With the arrest of recently-resigned News International executive Rebekah Brooks, Rupert Murdoch may have a feeling that the walls are closing in on him and his media empire.
If so, this clip from Murdoch-owned Fox News– featuring loyal employee Steve Doocy– may give him a bit of badly-needed comfort.
Doocy interviews some PR guy named Bob Dilenschneider (how do they come up with these people?), who dutifully agrees that the phone-hacking scandal is way overblown, that it happened a long time ago in another country, that Murdoch handled it as well as could be expected and that there are other things happening in the world which are much more deserving of our attention.
(While the News International story has got a fair share of media attention in the US, it has hardly been the dominant story as it has been in the UK.)
The best part of the clip comes at the the end:
Dilenschneider: “[This issue] really should get put behind us. Investigators and the courts should deal with this, and we should move on and deal with the important topics of the day.”
Doocy: “I think you’re right… Straight ahead, Casey Anthony set to be released in two days…”
(Hat tip: James Fallows)
Alec Macph adds: Golly gosh, I take my own gardening leave instead of obsessively following every development, and this happens. I will add that contempt of court applies to amateur bloggers and commenters just as much as it does to professional journalists and newspaper writers (not necessarily the same).
Alec Macph adds: Paul Stephenson has resigned, but will remain in post until a successor is appointed.
