How far in your view is the integrity of the Murdoch owned press jeopardised by the commercial interests of the proprietor?

The first 200 words of this essay...

How far in your view is the integrity of the Murdoch owned press jeopardised by the commercial interests of the proprietor?

Rupert Murdoch runs News Corporation with the steely control of a skilled puppeteer. Though the strings may not always be visible, they are there, making politicians and editors dance as he pleases. Integrity becomes a casualty in the drive for power and profit. As a former reporter from Murdoch's newspaper The Australian confirms, "I don't think News Ltd tolerates integrity. I think it's afraid of integrity. The editors are all cut from the same cloth, they're terrorists in suits."1

Murdoch established his reputation for scandal reporting in 1962, when his first British newspaper, News of the World, paid call girl Christine Keller £23,000 for her memoirs of her affairs with John Profumo, the then Secretary for State of War. Keller also had dealings with Soviet naval attaché Eugene Ianov.2 Of course, public outcry was enormous, and the embarrassment caused to the Macmillan government was fatal. But much of the clamour was directed at Murdoch himself for publishing the story.3 So when News of the World paid Keeler another £21,000 for her 'updated' memoirs in 1969 Murdoch was