Whilst the angst continues at the News of the World, the rest of the UK media – and especially the Daily Mail – exults over how News Corporation shares opened nearly 3% down at $18 in New York whilst BSkyB interests plummeted by 19.5p at 825.5p in London. Potential investors fear that a succession of phone hacking accusations will scupper Murdoch’s attempts to acquire satellite broadcaster BSkyB.
The twin track unashamedly pursued by Labour this afternoon in PMQs and in the emergency Commons debate that followed was to have Rebekah Brooks’ head on a platter and for the deal to be kicked into the long grass the Competition Commission. Strangely enough, the ConDem side of the House seemed fairly sanguine about both prospects. Some of them even said as much although the cabinet line is more circumspect. It was also noticeable that great pains had been taken to ensure that Vince Cable was busy doing something else today.
Nick Robinson described the consensual move towards retribution against the media an inquiry as "the day that everything changed", at least in Parliament – although former Speaker Martin might question that particular historical assertion. Robinson writes, “For the past two decades no politician with a prospect of power dared attack the Murdoch empire. Indeed, politicians of both major parties and their spin doctors fought with each other to woo, to charm and to convert the executives of News International. Today all that changed.”
A pity that things didn’t change in 2006 when the Information Commissioner published a report “What price privacy now?” which revealed the extent of “transactions” for private information by newspapers and magazines. You may be interested to learn that it is the Daily Mail who take top spot in the blaggers league.
Politicos suddenly growing a spine however is the least of Murdoch’s problems. The change that really matters is happening in the US markets where News Corp has paid way too much for unprofitable big banner titles. As brand name advertisers steadily desert the News of the World, one financial correspondent considers it to be the inevitable price for making up your own rules when it comes to corporate governance.
Analysts agree that the establishment of Fox in the US as a new network television force, along with BSkyB in the UK, has been masterful. But what they also now see is a serious lack of judgement bordering on outright arrogance in the handling of the phone tapping scandal. The thing about markets is that they don’t forgive that kind of serious lapse any more than politicians.
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