Tabloid phone hacking scandal involving kidnapped girl roils Britain

[Agelastus]

brought to book.

Woah.  New idiom.

Really, its relatively common over here.

I nearly posted "up in front of the beak", would that be new to you as well ?

That one is obsolete, however, unlike "brought to book".

[KRonn]

The News of the World is the UK's biggest selling newspaper and has been in circulation for 168 years. 

Such a big seller newspaper, and a long standing one too. Bunch of of idiotic and scandalous owners to bring it to its knees like this.

[Gups]

I would note that several civil cases are currently being heard, a journalist has been arrested back in May thus initiating one of the conditions of the act -

Under Section 2 of the Act, a substantial risk of serious prejudice can only be created by a media report when proceedings are active. Proceedings become active when there's an arrest, oral charge, issue of a warrant, or a summons

And that while I am all to well aware of parliamentary privilege, had his demand been accepted it would have certainly been prejudicial to ongoing criminal proceedings. He's at the least an idiot for suggesting it.

A public inquiry is not a media report. Public inquiries and criminal proceedings co-exist frequently - Lockerbie, Hillsborough, Brixton riots etc etc.

[Gups]

The News of the World is the UK's biggest selling newspaper and has been in circulation for 168 years. 

Such a big seller newspaper, and a long standing one too. Bunch of of idiotic and scandalous owners to bring it to its knees like this.

It's been shit for decades though, even before Murdoch took it over.

[Agelastus]

A public inquiry is not a media report. Public inquiries and criminal proceedings co-exist frequently - Lockerbie, Hillsborough, Brixton riots etc etc.

All of your examples being inquiries that considered extraneous issues as much as any actual criminal issues involved (why as much as who.) What extraneous issues is a public inquiry into criminal phone tapping going to study? 

[Gups]

A public inquiry is not a media report. Public inquiries and criminal proceedings co-exist frequently - Lockerbie, Hillsborough, Brixton riots etc etc.

All of your examples being inquiries that considered extraneous issues as much as any actual criminal issues involved (why as much as who.) What extraneous issues is a public inquiry into criminal phone tapping going to study?

From the Guardian

The prime minister told MPs on Wednesday that there may be more than one public inquiry into the affair – dealing with the police investigation and media behaviour. He is believed to be in dispute behind the scenes with his deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, who has called for a judge to preside over at least one of the inquiries.

Miliband made the case for just one public inquiry to be conducted, led by a judge, with powers to compel witnesses and a remit that covered all the main issues to do with newspaper industry practices and the relationship between the police and newspapers.

[Agelastus]

The BBC has reported that the URL TheSunOnSunday.co.uk (and .com) were registered two days ago by an unknown company.

What a stunner...

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/news-of-the-world-to-close-down.html

[The Brain]

What if Murdoch buys Languish and publishes a Best Of... every Sunday?

[Agelastus]

From the Guardian

The prime minister told MPs on Wednesday that there may be more than one public inquiry into the affair – dealing with the police investigation and media behaviour. He is believed to be in dispute behind the scenes with his deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, who has called for a judge to preside over at least one of the inquiries.

Miliband made the case for just one public inquiry to be conducted, led by a judge, with powers to compel witnesses and a remit that covered all the main issues to do with newspaper industry practices and the relationship between the police and newspapers.

:sigh:

So Labour still believe in the "one big one" model...maximum possible remit, maximum possible length, maximum possible waste of public money...nothing ever changes...

Seriously, Gups, do you actually think a Public inquiry is even remotely necessary?

[Gups]

Haven't really thought about it, but it seems likely that one inquiry would be cheaper than two. Not sure why your picking on the hapless Milliband rather than the coalition since every party seems to want an inquiry.


In any event asking for one is not sub judice!

I do think newspapers need a good kicking. I'd like a replacement to the toothless PCC as part of an overall reform of libel laws.

I also think there should be reform of how criminal investigations and trials are reported and about the relationship between the press and the police generally.

[grumbler]

In any event asking for one is not sub judice!

Don't start implying that "complete disregard for the laws of this land" does not extend "to the leader of the Labour Party!"  That would make Agelastus's comment hysterical nonsense, and we know he is incapable of that.

[Josquius]

I really hope the authorities get their fingers out and move quickly on this. Murdoch is walking right on the edge of the law to try and cover his tracks whilst the police drag their heels.

Apparently closing down the News of the World so quickly is so he is free to destroy their records.

http://blogs.reuters.com/mediafile/2011/07/07/is-murdoch-free-to-destroy-tabloids-records/

Is Murdoch free to destroy tabloid's records?

Here's some News of the World news to spin the heads of American lawyers. According to British media law star Mark Stephens of Finers Stephens Innocent (whom The Times of London has dubbed "Mr Media"), Rupert Murdoch's soon-to-be shuttered tabloid may not be obliged to retain documents that could be relevant to civil and criminal claims against the newspaper—even in cases that are already underway. That could mean that dozens of sports, media, and political celebrities who claim News of the World hacked into their telephone accounts won't be able to find out exactly what the tabloid knew and how it got the information.

If News of the World is to be liquidated, Stephens told Reuters, it "is a stroke of genius—perhaps evil genius."

Under British law, Stephens explained, all of the assets of the shuttered newspaper, including its records, will be transferred to a professional liquidator (such as a global accounting firm). The liquidator's obligation is to maximize the estate's assets and minimize its liabilities. So the liquidator could be well within its discretion to decide News of the World would be best served by defaulting on pending claims rather than defending them. That way, the paper could simply destroy its documents to avoid the cost of warehousing them—and to preclude any other time bombs contained in News of the World's records from exploding.

"Why would the liquidator want to keep [the records]?" Stephens said. "Minimizing liability is the liquidator's job."

That's a very different scenario, Stephens said, from what would happen if a newspaper in the U.S. went into bankruptcy. In the U.S., a plaintiff (or, for that matter, a criminal investigator) could obtain a court order barring that kind of document destruction. In the U.K., there's no requirement that the estate retain its records, nor any law granting plaintiffs a right to stop the liquidator from getting rid of them.

[jimmy olsen]

Wow, that's amazing. I can't believe that issue hasn't been addressed by Parliament before now.

[Neil]

Wow, that's amazing. I can't believe that issue hasn't been addressed by Parliament before now.

Why would it have been?

[Agelastus]

In any event asking for one is not sub judice!

Don't start implying that "complete disregard for the laws of this land" does not extend "to the leader of the Labour Party!"  That would make Agelastus's comment hysterical nonsense, and we know he is incapable of that.

Dear boy, you really need to come up with some new material...