The pie incident is currently dominating headlines, and much of the coverage is sympathetic. The Los Angeles Times led its story on the hearing with, “News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch endured not only verbal blows but also an attempted physical attack Tuesday.” Murdoch’s opponents were hoping to embarrass him. Instead, they ended up looking petty and politically-motivated – which is probably the best outcome News Corp. could have hoped for.
I hate these prankster pie-ings and glitter bombings–they're symbolic assassinations, nastily juvenile and intended to humiliate. Not even loathed figures should have strangers lunging at them.
It was excruciating to watch, but the humbling of Rupert Murdoch in front of the parliamentary committee that his executives had treated with such contempt was a triumph for the political process and for parliament. His silences, the drubbing of the desk and occasional forgetfulness were agonising, as were the attempts by James Murdoch to rescue his father when he stumbled, or was too confused to answer Labour MP Tom Watson's questions.
It was a carefully rehearsed soundbite, in a strategy that called for James Murdoch to do most of the talking—in generalized management-speak, in Donald Duck accent, and at great length. In front of M.P.s who had no skill at cross-examination, this prevented much truth from emerging.
Again, the Twitterati seems to think the Murdochs are making asses of themselves today, but the market disagrees strongly.
What we did learn is that according to the Murdochs, neither had much idea what was going on at the News of the World. Perhaps, then, News Corp has become ungovernable, too big for management to keep an eye on what's going on around the business.
Tom Watson looks like a man who has been waiting a long time for this moment to accuse Murdoch senior, and he isn’t going to give it up just because the man is not in a position to respond. As so often, the Left is in danger of over-playing its hand. Starting with justifiable outrage, it ends with unappealing triumphalism.
One minute monosyllabic, the next minute sarcastic and dismissive, banging the table and cantankerous throughout – it’s hard to imagine an approach that could elict less sympathy.
Rupert Murdoch opened saying that this was "the most humble day" of his life, but at times he risked giving the opposite impression. For example, when Watson asked him if he had read his committee's last report, Murdoch almost laughed as if to say "as if!". I can sympathise, but he shouldn't have given that impression. When Jim Sherridan said how Blair "went halfway round the world" to visit him at the now–famous trip to a News Corporation conference in Australia, Murdoch couldn't even remember it. Events that are totemic in Westminster folklore seem utterly irrelevant to Murdoch. And the reverse: he spoke about his father's role in exposing Gallipoli, something not many in that room knew or care about.
I suspect already that the opportunity to draw real lessons from this affair is going to be missed. Even if Murdoch and News Corp. go down, the basic problem that he represents is going to remain.
Rupert is certainly playing second fiddle to his son, James.
What was most interesting to me was the committee members started off wanting (expecting?) to hear more from Rupert, they first asked James to not break in, but slowly and surely James answered the majority of the questions. He said he had no evidence of anyone in senior management intentionally keeping information from him.
I know which of the #Murdoch clan I'd want with me in a punch up and it ain't the blokes.
Live-blog here.
The Dish 