Rupert Murdoch Praises Rick Santorum On Twitter

Rupert Murdoch made waves Monday evening when he tweeted his support of Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum, just a day before the Iowa caucuses.

It was the second time in two days Murdoch had sung Santorum's praises. On New Year's Day, he tweeted:

The latest remarks "didn't quite rise to the level of an official endorsement," The Hollywood Reporter noted. But they constitute a major vote of confidence for the ex-Pennsylvania senator, who is locked in a tight three-way race with Mitt Romney and Ron Paul in Iowa. Santorum's campaign had been marked by ineffectiveness until the past week, when he began to surge in the polls while other social-conservative favorites like Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann faded.

Murdoch and Santorum have a history: Santorum was a paid consultant on the Murdoch-owned Fox News until March when he declared his presidential intentions. As The New York Times's Brian Stelter reports, Santorum has sometimes been critical of Fox News since then.

Some commentators appeared bemused by Murdoch's opinions. The Nation's Chris Hayes tweeted:

But Stelter reported that, "When asked on Monday if Mr. Murdoch -- a computer neophyte -- is indeed on Twitter, his top spokeswoman, Teri Everett, said, 'Oh, yes.'"

Murdoch only joined Twitter on Saturday, but has already amassed over 78,000 followers while letting loose a string of unvarnished opinion. He has endorsed Wall Street Journal editorials and Fox-produced films like "The Descendants," and criticized the biography of Steve Jobs. Murdoch also stirred up a bit of his trademark controversy on his first day on Twitter, when he tweeted -- from St. Barts, no less -- that Brits may spend too much time on vacation. His wife, Wendi Deng, apparently asked him to delete the comment, which he did.