News Hounds: Fox's Media Tentacles

Fox's Media Tentacles

For those of you in the Los Angeles area, Change to Win is organizing Occupy Fox Studios during the News Corporation shareholders meeting Friday. Tell the Board of News Corp and Fox that they need to be accountable for the company’s actions! Details after the jump.

Reported by Ellen at 11:31 PM

July 22, 2011

U.S. Justice Department Reportedly Preparing Subpoenas of News Corporation

The United States Department of Justice is preparing subpoenas to News Corporation as part of an initial investigation into whether the media conglomerate violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The subpoenas need to be approved personally by Attorney General Eric Holder, Fox News reported, in order to go into effect. This is separate from the FBI probe already underway into whether or not News Corp. did any phone hacking in the United States. Although Fox News has taken some comical steps to spin the scandal, and I'll bet we can expect later reprisals against Holder if the subpoenas go forward, Studio B's lengthy, mostly straightforward report on the latest developments reflects the seriousness of the situation for its parent company. Video after the jump.

Reported by Ellen at 7:18 PM

July 20, 2011

Bill O’Reilly Spins And Tries To Diminish The News Corp. Phone Hacking Scandal

Bill O’Reilly jumped on board Fox News News Corporation spin machine last night (7/19/11) where he must have been too dizzy to keep “looking out for the folks.” Instead, he threw off any concerns that 9/11 victims may have been hacked and tried to paint the entire phone hacking scandal as some kind of liberal-media plot over something not worth much American attention.

Reported by Ellen at 2:41 PM

July 7, 2011

BREAKING NEWS: James Murdoch Announces News of the World To Cease Publication

Ellen has been keeping her eye on the unfolding News of the World scandal as it has progressed. Yesterday her article “International Disgust Over News Corp. Tabloid Hacking Into Murder Victim’s Voice Mail” was just the latest discovery in that scandal. Today, James Murdoch announced that after a 168-year run—more than a century and a half—News of the World would cease publication with this Sunday’s issue.

Reported by Aunty Em at 12:36 PM

April 13, 2011

Hugh Grant Turns Tables On Murdoch And Bugs The Bugger

The New Statesman has an interesting article by Hugh Grant, actor and scandal subject, on the subject of the News of the World phone hacking scandal that’s been roiling Rupert Murdoch’s British Empire. Ellen has been following the story so you don’t have to, but long story short: News of the World employees had been (allegedly) hacking the phones of Royals and celebrities alike to get scoops. Reporters have been arrested, as investigations continue to determine how high up the Murdoch food chain it goes. Also part of the probe: suggestions that Scotland Yard had squelched earlier investigations to continue its cozy relationship with the tabloid. Just this week NotW apologized and offered compensation to the victims. Yet Labour MP Tom Watson promised the investigation will continue, “The truth they still do not realize is that this scandal will never be over for Murdoch until we know the identities of everyone who carried out the phone hacking.” Hugh Grant only recently learned he was one of the victims when Justice Geoffrey Vos ordered Scotland Yard to privately release that information to the victims. Grant was bugged enough about his conversations being bugged that he turned the tables and bugged the bugger.