News of the World printed it's last issue Sunday and closed it's doors after 168 years and 8,674 editions, amid widespread reports of illegal and immoral journalistic practices. Reporters and senior management alike have been implicated in hacking the personal emails and phone lines of celebrities, politicians, and even a missing 13 year old girl, just to get a story.
Rupert Murdoch, the owner of the paper, has kept quiet over the last week, as he is currently in London picking up the pieces of one of his four UK newspapers. With each day that passes, more and more information is coming to light showing just how heinous and morally bankrupt the institution was. People were threatened. Policemen were bribed. Even the Prime Minister's personal information was hacked, simply to get a lead and sell a few extra newspapers.
So, people are wondering: How much did Murdoch know? He hand-picked many of the higher ups that were personally involved in the illegal activity. This has been going on for a decade. He had to know. He HAD to.
What I'm asking is this: Murdoch owned News of the World. He also owns Fox Broadcasting and Fox News. You can't tell me that the UK half of his media empire is corrupt, yet the U.S. half is squeaky clean. If Murdoch was in on it, what's not to say that he had a "what's good for the goose is good for the gander" attitude toward his other outlets.
News of the World went to these horrific extremes to simply sell newspapers. Fox News is the voice of the Republican party in the United States. It's viewers are told what issues are important to them, how to think, and who to vote for. Fox has former White House press secretaries, campaign managers, and party strategists on their payroll. They also have had a half dozen Republican Presidential candidates as commentators.
Wouldn't Rupert Murdoch have more of an interest in changing minds and public policy in the United States than selling tabloids in the UK? He has a $6+ billion personal fortune to protect, after all.
It's common knowledge that Fox News lies to their viewers. It's also common knowledge that their viewers are the least knowledgeable when compared to those of other programs. It's not a coincidence. Many of Fox's drones still believe that Barack Obama is a Muslim or that he wasn't born in the United States. More than 60% don't believe in global warming. What is Fox News up to?
When the payoff becomes the White House, along with the possibility of decades of corporate and personal tax legislation in your favor, wouldn't you want to protect your investment?
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