Citing the phone-hacking scandal that has engulfed News Corp.-owned newspapers in Britain, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington filed a petition to deny Fox's applications to renew licenses for three of its TV stations - WTTG-TV and WDCA-TV in Washington, D.C., and WUTB-TV in Baltimore.
"It is well-established that News Corp. has been involved in one of the biggest media scandals of all time," said CREW executive director Melanie Sloan. "Its reporters hacked voice mails and bribed public officials while top executives - including (News Corp. CEO) Rupert Murdoch - either approved the conduct or turned a blind eye."The problem is that there is only one pertinent blind eye at issue here and it will be the one the FCC has in any serious review of the applications, they don't make those stamps of rubber for nothing. But there was another surprise in the Murdoch criticism game yesterday.
Tensions within the world's most powerful media family were dramatically laid bare on Thursday when Elisabeth Murdoch set out her own vision of media leadership, emphasising humanity over profit and criticising her father's News Corporation for operating with an absence of values.That has to hurt a little, good thing Rupert can roll around in his money and take out his frustrations on the help.
[cross-posted at Firedoglake]