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23 Nov 2011 14:15

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Biz: Phone-hacking scandal: James Murdoch (partially) resigns

  • Down goes Murdoch (sort of): News broke this morning that James Murdoch, the son of media magnate Rupert and the most prominent News Corp figure embroiled in the phone hacking scandal, would resign as director of the board of News International’s UK newspapers. He is not, however, entirely out in the cold. He’s still the deputy COO of the entire News Corp empire, which begs the question — when you have to start resigning jobs due to legal trouble and popular outrage, don’t most normal people lose the highest profile one first? Murdoch ascended to the deputy COO position earlier this year, and was thought to be the looming successor to his father atop the News Corp empire. That certainly can’t happen now, can it? (Photo by Eirik Solheim) source

04 Sep 2011 16:10

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Biz: James Murdoch turns down bonus; Rupert Murdoch takes his own

  • In light of the current controversy surrounding News of the World, I have declined the bonus that the company chose to award to me. While the financial and operating performance metrics on which the bonus decision was based are not associated with this matter, I feel that declining the bonus is the right thing to do.
  • James Murdoch • Explaining his reasons for not accepting a $6 million bonus from News Corp. in the wake of the News of the World scandal. Accepting the bonus would have increased his 2010 take-home pay by 74 percent. His dad Rupert, meanwhile, accepted a $12.5 million bonus of his own. Do you think James made the right move? And if so, should Rupert Murdoch have followed the same track? source

16 Aug 2011 15:55

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World: New evidence might really hurt the Murdochs’ testimony

  • thenJames Murdoch pleaded ignorance when he went in front of Parliament last month as part of the phone hacking scandal that felled News of the World. Though it kinda seemed unlikely that Murdoch would know nothing of the phone hackings, there was no evidence against him.
  • nowThe law firm that previously represented News International has begun testifying against them — labeling their testimony as having “serious innaccuracies.” Murdoch might be questioned again, and he’ll have new evidence and testimony to answer for. source

19 Jul 2011 15:28

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World: Recap: Key highlights from Rupert Murdoch’s hearing

  • hearing Today was a pretty harrowing day for News Corp’s Rupert Murdoch. He went before the British parliament with his son James regarding the ongoing phone hacking scandal.
  • result Both Rupert and his son maintained they didn’t know anything. James talked a lot more than his dad — but paused when a member of parliament obliquely compared the scandal to Enron.
  • dessert? Toward the end of the hearing, someone snuck in and gave Rupert a pie to the face — a not-so-tasteful distraction that nearly overshadowed the fairly serious situation at hand. source
  • » If the hearing wasn’t enough to make Murdoch sweat, LulzSec might be able to do the trick. They’re reportedly going to release a whole bunch of emails from News International staffers. Those emails will show what various people in the organization know, if they know anything about the phone hacking. They’ve already released Rebekah Brooks’s email password.

14 Jul 2011 14:42

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World: Rupert Murdoch, son will get cozy in Parliamentary hot seat

  • Their appearances required a little bit of arm-twisting. Rebekah Brooks, the editor of News of the World during the phone hacking scandal will be with them, too. They’ll be questioned on the situation and will have to offer up evidence. Originally Murdoch and his son weren’t going to attend, but only decided to after facing enormous pressure from government officials. The hearing is set for next Tuesday, and it really doesn’t seem like any of this will turn out well for News Corp. In other news — the FBI will investigate News Corp. to see whether the phones of 9/11 victims were possibly hacked by British tabloids. Which would bring this to a whole new level of messed-up. source

09 Jul 2011 11:56

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World: Rupert Murdoch’s son James liable in News of The World hack?

You would not believe the kind of migraine a long-term phone-hacking scandal causes. The younger Murdoch could face charges in both the U.S. and UK over the allegations. source

30 Mar 2011 20:26

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Biz: James Murdoch being prepped for News Corp. takeover?

James Murdoch, the son of Rupert Murdoch, has been promoted to Deputy COO of News Corp. This move is widely considered a step towards his eventual takeover of the company. source
 

12 Nov 2010 11:00

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Biz: News Corp. dude complains about mobile “cannibalizing” sales

  • The problem with the apps is that they are much more directly cannibalistic of the print products than the website. People interact with it much more like they do with the traditional product.
  • News Corp. Europe and Asia head (and Rupert’s kid) James Murdoch • Explaining why mobile apps are a danger to his company’s business model. Sorry James, but if you don’t like it, deal with it. The two papers that you’ve put behind paywalls so far have lost most of their readership, so clearly you understand your market. Oh, who are we kidding? You have no clue about the online or mobile spaces. source

30 Aug 2009 11:47

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Biz: News Corp.: The BBC’s “free news” model is hurting us

  • It is essential for the future of independent digital journalism that a fair price can be charged for news to people who value it.
  • News Corp. European chairman James Murdoch • Making an argument critical of the BBC, a state-sponsored news source which he says is damaging the business models of free-market journalism. Beyond the fact that the news organization is “dominant,” he specifically has an issue with the fact that they won’t be charging for their content online. Our response to Rupert’s son? Stop whining and improve your content. While remaining independent editorially, the BBC’s news is often of a higher quality than yours, which makes it easier for us to decide what to read online. • source