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This is not just a matter of curiosity, but a call to action.
It’s about hate, and the power of it.
It is destructive to democracy when the wealthy misuse their power for their own enrichment. Rupert Murdoch, in the course of accumulating his wealth, has never shied away from using it in such a manner.
Most of us have little desire to ruin people’s lives in the totality of an expected human lifespan. We all can inflict stress, hatred, violence and lies on others to satisfy hatred when it seeks an outlet for expression.
An innate part of being human is the capacity to inflict hatefulness on others. It is used by the rich and powerful to subjugate others.
The recently retired 93-year-old head of News Corporation, Rupert Murdoch, is a significant player in this methodology.
Newscorp is best described as a conservative social engineering project disguised as a news media company.
For over 70 years Murdoch has inflicted his particular brand of indecency on a singularly energetic cohort of individuals responsive to his refined and perfected methods of inflicting misery. He has successfully dulled the minds of millions throughout the Western world.
From this shrivelled-up body of a man came an affinity for social engineering in the name of money. It included the infliction of stress, trauma, hatred, violence, lies and the destruction of people’s lives.
The American columnist Mike Royko said about Rupert Murdoch’s newspapers; “They are trash. No self-respecting fish would want to be wrapped up in one of them.”
On his retirement, as executive chairman of News Corporation, it would be easy to concentrate on his achievements. He has indeed broken his share of legitimate news stories, even if he has used smut, innuendo and lies to do so. He has employed many people and shaken the hands of the most important.
Heaping praise on him would cast a shadow over his heinous actions. He found that journalistic opinions sold more than facts. That tits on page three did the same.
That controversy and lies sold papers when journalists omitted the truth.
Finding the truth and reporting it is more important than creating a narrative where controversy matters more.
Murdoch has bought and sold many newspapers, radio stations, websites and TV networks. If he is to leave a legacy, it must undoubtedly be that he was one of the greatest influencers of his time.
He persuaded people that life is about perception. Not what it is but what we perceive it to be.
The truth is that no other person has had a more disastrous influence on Western democracy than the departing head of News Corporation. No other single individual newspaper proprietor has so poisoned our collective minds to the point where our ability to reason has been taken from us.
No public figure (except Trump, maybe) has done more to erase any understanding of the climate crisis facing all of us.
No media tycoon has used every methodology available to erode endorsed social safety nets to advantage capitalism. Murdoch’s media empire has consistently undermined social safety nets, such as public healthcare and welfare programs by promoting narratives that favor capitalism and individual responsibility over collective well-being.
“Where the truth goes to die,” is my quotation describing the quality of his mastheads?
The Herald Sun, The Australian, Fox News, The Sun, the New York Post etc, and many other soiled publications carry the weight of his propaganda.
He assassinated any editorial goodness and replaced it with a coating of news hatred that took his mastheads to new depths.
Murdoch has titled democratic elections by elevating baseless fake opinions to the front pages and then disguising them as news.
He has tilted a bias in favour of one party over another, with disastrous leaders who have gone on to commit atrocities ranging from war crimes to attempts at overthrowing their own democracies. The man is a monster.
Donald Trump, Scott Morrison, Boris Johnson, Tony Blair, Liz Truss, David Cameron, Tony Abbott and John Howard – were all endorsed by Murdoch and given the required publicity. Their policies and actions were often aligned with Murdoch’s interests, demonstrating the extent of his influence on political leaders and their decisions.
They were all willing to do his favours in return because that’s what building wealth requires. Political power is temporary, but Murdoch’s influence is dynastical and lasting. His ability to shape public opinion and influence political outcomes extends far beyond the tenure of any individual leader or party.
This sullen man allegedly disseminated anti-vaccine nonsense during a global pandemic while quietly receiving one of the first available injections.
Indicators of his sickness were recognisable early in his career. “Long before Fox News lost a $787 million lawsuit against an electronic voting company, Dominion, for knowingly spreading baseless lies and conspiracy theories about the US election being stolen.”
Fox News was as guilty as Trump in fostering the violent and deadly insurrection in the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
When Murdoch left Australia, he left behind a dysfunctional fourth estate. Still, his career took off in the UK. He helped Thatcher rout the unions, and a cruel temperance descended on Britain’s political reality.
In the haunting aftermath of a tragic day in 1989, the echoes of grief resonated deeply as 96 fervent supporters of Liverpool FC lost their lives in a devastating crowd crush at Hillsborough Stadium. This heart-wrenching catastrophe was precipitated by the reckless actions of an overzealous police force, whose mismanagement magnified the chaos. Adding to the anguish, Murdoch’s tabloid, The Sun, callously shifted the blame onto the victims, further tormenting the already shattered families who were left to mourn their beloved.
He continued with a less-than-balanced account of the tragedy for no reason other than wanting to sell more newspapers. It was a pattern of reporting that would endure for decades. Following the disaster, The Sun was driven out of Liverpool.
To this day, The Sun is not welcome within the city limits. It was driven out of town by an angry mob with pitchforks for its part in the tragedy.
As if that wasn’t enough, in 2011 his largest UK masthead, the News of the World, was shut down when it emerged his employees were illegally hacking the phones of celebrities, politicians, and the grieving parents of a missing child.
That Murdoch’s journalism is held in such low regard by so many is plain to see. It would help if you look at the culture in which they thrive. It is one in which profit is placed before any other consideration.
So much for Rupert Murdoch’s claim that “there are no climate change denialists in News Corporation.” This mob are full of lies. Yet they control 70% of Australian print media. It’s time for a Royal Commission, yes.
Kevin Rudd (@MrKRudd) tweeted:
In 2001, when the US invaded the Middle East, Fox News ramped up anti-Muslim sentiment post-9/11.
Its propaganda included fear, racism and xenophobia.
In 2016, it pressed the same buttons as the British fell over each other to fall off the Brexit cliff.
In Australia, when a simple referendum was taking place on whether we should listen to Indigenous people before telling them what to do we were exposed to his language of fear, hatred and suspicion of difference. He pours scorn on the weak and powerless.
And on top of all this, he uses his media in all its forms to assassinate those of another view.
He has since chosen to hand over the reins of his evil-making to his son, Lachlan. The chosen one to take over from the master of misery.
Few mourned the departure of Rupert Murdoch, of whom I have only sparsely written. He may be gone, but the edifice of his evil remains, and NewsCorp will continue with an heir who might be worse than Rupert.
One of his first moves was to nominate former PM Tony Abbott to the Board of News Corp. Abbott would have little to offer in terms of leadership. He was a failure at that. He did, however, have expertise in the delivery of gutter politics. Therefore, he will be well-suited to a seat on Lachlan’s right.
To declare that I harbour a deep-seated loathing for Rupert Murdoch and those who share his worldview would be an overreach, a statement painted too boldly. The flames of hatred do not burn within me; instead, they flicker at the edges of my consciousness, extinguished by the realisation that succumbing to such feelings would only align me with their kind. Instead, I observe from a distance, unable to embrace the animosity I resist.
Malcolm Turnbull tweeted:
“I say this without any sense of hyperbole: I do not believe that any individual alive today has done more damage to American democracy than Rupert Murdoch. You might say [he’s] Australia’s deadliest export.”
He’s even in the news himself
1.In a decisive and emphatic ruling, a Nevada commissioner delivered a stern blow to Mr. Murdoch’s ambitions, thwarting his attempt to pass the reins of his vast media empire entirely to his son, Lachlan. This manoeuvre was not merely a familial succession but an effort to cement Fox News’s unwavering right-wing editorial stance, a legacy that has sparked countless debates and divisions.
2.Prince Harry has reached a settlement with News Group Newspapers, the UK newspaper group led by Rupert Murdoch. His lawyer confirmed the news on Wednesday. The legal action began in 2019 when Harry and a former UK lawmaker sued the group over unlawful activities by tabloid journalists and private investigators connected to The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World.
In a courtroom statement, News Group Newspapers issued an unambiguous apology to Harry for serious privacy violations committed by The Sun from 1996 to 2011, acknowledging the involvement of private investigators. They expressed regret for the damage these actions caused Harry and his late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, particularly during Harry’s childhood, highlighting the distress from invasive media scrutiny.
3.Trump praised Murdoch, whose media ownership portfolio includes Fox News, the New York Post, and The Times of London.
“Rupert is in a class by himself,” Trump told reporters. “He’s an amazing guy.”
Murdoch rags in the past month have criticised Trump for the blanket-pardoning of the January 6 rioters and for eliminating the security details of his first-term advisers.
“I’ll have to talk to him about that,” Trump mumbled.
My thought for the day
We live in a time where horrible things are being perpetrated on us. The shame is that we have normalised them and adjusted accordingly.
PS: What part will he play in the upcoming Australian election? Habitual nastiness, I imagine.
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They already have broader 24/7/365 campaign running for the LNP and Dutton, with an Orwellian agenda of BS to confuse and brainwash ageing voters.
Includes averting their gaze from neo-Nazis' stunts and Hitler salutes by Musk, while promoting white Christian nationalism, to risibly claim 'the left is anti-semitic'.
Now Fox Board's Abbott has squeaked opposition to Trump and Putin's plans on Ukraine, in fear of LNP losing votes due to their open Trumpiness?
There's no doubt that the vile, totally depraved, self-serving collaborators in the elitist LNP/Murdoch/IPA Alliance are among the world's worst, most dangerously undemocratic, corrupt and malicious psychopaths Australia (and the world) will ever see! There isn't any depths too low that they won't sink to; no scurrilous lie they wouldn't hesitate to tell; no malicious slander that unfairly target Labor, the Greens or ANYONE who is, in any way, left-wing; no cruel, callously inhumane attack against the poorest, most vulnerable people in our nation that Murdoch and his Z-rated, talentless hacks, wouldn't stoop to in their relentless, remorseless attempts to continually promote, support and fund the depraved agenda of the Top 1%. If the old adage: "Only the good die young" is true, then, tragically, it seems that that ageing, mean-spirited, hateful, autocratic old sociopath, Rupert Murdoch, could live forever! The ONLY thing that keeps the soulless Murdoch alive is xenophobic racism, inherent misogyny, condescending arrogance, an appalling level of megalomaniacal narcissism and a pure hate for anyone who doesn't share his insular, limited view of the world!
Thanks for your summary Kathryn. On the Mark for me. Australia needs to decide who’s side it wants to be on.
On a non-political note: I've just seen my first praying mantis in well over five years.
In keeping with Rupert’s claim that he and Lachlan would assure the business remains profitable and therefore beneficial to the family, it would appear Rupert’s net effect on the business is slowly going down the gurgler. I wonder if the same argument could be used to counter the present leadership of the Murdoch family trusts?
Murdoch has already started his political play on behalf of the Liberals which seems to be aimed at creating community division, as usual.
At a most unusual gathering of right wing nut jobs on Thursday John Howard was wheeled out to exclaim “God bless Sky News,” at the Sky News antisemitism summit and he was introduced as, one of Australia’s ‘greatest’ prime ministers.
The Sky News single issue, pseudo journalist Sharri Markson, who organised and hosted the event, was also effusive about her employer : “In a world that’s grown increasingly unrecognisable for so many of us, there’s only one media organisation that has consistently pushed back, leading with unparalleled moral clarity that is entirely thanks to Rupert, Lachlan and Sarah Murdoch’s incredible leadership.” Markson addressed Sarah Murdoch, who was the only Murdoch in the audience, saying : “There are no words to fully express our profound gratitude for the principled and heartfelt stance you and Lachlan have taken on this issue (antisemitism), because nothing could matter more than the safety and security of all of our children and grandchildren as Australians.”
Peter Dutton was another guest speaker looking rather odd in a Kippah (which could only have remained in place with some blutack) as was Josh Frydenberg who were well received by the invited audience but not so much Attorney General Mark Dreyfus who probably saw a pattern emerging. He was booed and heckled by sections of the crowd with two people walking out and one turning his back when he addressed the group and noted that “Antisemitism cannot and must not be weaponised in the pursuit of votes,” he said. “It must not be weaponised in the pursuit of newspaper sales or TV ratings either. We all must take a stand together.”
That didn’t go down too well, as Dutton and the Liberals want the Jewish vote and they have gone to exceptional lengths to try and paint the Labor party as being unresponsive and unsympathetic to acts of antisemitism within our community. Dutton will not accept that ASIO, the AFP and state police forces must be allowed to do their work without his constant political interference.
In the parliament last week the Liberals tried to shut down Mark Dreyfus, a Jewish man with direct family connections to the holocaust, when he rose to speak about the holocaust and antisemitism and to insist that this issue should not be used for cynical political gain as the Liberals seem insistent on doing.