razor
If an eruption occurs during the footy season, wots the bet Herald sun still has a footy player or a WAG on the front page.
But the all time best (so far) must surely go to Mike
Andrew Bolt will denounce eruption believers and the science of vulcanology because we all (know) the earth is flat and nothing happens in the natural world unless he says so.
Victorian Volcanoes ‘Due To Erupt’ | Colac, Port Fairy, Portland.
In a fascinating quote Daniel Flitton claims
An independent panel of public servants set up to evaluate the competing tenders saw Sky’s as the better bid, only for the government to baulk at the prospect of stripping the contract from the publicly funded ABC to hand it to a company part-owned by Mr Murdoch’s News Ltd, Channel Seven and the Nine Network.
Utterly begs the question of what grounded the public servants' opinions.
Frankly I'm only a little surprised. A while back I suggested that Murdoch would throw everything into winning this bid and that Aunty would be hard pressed to retain the contract but it seems that Mark Scott has once again found favour in the halls of Parliament. Significantly, it was when Rudd was PM, that Murdoch launched the preemptive strike against the ABC with A-PAC and there might be grounds for suspecting that Rudd in his new portfolio could be sympathetic to any Murdoch overture. After all, Kev did fly half way round the world to meet Rupert before he became PM.
It must be a tough choice for the ALP pollies. On the one hand you have media mogul and chief antagonist (via his daily rag the Oz) Rupert Murdoch while on the other hand you have an emasculated and increasingly conservative ABC headed by a former liberal party staffer which mimics everything the Murdoch press says.
Given Conroy's now got the nod, it would be hard to see him agree to a Sky bid, which effectively breaks up the ABC empire just a bit more, while also arguing for a government monopoly with the NBN. But who knows what goes on behind the locked doors up at the house? Maybe I should put in a FOI...
Move to block TV bid.
I’ve been watching a re-run of the Dismissal lately and listening to people talk about the Aboriginal tent embassy which has served to remind me how far removed the current Labor government is from the ideals of that time and strangely how similar their incapacity to deal with the challenges confronting a left of centre government vis-a-vis entrenched institutional interests.
To be fair, political power has always been limited, particularly in a democracy where power in other guises is rarely aligned with a left agenda however given that you might expect a left leaning government to recognise its strengths and work with them instead of taking its natural constituency for granted while begging for legitimacy from the other side.
How little time the msm gives to the left agenda feeds into the apparent public perception that this Labor government is unsuitable for office. Media talk about Gillard’s anniversary is typical, if it wasn’t a media meme most people wouldn’t think about it, but in addition to talking about the actually date, the media indulges in a typical piece of right wing agenda setting, it reminds people of how Gillard got the job and tells people that they still don’t have any reason to trust her. Trotting out her boyfriend just adds fuel to the fire.
The media work is reflected in the public opinion polls. Of course, these days if public opinion polls determined government we would have new governments every year, especially as governments must be expected to make unpopular decisions as some time. How strange it is given the relative affluence, peace and security most Australians enjoy that they have become so intolerant of refugees, so forgetful of our shameful history in our dealings with the aborigines and their land and so shortsighted in facing up to the challenges that lie ahead. Instead we put up with bleating from the right about how wrong the government is and posturing from the left who are busy sucking up to the rich and powerful.
 Police intervene at the Aboriginal tent embassy 1972
$120 billion is a not an insignificant figure, maybe the Chinese intend to soften up the world with corruption before conquering us with their economic clout.
AP Virginia News | nvdaily.com.
Stephen Colbert alerts us to the danger posed by too many marshmallows. Frankly I’m surprised he pulls it off…
Could it be true, people are switching Facebook off?
On the Reg, which covered this tale in slightly more detail, some anonymous Facebook spokeswoman is quoted
“People have been speculating about this for years and have been wrong. Every. Single. Time!,” an alarmed Facebook spokeswoman told The Register, without offering any firsthand data to back up that claim.
But what would a Facebook and China marriage look like?
Facebook Sees Big Traffic Drops in US and Canada as It Nears 700 Million Users Worldwide.
Is anyone surprised by this bit of news? This Labor government is redefining the limits of politics and public expectations in an age when our lives are really ruled by money and who has it.
There is no light on the hill, we sold the power company to the chinese and we can’t afford to keep it burning 24/7.
Labor backs down on cattle.
News today that Gabrielle Giffords who was shot in the head during a Tuscon killing spree in January is about to leave rehab. Utterly amazing story.
Just how did she survive?
BBC News – Gabrielle Giffords: First photos of shot congresswoman.
|
|
