The Murdoch empire has a strange way of expressing that humility that Creepy Uncle Rupe claimed he felt when appearing before a Commons select committee all those years ago. The Sun said sorry over Hillsborough, yet they re-hired Kelvin McFilth. And now, to show just how sorry they are about all that phone-hacking at the now defunct Screws, the signs are that the twinkle toed yet domestically combative Rebekah Brooks is back.
Brooks clearly overjoyed at the news
And the suggestion is that she will return as News UK’s CEO, which is quite an achievement for someone whose grasp of her last spell in the role was so sure that she managed not to find out that phone-hacking on an industrial scale was going on at the aforesaid Screws, and that the largest-selling UK Murdoch title was, in effect, a criminal enterprise. Plus if she is coming in as CEO, she faces a very full in-tray.
For starters, the Leveson Inquiry has not gone away: Young Dave can bluster as much as he likes, but the need for “Leveson Part 2”, dealing with the relationship between the press and law enforcement authorities, is all too obvious, especially with the Daniel Morgan Panel now gathering evidence (you can see Peter Jukes’ latest Byline Media article, detailing some of the Police failings with the Morgan murder, HERE).
And there’s more: not only is the case of “Fake Shiekh” Mazher Mahmood still hanging over the inmates of the Baby Shard bunker, even if the CPS decline to bring a prosecution against Maz for perjury following the collapse of the Tulisa Contostavlos trial, as there are appeals against six of his “sting” exposés in progress. Then there is the possibility of corporate charges being brought over phone-hacking.
You thought that one had gone away? Think again: the Metropolitan Police have sent a file to the CPS for its due consideration, as the Guardian reported yesterday. So that’s all, is it? Well, no it’s not: News UK may also be about to face a fight with Associated Newspapers over its preferred candidate to talke over the editor’s chair at the Super Soaraway Currant Bun, where David Dinsmore is reported to be being kicked upstairs.
As has also been reported, the rumoured favourite for the Sun job is Tony Gallagher, whose abilities are much respected, and who is certainly nasty enough for the job. But here a problem enters: Gallagher has only recently returned to the Daily Mail, where the legendarily foul mouthed Paul Dacre might not want to let go of the editorial reins, but let go in the near future he will, willingly or otherwise.
And here a parallel enters: when it was Dacre whom Rupe wanted to lift from Associated - it is believed he wanted the Vagina Monologue to edit the Times - the Rothermeres kicked David English upstairs so they could head off the Murdoch offer by installing Dacre as Mail editor. Gallagher is a Mail man through and through.
Only the most expert pair of hands is going to negotiate all of those obstacles successfully. So if Ms Brooks really is going back to the CEO’s desk, we’ll find out in pretty short order just how good she really is. Or maybe not.
3 comments:
Tim, will you please stop using "respected" and "Murdoch," "Brooks," "the Sun" and "News of the World" in the same article.
It's a contradiction in terms.
They all know what shite they turn out. Therefore, they're all guilty.
Gobshites the lot of them.
Correct me if Im wrong but wasnt her basic defence at trial that she saw nothing, knew nothing and did nothing? How then is she suddenly top management material if she saw, knew and did so little in the running of that part of the Dirty Digger's empire?
Anyway the good news is that the CPS might be about to press corporate charges against NI or whatever they are called now. Sadly, even a guilty probably wont see any of that shower in the slammer.
@ AndyC
"How then is she suddenly top management material if she saw, knew and did so little in the running of that part of the Dirty Digger's empire? "
She survived the trial and prosecution by good management? Also she would know if there are any other bodies, or skeletons by now, left to be found eg missing emails, ipads, blackberry etc? Was the substantial sum paid to her on her resignation actually compensation or a retaining fee?
It was alleged at the time when the Met reopened the phonehacking inquiry that they were told that they could have Coulson but not Brooks. Brooks had her lawyers fees paid with no fuss, Coulson had to fight for his. Back room deals? Coulson although editor was just another journalist like those at The Sun that were thought to be expendable - Brooks is a networker and administrator who would more than likely know a lot more of what goes on, or went on, behind the scenes in "deep carpet world".
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