Tabloid phone hacking scandal involving kidnapped girl roils Britain

[jimmy olsen]

Apparently senior police officers were hacked in '06 and blackmailed.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/12/world/europe/12yard.html?_r=1

It doesn't say they were blackmailed. Christ a 10 word summary and you can't even get it right.

Seems implied

Shortly after Scotland Yard began its initial criminal inquiry of phone hacking by The News of the World in 2006, five senior police investigators discovered that their own cellphone messages had been targeted by the tabloid and had most likely been listened to.

The disclosure, based on interviews with current and former officials, raises the question of whether senior investigators feared that if they aggressively investigated, The News of the World would punish them with splashy articles about their private lives.

[Richard Hakluyt]

News Corporation shareholders are sticking the boot in too :

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance/ianmcowie/100010767/shareholders-sue-news-corp-over-news-of-the-world-scandal/

[Gups]

Tim, no it doesn't. "Raises questions" means there's no evidence at all and the paper doesn't want to make the accusation of his own bat. And even that sentence doesn't imply blackmail, it implies that officers might have held back on their investigations. Blackmail means something else entirely.

[Brazen]

See, Tim's assumption is the sort of thing journalists should really be sacked for and what the writer of the article very correctly avoided. Note that even "the disclosure" is the subject of the questions that are raised rather than implicating any individual or group of individuals.

[Martinus]

News Corporation shareholders are sticking the boot in too :

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance/ianmcowie/100010767/shareholders-sue-news-corp-over-news-of-the-world-scandal/

Yay. It's finally coming all crashing down. What a beautiful catastrophe. 

[jimmy olsen]

Several Senators have called for an investigation on the 9/11 hacking claims.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jul/13/us-senators-phone-hacking-inquiry

[Neil]

Maybe he's keeping Brooks around so he can sacrifice her at the appropriate time.  After all, the scandal hasn't blown itself out yet.

[Neil]

Several Senators have called for an investigation on the 9/11 hacking claims.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jul/13/us-senators-phone-hacking-inquiry

Of course they are.  There are few people more loathsome than US Senators.

[Martinus]

Several Senators have called for an investigation on the 9/11 hacking claims.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jul/13/us-senators-phone-hacking-inquiry

Of course they are.  There are few people more loathsome than US Senators.

These few people include Murdoch and Rebekah Brook, though,

[Martinus]

So, Murdoch said that he will accede to the summons from the Parliament (after originally sending a fuck you letter) after they threatened to charge him with the contempt of the parliament, and now FBI has started a separate investigation.

Fuck, I may start to believe in God again. 

[crazy canuck]

What kind of chilling effect is this going to have on investigative journalism - to the extent that even exists anymore?

[Neil]

Several Senators have called for an investigation on the 9/11 hacking claims.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jul/13/us-senators-phone-hacking-inquiry

Of course they are.  There are few people more loathsome than US Senators.

These few people include Murdoch and Rebekah Brook, though,

They haven't really done anything that bad.

[Martinus]

These are tabloids not investigative journalism outlets. In fact a lot of it was brought to light because of investigative journalism from the Guardian.

[Razgovory]

What kind of chilling effect is this going to have on investigative journalism - to the extent that even exists anymore?

Probably the same chilling effect it would have on bribery.

[crazy canuck]

What kind of chilling effect is this going to have on investigative journalism - to the extent that even exists anymore?

Probably the same chilling effect it would have on bribery.

Not sure about that.  It wasnt until recently that investigative reporters were lauded for doing whatever was necessary to break the big story.  Now Marti is quite right that the papers in question are tabloids but to what extent are genuine investigative reporters going to make sure they do not cross lines of acceptability in pursuit of stories were there is a genuine public interest.