Gordon Brown: Murdoch's Sun Trying To "Become A Political Party"

Another international leader has come out attacking a Rupert Murdoch-owned media outlet as a political operative.

As the White House continues its war against Fox News, accusing it of being the research arm of the Republican party and not a legitimate news organization, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has accused Murdoch's Sun newspaper of trying to "become a political party."

The Sun turned on Brown and the Labour Party in September, endorsing Tory candidate David Cameron in announcing that "Labour's Lost It."

"I have a lot of admiration for Rupert Murdoch personally," Brown told Piers Morgan in an interview to be published in GQ later this week. "His family come from not far from mine in Scotland, and his attitudes to hard work and getting on with things you can only admire. But the Sun has tried to become a political party. It's not personal about Rupert, he's always been very friendly to me. I think the Sun's made a mistake but that's up to them."

Murdoch biographer Michael Wolff has posited that Rupert's son James was behind the Sun's endorsement, but Brown told Morgan he is not as sure.

"I don't know [who made that decision], but it doesn't matter because the people will decide what happens at the next election, not the Sun," Brown said. "I think the Sun tried to become a political party that day and that was a terrible mistake. And I suspect over time that their readers will think that, too."

Comments

[tel8034]

Rupert Murdoch is an opportunist.

In an effort to expand his television interests further in the United States Rupert Murdoch became an American citizen in 1985......­..........­.... He didn't become an American citizen because he loves America and its principles .................. He became an American citizen to fatten his coffers.

As an Australian, who became an American citizen for the WRONG REASONS, he should not be butting his nose into the politics of the UK and even in America.

But I guess because he is so hated in Australia, he's not allowed to butt his nose into anything there.

[ask0]

Both political parties have traded their princciples and given up something, something that Rupert wants in order to get Ruperts backing.


The BBC has become too succesful for Murdochs liking. The BBC is also considered to be too left wing and independent for Murdochs liking. It is his main stumbling block to his planned business model.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/media/6505610/Rupert-Murdoch-delays-plans-to-charge-for-online-news.html




His son come out strongly against the BBC.
The Tories have promised Murdoch to deal with the BBC. That is part of the price they paid for Murdochs support.

[PresidentRobertBooth]

It should be pointed out that the UK's population is around 60 million

The Sun's readership is around 3 million.


They have no power or influence at all. It's a common myth that their support for Blair in 1997 was a driving force behind his election victory. It's total nonsense. Everyone knew that after 18 years of Tory government, the prevailing opinion in the UK was that a change was coming.

The same is true now. The Sun know that the Tories will win the next general election, so they've decided to support them. The Sun simply jump on obvious bandwagons.

[ask0]

PresidentR­obertBooth


You are very naive if you dont think that The Sun / Times/ Sky news has the power to influence policy. It is much more then 3 million - and even three million is substantial.

How much power does Fox News have to influence opinion in the US?




And PresidentRB - I hope that you display more "understanding or how things work" in the running your own empire.





PS I will make a bet that when the Tories come into power they will start downsizing and changing the BBC - making it less independent, imporsing more restricitions to limit its success. That is one of the deals the Tories made to get Ruperts backing.

[PresidentRobertBooth]

***You are very naive if you dont think that The Sun / Times/ Sky news has the power to influence policy. It is much more then 3 million - and even three million is substantial.***

Sky News are largely impartial. The Times has a circulation of just over 600K

Both have little or no influence.


***How much power does Fox News have to influence opinion in the US?***

By all logic, it should have virtually none. It gets lower ratings that WWE Monday Night RAW.


***PS I will make a bet that when the Tories come into power they will start downsizing and changing the BBC - making it less independent, imporsing more restricitions to limit its success. That is one of the deals the Tories made to get Ruperts backing.***

Highly unlikely.

[vandegrasse]

You're right Gordon Brown. Kick Murdoch out and close the presses or he will ruin your country!

[gx5000]

FOX, SKY, SUN.....in essense NEWSCORPS....
the BBC, CBC and any other sane news agency hasn't a chance...
Support your free establishment news sources before Murdoch and pepsi and disney bring you the news.....oh yeah, disney, ABC..nevermind...

[Lee Andrew]

It didn't use to be like this--- until deregulation of th emdeia markets people --- another fine mess the GOP (Gang of Predators) got us all into.

LeeAndrew fromer CNN

[blizb]

I don't know if they can shut them down in England but operating as a media monopoly in the U.S. should be investigated and they should be shut down if so.

They aren't a media operation if they operate as a propaganda political machine.

My question is, do they indulge in illegal hiring practices? How do they get that many people of one political persuasion hired without asking them?

If they don't ask them when they are hired, then they have to be paying the Democrats or liberals higher paychecks than the Republican employees after they are hired to present the network opinions.

Why aren't they investigated for having only Republican conservative show hosts? Isn't that doing the public a disservice?

[nellpost]

Why is there no hue/cryl for regulation? This seems necessary in my opinion.

[spacecreep]

that's the thing about murdock.... he's promoting right wing nutology now, . we will see republicans apologizing to fox news personnel like we saw them apologizing to lumbaugh everytime they disagreed with him......media should never even come close to controling the government­......repu­blicans are always yelling about government trying top control media......they will become victims of their own paranoria and fox is so great at creating it........ stop for a moment and imagine how much paranoria fox created the last 8 years about islamic terrorist, iraq, iran,north korea, china and anybody to promote military action around the world....... if they lie about health care, climate control........and even the president of the united staes by doctoring video, misquoting and out right lying, what do you think they were doing all along... they didn't just start lieing in january, never did the republican party... they are in their element.

[Ken114]

So it seems that more people around the world are seeing the growing threat of "Reactionary Rupert" and his band of trolls.

[Vetinari]

If Sun can keep up their strong traditions,I hope they win, and I hope they win big!

Nips on page three in all official documentation...

[land2341]

Look long and hard at what Murdoch owns and his stated ideals and plans. He has never hidden that he has a political agenda and that he'll sing the praises of whomever he currently sees as good for his bottom line. Several other countries warned us about him and we made exceptions to help him buy more stations..........

[ask0]

bingo

[Beachchick]

Put an end to the fifth column: News Corp. Murdoch undermines democracy and the future of this country. He is a dangerous demagogue who should never have been allowed to broadcast in this country. I blame Murdoch for the deep social division that weakens our collective power as a people.

Please stop Murdoch's gutter press. Americans deserve a democratic free press not a corporate controlled tool used to manipulate the public and control the political agenda.

[nexxtep54]

America HAS a democratic free press. If tastes run to the spicy end you have to consider how the appetite was evolved. (metaphorically) It once was risky to add onion to the stew, now the onion is the stew. You have to expect a lasting after-taste.

[JessWonderin]

Seems the world will finely wake up to the Right Wing threat to REAL democracy and freedom . . . even ITALY slammed Murdock's attempt to take over "news" . . . .

[9liberal]

Rupert and lobbyists control us....very sad. They do need to stop him now...before its too late

[satyriasis]

Rupert Murdoch is the most dangerous man on the planet. His propaganda operations seek to control opinion and discourse in all G7 countries. Thereby wielding enormous political power. More political power than any media conglomerate on earth. This is a scary time.

[Paul Peete - Huffpost Blogger]

The press/media he controls is clearly a propaganda outlet for right wing, neocon, ultraconservative, control of the masses. The President and Brown know what they face.

[PresidentRobertBooth]

***The press/media he controls is clearly a propaganda outlet for right wing, neocon, ultraconservative, control of the masses. The President and Brown know what they face***



The problem with that argument is that Brown didn't have a problem with The Sun when they supported New Labour.

[sheaintsayin]

"I think the Sun tried to become a political party that day and that was a terrible mistake. And I suspect over time that their readers will think that, too."

PLEASE take heed: You do not want the gnus; they tend to stink up the place.

[unclelew]

The Sun blows in whatever direction the power is leaning. He was for Thatcher and Major. Then Major waned and he sucked up to Blair. Now Brown is waning and so the Sun shifts again. It's not principle; it's pure, crass business.

[Mike Sagmeister]

Sure, complain now. Was Labour complaining 12 years ago when they won the election, to a huge part because of Murdoch's papers (including Sun) fervently endorsing Blair?