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Rupert Murdoch Media Mogul
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Murdoch aquires DirecTV
Murdoch - History
Although he is Australia-born and a US citizen, he has decided that he is 'anti euro' and in a recent interview he warned Tony Blair he would launch a battle to keep the UK out of the single currency.
With his extreme media power he could sway public opinion before a crucial referendum.
What I want to know is, WHAT THE **** DOES IT HAVE TO DO WITH HIM!!
I'm reasonably anti EU, I'm all for easyer labour movement, investment and even a single currency, but I don't like the idea of a centralised EU government or some tosspot who doesn't know anything about this country making our laws and running our country and the loss of parliamentry sovereignty that would come with this, we have enough village idiots to run our own country thank you very much, we don't need a load French/German village idiots (sorry, politicians) to run our country for us.
So why am I against what hes doing, I mean he has a similar p.o.v to me?
I see a similarity between a bunch of foreigners making our laws and telling us what we can and cant do, and him trying to single handedly decide what this country does, and what is his reasoning behind this?!
Murdoch - History
Although he is Australia-born and a US citizen, he has decided that he is 'anti euro' and in a recent interview he warned Tony Blair he would launch a battle to keep the UK out of the single currency.
With his extreme media power he could sway public opinion before a crucial referendum.
What I want to know is, WHAT THE **** DOES IT HAVE TO DO WITH HIM!!
I'm reasonably anti EU, I'm all for easyer labour movement, investment and even a single currency, but I don't like the idea of a centralised EU government or some tosspot who doesn't know anything about this country making our laws and running our country and the loss of parliamentry sovereignty that would come with this, we have enough village idiots to run our own country thank you very much, we don't need a load French/German village idiots (sorry, politicians) to run our country for us.
So why am I against what hes doing, I mean he has a similar p.o.v to me?
I see a similarity between a bunch of foreigners making our laws and telling us what we can and cant do, and him trying to single handedly decide what this country does, and what is his reasoning behind this?!
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Comments
The mere thought of Germans or Frenchmen telling Englishmen how to live is appalling! I'll do business with those people but I won't surrender my heritage to them!
The EU is not about dominating any member state. The ultimate decisions are made by the national ministers of each member state themselves. With the UK having more opt outs than just about any other nation in the EU they are the least likely to have anything imposed on them that is contrary to government approval.
Further, the UK actually has much more in common with the continent than it does with the US given that its own society and culture is the derivative of centuries of wars and intermingling with German, Danish, and French cultures and traditions.
Perhaps you had best crack open a history book and see how often the thrones of France and the UK have been held by one or the other nation.
What is in it for him? He surely can't be doing for patriotic reasons, he's an american citizen and an australian by birth.
He must have a hidden-agenda behind all this? anyone ideas/theories on why he is so anti-euro?
http://www.lfig.org/4-euro-policy-paper1.htm
Rupert Murdoch's interests in keeping the UK out of EMU seem unclear. However if one of his papers is vehemently anti-EMU it may be a factor in Britain not attaining membership of the single currency.
Indeed. For those overseas unfamiliar with the lineage of the royal family, we have had kings from France (William the conqueror and his descendants), Wales (the Tudors), and Scotland (the Stuarts). Our current royal family, the Windsors, were not originally called the Windsors. They changed their name during the First World War, because they didn't think the public would appreciate being ruled by the Saxe-Coburg Gothas while we were at war with Germany. So yes, the current royal family is of German descent. We are already technically ruled by the Germans.
Took the words right out of my mouth Murph...that's why they're all wet.
No country in the EU has an economy that is growing as fast as the UK's. And I believe the character of the UK as well as the US is very strong...we put our lives on the line to not just ensure we live free...but other people do also. And all of the lies from our "friends" in Europe can't change that truth.
Beyond the EU, the US is creating the world's biggest free market - without the underhanded control tactics being used by the stand-for-nothing-but anti-Americanism, crazy left Euro-trash. This week Bush met with three countries in Central America to join this new free market.
Right now the UK has the freedom to do what's in its best interest. And Tony Blair has positioned the UK powerfully by making the UK America's liaison to Europe. The EU will drag the UK down with unecessary laws that limit freedom of speech and choice, make doing business more expensive and economies that are failing.
On RM, I believe he has had way to much of an influence on America. Fox Network is right wing in an unprecedented way. It's like hitting the Al Jazerra site and thinking you are going to get untainted news. The problem is, that since Americans aren't used to such slanted reporting, I don't believe they recognize it. For example, Fox led the call for boycotting French goods. A recent poll which asked what are America's biggest enemies resulted in an answer of North Korea being first and France, France being second. France has been vigilant in helping America with Al Qaeda and sharing information. This is the power of RM. Other countries listed were Mexico and Canada. This is crazy and I thought the UK and US had laws against media moguls having too much power. He just bought America's biggest satellite dish system...which will further expand his power.
Oh and to correct another fallacy, Americans are used to slanted reporting. So much so in fact, and for so long (well before you or I were born) that they simply dont recognise it as such. Once you step away from the country and gain a broader view of what's really going on in the world (much of which isn't even told to the American public) then you can see just how slanted the reporting indeed is (and not just on Fox).
Actually the major papers being corporately controlled are not liberal. The idea of the liberal press in the West makes for great soundbites, but by and large the media supports the status quo.
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2002/123102a.html
I still await proper substantiation of the typical slanderous comments you have a made about Europe despite the fact that you have neither the academic qualifications nor the personal experience outside your cozy beachfront community to hold any credence in this area whatsoever.
You live in the US - right? I am assuming your language capabilities stretch to English and perhaps schoolboy level in a language such as spanish or french?
How do you know how slanted or unslanted coverage of the war is in the United States.
I am unashamed to say I am an Irishman, who has had the benefit of learning several languages.
I am fluent in english, my mother-tongue. semi-fluent in Irish, the ancient language of my country. I also speak fluent German and I have french and spanish to degree level. Not boasting, am quite proud of reaching this level.
Point is, I now have the benefit of being able to understand the reported news in these languages.
In my home I also have the benefit of satellite television, thank goodness. This affords me the opportunity to watch news reports from america (CNN, MSNBC, FOX news) france (euronews, TV5) spain (TVE) and of course I get all the German channels, as I'm based in Germany (ARD, ZDF, News24, N-TV, Phoenix etc) I also luckily recieve the BBC world service, so i can check up on what is happening back at home.
My point - you should have seen the biased reporting at times on CNN. A lot of factual reporting sure, but you should have seen what was left out of the reports. Fox and Msnbc were even worse for doing so...
I'm not saying french or german tv was completely correct either, but even the BBC presented a much more balanced view of the war.
And its not even just on the war. For a couple of years now, I've been surprised and shocked at times to see how major world events are reported to the US public. Its as if they are meerly brushed under the table by broadcasters in the US as either unnewsworthy or is it because many americans have absolutely no interest in what is happening outside their own country.
Its all very well having freedom of press. they are free to report what they like.
But this is kinda my point. They are free to report, but are selecting to leave out what they deem not to be in the interest of their viewing public to see.
Having the benefit of being able to understand what is being reported in some of the foreign media has led me to this conclusion.
Here is another illustrative example:
CNN runs a story Monday evening about the peace symbol being paraded on the corner of the German music channel Viva. True.
The story then decends into how this has swept the country to such a point that you cannot walk down any street in Germany without being confronted by such things.
This simply is untrue. Talk about gross exaggeration!!
They then went on the interview a German schoolboy (14 or 15) about the peace movement in Germany (hardly indicative of the view of the adult population as a whole)
he give his own opinion on the matter in German and to my surprise I found gross-inacurracies in the translation of what he had just said. talk about manipulating the text!!
But what was worse was the fact that CNN were trying to imply that the sentiment expressed by this one 14/15 year old, was indicative of a nation as a whole.
see what I mean now about a slanted press?
My Mum always told me to take everything I'm told with a pinch of salt. I'm beginning to see the importance of these words now.
Anyway sorry for the rant, but just wanted to highlight a couple of points!!;)
France insulted it's third biggest trading partner, the US, to the point where they are listed second on a list of America's enemies by Americans. Smart, worry about your billion dollar oil deal with Iraq and insult people whose trade amounts to 54 billion dollars. Germany's Prime Minister cannot even call the President of its major trade partner, the US, because Bush won't talk to him.
Some European countries have made a lot of stupid business choices lately...and they all have way too much influence in the EU. The UK has made strategic decisions that are in its best interest as well as moral decisions that are in keeping with its character.
And Clandestine, the next time you claim to be an American I'd better hear you say something positive about America.
A very accurate and insightful post though! :thumb:
Oh yes those crazy Europeans! I mean ensuring their citizens all have access to healthcare is totally insane, we should follow the American attitude and let about 40% of our population have no medical cover right PNJ? Or we should make all our elderly stack supermarket shelves because they couldn't afford to save up for their pensions so instead of taking it easy in their old age we work them til they drop dead. The Europeans do stand for something PNJ, we stand for the basic belief that people are not just economic units and that we all have a collective responsibility to our fellow man to ensure that everyone has a decent standard of living and a decent standard of human dignity. As for your anti-American claims I refer to you to the comments by the French foreign minister who said words to the effect that true friends tell you when you're making a mistake. The EU is a free market just as NAFTA is but with European safeguards to ensure protection of worker's rights and health & safety issues and the like, sorry if you feel these basic rights aren't justified.
Tony Blair claims the Britain is America's bridge to Europe but we all know what bridges are used for - walking over! Which EU laws limit freedom of speech? What about the American Homeland Security Act that limits civil liberties in America? As for your comments about European business being more expensive this is true however the state has a fundamental right to keep tabs on business which the American government just does not do because they depend on business for funding - this is how scandals like WorldCom and Enron occur.
The reason that RM has been allowed to grab such a hold in the world's media is exactly because of the free markets of the Anglo-Saxon economies (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Britain and America) which you advocated earlier. The lack of restriction on media ownership allows these media magnates to build up media empires and so restrict freedom of the press - take in the UK, after the Communications Bill is passed RM will probably have control of:
The Sun/News of the World
The Times/Sunday Times
HarperCollins publishing
Sky network - meaning he can pick and choose which channels are on Sky.
Sky News
and most probably Channel 5 if not ITV. As you admitted yourself he has too much power so therefore you must surely admit that restrictions are needed to control him?
And pnj, I would suggest you go and look at the forecasts for US economic growth. It isnt much better than what you cite for France.
Basically what i see is a HS boy returning to his ill informed and unqualified presumtpions about a national and international political scene of which he comprehands precious little.
And here I thought you were coming to appreciate how much you truly had to learn about the difference between what you are told and what the actual state of affairs is. Seems you are as blind and bigotted as ever.
I know, but 'tis good to see that some of you can see the wood for the trees!:D
Living in Brussels is also a prime crossroads of intenrational political activity from which to draw insights not usually afforded to most of my compatriots. Washington could ill afford to let the public know everything that they are up to on the evening news thats for sure.
Not to mention the fact that unless people see it reported at home they can dismiss people with firsthand experience such as myself, as we regularly see from some of our other American posters.
Chancellor Gordon Brown also lowered his forecasts for growth as did Alan Greenspan I think? All nations are teetering on the brink of recession due to the point we're at in the economic cycle. The French may have more strikes but they also have less stressful and higher quality of life than we do. Unnecessary laws? I think they all improve the safety of Europeans, what's so wrong with that? Playground equipment laws - would you rather see kids injured from shoddy equipment? Cosmetic testing - you said you were anti this so why be anti a law that bans it? and the other law was on the transportation of nuclear weapons I think and what's wrong with restrictions on the transportation on nuclear substances?
Yes and we had something similar here where we were anti genetically modified food so supermarkets banned it and had banners saying "We are GM free" like Iceland (supermarket not country). Still a lack of evidence for the assumption that Europe is censoring free speech!
Dear me, you Americans are very sensitive! How exactly did France insult you? By not going along with what you want? Countries jokingly insult each other all the time - the world doesn't stop because they do, the trade with France will continue. Bush is extremely childish - there are important matters of world politics to be discussed by Germany and the US but Bush gets in a huff and refuses to talk to Gerhard Schroder! Very adult!
Yes PNJ by its nature European countries would have "way too much influence" in the EU. Which strategic decisions? If you mean Iraq then I have to disagree because we have profoundly damaged relations with our EU partners where our future lies and have split the country from top to bottom for the dangerous Bush administration. Moral decisions? I don't think the Iraq war was moral, we did it against international law and killed thousands of innocent Iraqis.
Or George Bush will tie you to a chair in the stars and stripes until you've seen enough Fox News to agree with him on everything!
Quite easily
I dont like the idea of parliamentry sovereignty, however joining the single currency will be a benefit on an economic level whilst not resulting in a loss of parliamentry power.
Economic reasons = Good
Political reasons = Bad
Furthermore being closer to Europe because we where invaded by a whole host of them centuries ago is a pretty poor reason, especially when you don't mention the fact that we set up a lot of Brittish colonies in America a couple of centuries ago and the language barrier we have with Europe.
Furthermore in the EU parliament countries are awarded seats in proportion to their population size and despite being able to vote laws and decisions are still made which we wouldn't be able to stop.
And if the Sun + Mirror and slanted reporting then god knows what is.
Given that this a forum for debating politics pnj, I have as much right to maintain my criticisms of the Bush admin and the wayward direction they are leading the country I love. To suggest that i should simply say glowing words about a government I find reprehensible both in its domesitc as well as international authoritarianism flies in the face of your claims about other nations curtailing of free speech.
I suggest you turn your sights to Washington and like me, begin there before you wrongly lambast any other nation. Most of which despite your ill informed claims are far more free, open and tolerant than our own.