"The Truth Behind The UK General Election" & Why Murdoch's Son Stormed Into The Independent's Office

[Turborama]

Run time: 01:28 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDw-1bYatIs   Posted on YouTube: April 22, 2010 By YouTube Member: theindependent Views on YouTube: 346   Posted on DU: April 23, 2010 By DU Member: Turborama Views on DU: 1429

 
The Independent reveals the truth behind the news, without fear or favour. With 24 hour rolling news, and the myriad sources of information online, the truth can sometimes get lost. The Independent is committed to exposing the full story, however uncomfortable that may be, or whomever it may offend.

Too much news is not news – it is spin and PR. Under an unapologetic, liberal banner, we will bring you the facts that many would rather you simply did not read.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/press/the-independent-truth-matters-1949116.html

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Johann Hari: The forces blocking British democracy

Friday, 23 April

When did this switch from an election scripted by Charles Saatchi to one painted by Salvador Dali? If I had told you a month ago that Gordon Brown would be despatching naval warships to Spain, David Cameron would be jostling with a man dressed as a chicken and down to 30 per cent, and Nick Clegg would be identified alternately as "the most popular leader since Churchill" and a Nazi, you would have called for Nurse Ratched.

But something stranger still is happening in The Election That Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Every day in this country, two big forces artificially drag the British government way to the right of the British people, making it enact policies that benefit a small, rich elite at the expense of the rest. We are not supposed to notice this, never mind try to change it. Yet suddenly, in this election, those forces have been exposed.

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The British media is overwhelmingly owned by right-wing billionaires who order their newspapers to build up the politicians who serve their interests, and marginalise or rubbish the politicians who serve the public interest. David Yelland, the former editor of The Sun, http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x530731">bravely confessed this week that as soon as he took his post, he was told the Lib Dems had to be "the invisible party, purposely edged off the paper's pages and ignored". Only a tiny spectrum of opinion was permitted. Everyone to the left of Tony Blair (not hard) had to be rubbished – even when their policies spoke for a majority of British people.

Both TV debates, then, have been a very rare moment in which a slightly more liberal-left voice could speak to the public without the distorting frame of pre-emptive abuse and smears. When, for example, have you ever heard the EU defended as plainly and clearly? The window of permissible opinion was opened a little – and people responded with a wave of enthusiasm. It could've been opened wider still – to the Greens, say – and found a receptive audience too.

Full eye opening article: http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/johann-hari/johann-hari-the-forces-blocking-british-democracy-1951687.html


Related articles from today's Independent:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/threes-a-crowd-how-the-unexpected-rise-of-a-third-contender-broke-the-cosy-twoparty-system-1951707.html">Three's a crowd: How the unexpected rise of a third contender broke the cosy two-party system

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/leading-articles/leading-article-feeble-attacks-and-reprehensible-smears-1951688.html">Leading article: Feeble attacks and reprehensible smears

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/sun-censored-poll-that-showed-support-for-lib-dems-1951940.html">'Sun' censored poll that showed support for Lib Dems

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James Murdoch at the Independent: 'like a scene out of Dodge City'

Hugh Muir and Jane Martinson
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 22 April 2010 19.18 BST

After a lifetime at the helm of the world's most powerful media organisation and in the crosshairs of the left, Rupert Murdoch has, of necessity, developed a reasonably thick skin.

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But his son James seems less ready to turn the other cheek, as it were. And this would seem to be the most plausible explanation for why Murdoch the younger, the chairman and chief executive News Corporation Europe and Asia, caused a media sensation on Wednesday by striding across the editorial floor at the Independent newspaper to berate its editor-in-chief, Simon Kelner.

In common with so many of the unpleasant episodes involving angry young men in modern London, it was a squall about reputation and respect. The newly relaunched Independent had produced a series of relatively innocuous promotional ads assuring readers: "Rupert Murdoch won't decide this election. You will."

There is no evidence that Murdoch senior has even seen the ads, but witnesses report that directly upon seeing Kelner, who was supervising the final production stages of that night's paper, Murdoch the younger began angry remonstrations. "What are you fucking playing at?" was his opening gambit. A bewildered Kelner quickly ushered his visitors into his office, where they remained for what have been described as "frank and full discussions" for another 20 minutes. All were grim-faced as Murdoch, carrying a promotional copy of the Independent, accused the rival editor of breaking the unwritten code that proprietors do not attack each other and of besmirching his father's reputation. With his piece said and with the matter unresolved, the aggrieved media mogul left.

The episode left experienced journalists shocked. "They strode in like a scene out of Dodge City," said one. "Murdoch scanned the room, you could almost hear him saying 'Where is he?'"

Full article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/apr/22/james-murdoch-independent-dodge-city

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Will Murdoch Lose Britain?
By MICHAEL WOLFF

Several years ago, Rebekah Wade (now Rebekah Brooks), then the editor of Sun, Rupert Murdoch’s British tabloid, started trying to convince Murdoch that his newspapers should support David Cameron, the Conservative party candidate for prime minister.

This took some doing because Murdoch had become a good friend and pretty loyal supporter of Prime Minister Gordon Brown. What’s more, Murdoch’s wife, Wendi, is a great buddy of Brown’s wife, Sarah. But Wade/Brooks is persistent and, in Murdoch’s words, “knows how to work my family.” She convinced Murdoch’s son, James, that Cameron was the certain future. James then went to work on his father, and a reluctant Murdoch—telling everyone who would listen that Cameron was too slick by half—sourly went along.

Now, Murdoch likes winners, even more than he likes Conservatives. One of the most famous headlines of his career appeared in the Sun after the Conservative victory in Britain 1992: “It's The Sun Wot Won It.” Murdoch is still stewing over an ill-timed and inept endorsement of John McCain over Barack Obama (again, against his better judgment—Murdoch likes Obama and was convinced to back McCain by Roger Ailes and New York Post editor Col Allen).


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In turn, the Independent newspaper ran a front pager yesterday with the headline “Rupert Murdoch will not decide the outcome of the election. You will,” challenging the Murdoch coverage of the race.

Later in the afternoon, in a coming-apart-at-the-seams scenario, Rebekah Wade/Brooks and Murdoch’s son, James—who will both face the wrath of Murdoch senior if they don’t produce a winner—stormed over to the Independent, breached its security systems, barged into the offices of the Independent’s editor-in-chief and top executive, Simon Kelner, and commenced, in Brit-speak, a giant row. Their point was that newspaper publishers don’t slag off other newspaper publishers in polite Britain, but also the point was to remind Kelner that he wasn’t just slagging off another publisher, he was slagging off the Murdochs, damn it. Indeed, the high point of the screaming match was Wade/Brooks, in a fit of apoplexy and high drama, neck muscles straining, saying to Kelner: “And I invited you to Blenheim in the first place!” Blenheim being the Murdoch family retreat and the highest social destination for all Murdoch loyalists and ambitious Brits in the media.

This is one way for empires to end.

Full article: http://www.newser.com/off-the-grid/post/448/will-murdoch-lose-britain.html

A lot more on this being posted in the UK forum by Anarcho-Socialist: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=191x29744