His name has always been hard to avoid being engaged, involved or interested with or in the media industry. He and his News Corporation have always featured regularly in news stories and discussions with their spreading influence, questionable decisions and debatable intentions, lately more than ever with the phone hacking scandal. But who is behind that name and the media empire it rules?

Sir Keith Arthur Murdoch (August 12, 1886 – October 4, 1952) – Father, predecessor and initiator of the Murdoch Empire

For decades the Murdoch Empire has grown and evolved to what it is today, the News Corporation, but it all originated in Melbourne, Australia, where Rupert’s ambitious father Keith started his journalistic career.
Back in the early 20th century, Sir Keith established himself as Australia’s most influential newspaper executive and media owner. He directed The Herald and Weekly Times Ltd based in Melbourne, working as a journalist and advisor to the Prime Minister of Australia Billy Hughes during World War I. His notorious letter to Hughes’ predecessor Andrew Fisher is seen by many as a heroic act that saved the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) from a pointless blood bath. But his actions are also criticised by some seeing them based on insufficient evidence and sketchy arguments against General Sir Ian Hamilton, who consequently got deposed. Around the same time, Billy Hughes took over as Prime Minister, whom Keith shared a good relationship and contact with fuelling speculations about Keith’s intentions. The same “Fisher letter” critics also accuse Sir Keith of over-glorifying the AIF and their actions under Hughes’ reign whilst many lost their lives in hopeless battles and of anti-semitism against Jewish AIF leader John Monash, trying to bribe him to surrender his post. They see his actions directed purely by his own profit and advantages he gains from them. But many, especially in Australia, remember him as Australia’s saviour and idol to journalists.

Keith Rupert Murdoch (born in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 11 March 1931) – Son and disciple, very much following in his father’s footsteps

When his father died October 1952, Rupert just began his final academic year at Oxford. He studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) and was described by fellows as the “outsider” with a rebel heart. After long discussions and arguments lasting through to 1953, he inherited his father’s assets, including the Adelaide News, and fused them together under “News Limited”. With News Limited Rupert spread his wings as a businessman and established himself as one of the most dynamic media proprietors. Throughout the 60s and 70s he established The Australian, Australia’s first national daily newspaper, and acquired a list of daily and suburban newspapers including The Daily Mirror and The Daily Telegraph. This, with his father’s The Herald and Weekly Times Ltd, included him on to the top-three list of newspaper proprietors in Australia (with Fairfax Newspapers, running the Sydney Morning Herald, and the Consolidated Press Group, owned by Sir Frank Packer, published The Daily Telegraph before Rupert acquired it in 1972).
As a publisher, Rupert in the early stages of his career, got renowned for the News campaign against the murder conviction of Max Stuart, a young Aborigine accused of a brutal rape and murder without having a solid case or any evidence. Rupert took most of the credit for the campaign although Rohan Rivett, Rupert’s close friend from his father’s side and editor, was known as the real hero as he was the one in close contact to the Stuart family and who dropped the “bombshell” of Max’s alibi. The court and its judge were scrutinised by the News Corp for their mishandling of the case. They, News Ltd and Rivett, later had to face nine counts of defamation, causing anticlimax and leading to the sacking of Rivett (what many criticised Rupert for again). Eventually, all charges were dropped, but by then Rupert had already changed ship, geographically and editorially.

The British Empire and beyond

From the mid-60s and throughout the 70s and 80s, Rupert reoriented his focus from Australia to the UK and US. He acquired a list of top selling newspapers. In the UK, The Sun lead the list and is still the most selling newspaper worldwide, ahead of News of the World. In the US Rupert acquired San Antonio Express-News, founded Star and purchased the New York Post, also one of the top-selling newspapers worldwide. With his growing influence and confidence, Rupert’s group of critics grew, too.
In the 1982 Falkland War under Margaret Thatcher and the Conservatives, which Rupert was a known ally to, the sinking of the Argentine light cruiser Belgrano where 323 crew members lost their lives and The Sun’s headline “GOTCHA – Our lads sink gunboat and hole cruiser” was seen as a controversy which for many Rupert still has to live down today.
When Rupert took over The Times, similar controversy emerged amongst journalists, as many feared there would be no independent newspaper, as Rupert was known for his self-benefiting political tendencies and intentions. This led to the founding of The Independent in 1986.
In April 1989 The Sun caused furore again with its accusations made against the Liverpool fans in the aftermath of the Hillsborough disaster, where 96 fans lost their lives following a human crush in the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottignham Forrest. Under the headline “The Truth” and sub-headlines “Some fans picked pockets of victims”, “Some fans urinated on the brave cops” and “Some fans beat up PC giving kiss of life”, then editor Kelvin MacKenzie let the story run claiming that “drunken Liverpool fans viciously attacked rescue workers as they tried to revive victims” and “police officers, firemen and ambulance crew were punched, kicked and urinated upon”. Following this report, the newspaper was boycotted by most newsagents in Liverpool and thousands, if not millions, of fans are still campaigning today for “Justice for the 96″, having not forgiven The Sun for their misrepresentation and the  relatively low sales figures in the region are still reflecting that.
By the 90s, Rupert’s News Corp – new name to News Limited – had run themselves into debts. Main part of those debts, was his UK-based satellite network Sky Television which was saved through merging with their main rival satellite operator British Satellite Broadcasting, now known as BSkyB which has dominated the UK’s pay-TV market ever since, especially in Rupert’s favourite area: Sport. Over £300 million were invested alone for the FA Premier League rights to show live games, beating the BBC and ITV and thereby manifesting Sky Sports as main source of capital and success for BSkyB and Rupert.
With the turn of the new millennium, BSkyB made the headlines having failed to reach agreements with Richard Branson’s Virgin Group regarding their channel agreement, the latter accusing the former of over-charging, money-making and “using their dominance to stifle their competition” and filing a legal case in the High Court against BSkyB under the UK Competition Act 1998 and Article 82 of the EC Treaty. Many regarded both parties as unprofessional and childish and the National Consumer Council considered whether or not they are going to raise a super-complaint against both of them.
Past those ups and downs, Rupert redeveloped, advanced and invested a lot into many parts of the media industry, especially the newspaper and television industry through technical advances like digitalisation and broadband and with success (Fox News, CNN’s biggest and only 24h–news–station competitor as one of the most successful examples).

News Corp today and its future

Three of Rupert’s six kids from four marriages have been more than involved with the News Corp hoping to inherit their father’s fortune of his stake in the News Corporation estimated to be worth around $7.6 billion in the latest figures of 2011, with last year’s rvenue topping over four times that with $32.778 billion .
Rupert’s eldest son Lachlan (born in London, Sept 8 1971) was the deputy chief operating officer at the News Corporation and the publisher of the New York Post before surprisingly resigning from his executive posts in July 2005. Elisabeth Murdoch (born in Sydney, Aug 22 1968) had made purchases in the American television industry with loans from her father but quickly grew independent from her family, making a career as a television and film producer in London. The main candidate to be Rupert’s successor is James Murdoch (born in Wimbledon, Dec 13 1972) who took over from Lachlan as chief executive of BSkyB since November 2003 and is the only Murdoch offspring still directly involved in the News Corp business. The hacking scandal and its aftermath over the next year or so will show whether James can weather and cope with the storms of media ownership and leadership as his father and grandfather have over the past century; popular or not, under the table or not, above the law or not, the success of the Murdochs has grown, shown and shone through the decades with News International, fact, like it or not.
Tensions have arisen between Rupert and his oldest children in the past over who will receive what and how much control and stake of the News Corp and Murdoch media empire. Over the years some terms have been drawn out but that without a doubt does not mean the end of discussions and tensions, which is worrying regarding Rupert’s age (80). So, it is still to be settled and seen who will be the successor to Rupert’s throne and after the most recent crises, developments and call for heads, the question is, who will want to take the responsibility on top of all the values and riches.

References: – The Murdoch Archipelago – Bruce Page & his further references.
– www.wikipedia.info – under Keith Arthur Murdoch, Keith Rupert Murdoch, British Sky Broadcasting, Falkland War, Hillsborough disaster and further references.

Originally written 07/05/2007, last edited and updated 19/07/2011.

Thor: 6/10
A nice mix of things: Expecting hero/heartthrob/hunk-heroics and drama, one got cheeky, quirky and weird little bits of everything. Mix both those lots together and I think that comes closest to describing this film. It’s a nice and funny surprise. (And don’t you think he, Chris Hemsworth, looks like Patrick Swayze a la Point Break on that poster???!!!)

Fast & Furious 5: 6/10
Testosterone overload! Cars, muscles, bangs, booms, fire, more bangs, more booms, chases, races, fights, guns, shots, lots and lots of blood, sweat and cheers! Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Vin Diesel make a perfect couple in that kind of setting- just the final kiss missing! Ye looking for an emotional tear jerker and indepth storyline? Forget it! Ye looking for action and entertainment? Ye got it! Although, it has got enough baggage = story and emotions with it too, don’t get me wrong!

Hangover 2: 8/10
I had just as many laughs and giggle attacks as with the first film! Really enjoyed it! Phil (Bradley Cooper) is the hottest hotty once again and Alan (Zach Galifianakis) completes the clumsy chaos bunch, with his weirdo profile, adding more laughs and cringes. Good cheer-up, mood-boosting film, making you feel you’re not half the idiot you thought you were, watching this lot, you know there is always worse!

Last 3 on TV/DVD:

Alexander: 7/10 (2004)
Don’t know why I haven’t watched this one before, how come I hadn’t gone to the cinema for this… Anyway, at a glance, it is one of those classics-to-be. Bore for some, awe/interest/fascination for others, especially with the line up of stars (Colin Farrell, Angelina Jolie, Val Kilmer, Anthony Hopkins, …!). I’m more the latter, so this one goes into my good books and DVD collection.

Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004): 4/10
I didn’t feel the mix of emotions, the teers and laughs as I did with the first film. It’s much more negative and boring, Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger) and her posh lover Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) just having a go at each other every chance they get, for heartthrob Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant) to walk in and swoop her off her feet. Bla, bla, bla, zzzz… I just felt more annoyed than amused and didn’t enjoy watching it for too long…

Natural Born Killers (1994): 8/10
I forget every time how twisted and mental this film is! Director Oliver Stone + story writer Quentin Tarantino at their combined best! Micky and Mallory Knox (Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis) make the perfect disturbed couple on a destructive murder spree a la Bonnie and Clyde, destroying anything and everything, anyone and everyone that gets in their way, including her abusive father and ignorant mother which just got them started. The alternative way of storytelling, the mix of angles and perspectives, shots and sets, colours and moods and music, just make this film unique!

Another one to add to the set: Scream 4! Liked it, just like the others! 7/10

Still want to see: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides & Insidious

Looking forward to: A Dangerous Method, David Cronenberg’s third film with Viggo Mortensen (I have the other two on DVD, say no more!),  looks at the intense relationship between Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud and how it gave birth to psychoanalysis… Can’t wait! Well, will have to wait till January 2012! :-S

Not looking forward to: Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, as blogged before, a money-sucking American copycat version of the brilliant Swedish original! I’ll refuse to spend a penny on it! (UK release date: 26 December 2011)

Pictures taken from imdb.com

• Wayne Rooney‘s threat to leave United followed by a U-turn and a £50 million big deal to make him stay.
• The coalition‘s big cuts debate.
• Portsmouth‘s possible liquidation.
• And last but not least, the wikileaks on Iraq.

The last news has come very convenient for the coalition government: The Iraq wikileaks coming out now puts a shadow over and forms an nice, outragous and scandalous distraction from their cuts debate and shows how bad it was under the Labour government.

Nick Clegg and David Cameron can be happy we are not like the French, otherwise their cars would be on fire and windows smashed! That would entail more costs and cuts then though wouldn’t it? We think more logical and responsible than that.

We know money has to be saved, cuts have to be made; we knew that when we voted, but are not happy when promises are broken! Student loans to be uncapped; pensioners and lower earners to be hit hardest by the cuts, and so on! It is taking the mickey out of us just a little bit…

What about the spoilt clowns like Wayne Rooney who has been dominating the headlines all week? Does anyone knock at their doors, increase their tax and cuts and put some sense of realism into their heads. No!

Instead, they just throw their dolly out of the pram, moan around a bit and get record salaries within days! £250k a week! It is all a big fat hypocritical joke!

The last but not least example of the confusion, paradox and absolute baloneyness of the world nowadays: Pompey were near liquidation with around £120 million debt – not even half the worth Barcelona put on their star player Lionel Messi.

Portsmouth and people like you and me would be happy to have a fraction of Messi’s, Rooney’s and alike’s fortune! Hard workers don’t earn what they get per week in over a decade or two!

Football and Manchester United legends like Bobby Charlton, George Best and Matt Busby hardly earned that in their life time – all counted together!

But, poor guy Rooney!

Oh, sorry, forgot – wikileaks are the true crooks for telling the truth and us workers are the true villains and fools for working and have to be penalised and punished for it!

*sarcasm and cynisism included

I’m not saying throwing a cat in a bin or any cruelty against animals is fine… But please! Just to name and remind of a couple of countless crimes and crises: In Pakistan thousands of people have been killed and countless are left waiting to be saved, to feed their children; countries like Iraq and Afghanistan are in war and turmoil still; kids are enslaved and abused closer to home than many people would like to imagine; - and the news hours are mainly filled by Tiger Woods’ divorce, Peter Crouch’s and Wayne Rooney’s latest affairs and relationship status, X-factor rejects… And a woman throwing a cat in a bin.

It ca(n’)t get more random and outrageaous! Can’t the news get a bit more… Closer to reality! Better prioritised, showing what is out there and not just randomly focusing and preying on someone in particular! Or more like, put things into perspective, that there is much worse things – the woman’s life has been turned into hell because of a cat, a bin and a camera (and the cat survived unharmed by the way)!

What about all those criminals, convicts, rapists, paedophiles, con-politicians and murderers out there?! They don’t get half the scrutiny, coverage and outrage because they get protected by the law more and rather than prosecuted and punished! Fact!

SALT: 6/10
Angelina Jolie at her best, flashing, kicking, shooting, sexy, eplosive & always ready for the twist, fighting on without a single scratch on her. A bit like a modern, female version of James Bond with a hint of Terminator.

Knight and Day: 6/10
I expected cheap and cheesy and got exactly that with a hint of OTT and purposely so – that’s what made it the more entertaining, Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz are not the youngest and fittest any more, a bit cringeworthy, but again, the funnier and more entertaining it made the film.

Toy Story 3: 10/10
I haven’t laughed that much in years! The Spanish touch to Buzz Lightyear was unbeatable! Directed by Lee Unkrich, starring Tom Hanks, Tim Allen and Joan Cusack, Pixar know what they’re doing, unlike many others with their useless follow-ons, sequels an prequels… This one’s one more masterpiece and the Pixar list!

Last 3 on TV/DVD:

Look Who’s Talking Too (1990): 9/10
A classic, I just love babies. I always imagine them in their own world, like Rugrats in film version, I love how John Travolta and Kirstie Alley portray the adult world and they’re problems and how they are seen and taken in from an infant’s point of view. Original and quite bone-touchy way to show us our world and lives. Just love it.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986): 7/10
This 80s teen flick, with a young Matthew Broderick and bad-man headmaster Jeffrey Jones, deals with a topic that will never die out: skiving off school. It has always existed and always will do. This entertaining, choatic but crafty, shifty, nifty story is good, funny, light-hearted afternoon entertainment.

Something about Mary (1998): 9/10
When I watched it on TV a couple of weeks back, I had fogotten how good it was! The different characters with their many different, embarrassing, crazy moments, encounters, problems and mis-haps – I love it! Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon, Ben Stiller, Lee Evans and Chris Elliott make a brill bunch of mis-matches!

Best of the Year: Film & Book:

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: 10/10
I can’t believe Hollywood will try to suck their part out of this one! The original Swedish story, the drama, the characters, Michael Nyqvyst and Noomi Rapace forming an unlikely but explosive couple, the history, the politics, the conflicts, the plots, the revelations, the scandals, the outrage, the implications, the consequences, … , just everything Stieg Larsson worked on all his life, with all his expertise from his career as a journalist and after becoming instrumental in researching, documenting and exposing Swedish extreme right and racist organisations; an influential debater and lecturer on the subject, reportedly living for years under death threats from his political enemies… And the spoilt Hollywood brats want to cash in on the genius. I am certainly going to boycott it, out of protest, because I don’t want to see an original masterpiece spoilt to American copycat farce! I love and appreciate Larsson’s work too much to just ignore it, turn a blind eye on it and just watch the americanised version of it, with Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara (at least not as bad as Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie nightmare visions I had for the Hollywood version, but still, bad enough, they’re about as Swedish as I am). R.I.P. Larsson.

Sneak Peek: The Girl Who Played With Fire: 9/10

The shine was taken off a bit as I had already read the book, unlike when I watched the first of the Millennium Trilogy and was kept on the edge and grabbing onto the sides of my seat, gobsmacked at what was happening and developing on the big screen in front of my eyes. So, the second film didn’t have the same shocking edge for me personally,  because I knew what was going to happen and director Daniel Alfredson staying very faithful to the plot and story line of the book.  The actors Nyqvyst  and Rapace continue with their performances of a lifetime, top class and worth every award they can get. Can’t wait for the third part and grand finale!

The Girl Who Played With Fire is out in the UK cinemas from Friday, 27th August 2010.

Pictures taken from imdb.com

The Lib Dems won 57 seats, 5 less than at the last election

I had enough of empty promises.

I had enough of the hypocritical system called democracy with a Prime Minister that was NOT elected.

I thought that after over 60 years of back-and-forth tussling between Labour and Conservatives it was TIME for CHANGE.

As Barack Obama put it and started the movement at the last American election: YES WE CAN!

I wanted to stop doubting the system and thinking “my vote won’t change anything anyway”. I come from a non-voting family in which most share that belief. But with the last American election and for this UK election, I changed my point of view to “every little helps”.

Every voice counts and shows WE WANT CHANGE.

Every single one of the the over-80 seats the Labour party lost should show them that we, the voters, are not happy with them, want them out, want CHANGE.

However, for voters like me, our vote may come back to haunt us.

I expected a hung parliament and thought that it would show the leaders, politicians and their parties that they would have to get a grip, change their ways, work together and follow the voters’ voices. No party winning an overall majority shows the public is not overall happy with any of them, indicating obviously they need to change their ways.

However, if the Liberal Democrats choose the Labour Party as a coalition partner, we will take a large step backwards, seeing Labour staying on top after losing the election by a large margin and an unelected Prime Minister govern yet again.

I know the Conservatives are very different, much more opposite to the Lib Dems – right to left – but, as democratic politicians and paid professionals, they should be sensible, professional, mature, smart and switched-on enough to find compromises that fit all, the voters especially. That is their job. Forget their egos and pride and think of the country, the voters, the people.

Please, we VOTED for CHANGE, so, we WANT CHANGE! NOT LABOUR!

Add your views!

I started my work experience at the Times going through the News International papers. I quickly browsed through the Sun, a paper I read about once or twice a year when I find it lying around, when page 23 caught my eye: The article Forgotten Heroes commemorated the soldiers who fell in Northern Ireland and the short list on the sideline surprised me:

According to that list, the death toll of “The Troubles” is higher than the casualties of the Falklands War, both Gulf Wars, Iraq and Afghanistan combined. With the media coverage growing over the last decade, it has given us - society, the public, the audience – the impression that we are surrounded by war and terror and that times are harder and worsening, especially since 9/11. This little stat summary showed the contrary.

I did my own bit of research after that revelation and checked out the Ministry of Defence‘s records of army casualties. I found slight discrepancies between their figures and the Sun’s list, but the main factor remained that Northern Ireland has cost most dearly of all conflicts put together.

It was worrying to read the drastically rising tendency of Afghanistan’s death toll in the last couple of years though. This year alone, more army personnel have died (81) than in the first six years of the conflict (2001-2006, 44 casualties), nearly double. Iraq meanwhile has settled down, from 172 deaths in the first five years to five casualties in the last two years. That explains the media’s change of focus over the last year or so, away from Iraq.

But just because there are conflicts at present and we cannot get away from their coverage in the daily news, it does not mean the situtation is worse than ever before. We are not allowed to forget the past, that there have been much costlier conflicts that have been resolved and harder times we have come through, just less cameras and reporters to cover them.

Reading through the Guardian’s Media feature on Reinhard Mohn’s death and its implications for Bertelsmann, I found it interesting to be reminded and learn about the media world outside News International and the News Corporation. Growing up seeing the Murdoch dynasty grow and take over everything, it made a change to read about a different media power.

Reinhard and Elisabeth Mohn

Coming from Germany, of course I knew about Bertelsmann and a lot of their subsidiaries like RTL and Der Spiegel. But growing up with BBC and BSkyB, my focus of interest was more on the Murdoch’s family empire, Richard Branson’s Virgin steps into media fortune and the British press as it took on a whole different dimension than the German press and media. And I always liked to compare and contrast the different media and their history, development as well as news coverage.

This article just made me aware of things and reminded me that it is not a one-man’s game out there, but that there is always competition, always another side and angle to things.  It is not allowed to be forgotten in a time where plurality and media representation are  under focus more than ever.

Every time I see this clip I get goosebumps! How horrible it must have felt for the mother to see the pram with her six-month old son roll and drop onto the tracks, train arriving. The people around her are just as shocked and horrified. Like a scene out of Final Destination. How lucky and happy it all ended ended up though! The baby escaped with a scratch on the nose! Unbelievable miracle!