Friday, July 15, 2011

Rebekah Brooks: The World's Most Famous Red Head?

Legend has it that red headed people have a reputation for being fiery, adventurous and unafraid.

They can also be bold and mischievous.

Judging by this picture we can also add occasionally scary to the list as well.

Well that's enough of the compliments because the woman who quite possibly holds the dubious honour of being the world's most famous red head title is now without a job having announced her resignation today at News International's Wapping HQ.

It is alleged that it was offered last week but only announced today after the Murdoch's bitter battle to keep hold of their own human shield floundered under a barrage of criticism from all sides of the political spectrum and public revulsion.

However the motive for accepting her resignation is unclear. Only last night News Corporation's second biggest shareholder, Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal Alsaud, being interviewed on Newsnight was adamant that if Brooks' involvement in the hacking scandal was proven then "for sure she has to go, you bet she has to go"; money has never been far from the Murdoch's heart when making decisions so this latest chapter in the story could have been the deal breaker for Brooks' future with the company.

In another extraordinary move, this time announced by James Murdoch, News International will be running full page adverts in the national press this weekend apologising for the phone hacking scandal.

"We will apologise to the nation for what has happened. We will follow this up in the future with communications about the actions we have taken to address the wrongdoing that occurred. We are also sending letters to our commercial partners with an update on the actions we are taking," he said.

We all know that times are hard in the newspaper industry and the money would be welcome but surely by doing business with the Murdoch empire and placing these adverts is it not a slight hypocrisy?

So all eyes will be on next Tuesday when the Culture Committee hearing begins and no doubt more revelations are brought out in the open in this extraordinary saga.

You can follow me on Twitter @mcollinsblog

1 comment:

  1. Murdoch approved the hacking! It is like working for the CIA - if you get caught they disavow knowledge of you. In this case, Murdoch promises big reward for the breaking stories obtained through questionable means if caught he surely made it clear that he would disavow any knowledge of the activities thus why Rebekah Brooks resigned.

    While in some cases it is patriotic to hack into so-called government officials and expose their tyranny and blatant disregard for the tax payers who pay their hefty salaries - Murdoch is behind such hacking purely for profit.

    The people must stand up and demand that the Murdoch empire be ripped apart otherwise start you may as well live under the old Soviet Union as why you read, hear and watch on television is surely what Murdoch wants you to hear. Controlling public opinion is a powerful tool - especially considering that the average folk have to low of an IQ to understand what is going on!

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