Dial M for Murdoch: News Corporation and the Corruption of Britain

BOOK: Dial M for Murdoch: News Corporation and the Corruption of Britain
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TOM WATSON AND MARTIN HICKMAN

Dial M for Murdoch

News Corporation and the Corruption of Britain

 

ALLEN LANE
an imprint of
PENGUIN BOOKS

Contents

 

List of Illustrations
Dramatis Personae
Preface

 

1 The Wrong Headlines
2 Wapping’s News Factory
3 The Dark Arts
4 First Heads Roll
5 A Rogue Defence
6 The Manchester Lawyers
7 One Determined Reporter
8 Intimidating Parliament
9 A Murder
10 Our Man in Downing Street
11 Losing a Battle
12 Out of Control
13 U-turn at Wapping
14 Summer’s Lease
15 A Missing Girl
16 Sky Plus
17 ‘We Are Sorry’
18 Democracy Day
19 Assault on the Establishment
20 The Ghosts of Wapping
21 The Press on Trial
22 Darker and Darker

 

Illustrations
Appendix 1: Individuals in Glenn Mulcaire’s Notes
Appendix 2: Arrests
Notes
Acknowledgements

For
Saoirse and Malachy
and
Rachel, Kate and Finlay

List of Illustrations

 

1
. Rupert Murdoch in London in 1969, the year he took over the
News of the World
© Syndey O’Meara / Getty Images
2
. Rupert Murdoch in London in 2011, the day after his appearance before the Commons Cultural Committee © Press Association Images
3
. Piers Morgan, Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson, at a party hosted by Elisabeth Murdoch and Matthew Freud in 2004 © Dave M Bennett / Getty Images
4
. Rebekah Brooks and Tony Blair at the Newspaper Press Fund reception in 2004 © Fiona Hanson / Press Association Images
5
. James Murdoch, David Cameron and George Osborne at a summit on social responsibility in 2007 © Stephen Lock / Rex Features
6
. Tommy and Gail Sheridan celebrate their libel victory over the
News of the World
in 2006 © Jeff J Mitchell / Getty Images
7
. Glenn Mulcaire, the private investigator convicted of hacking phones for News International © Bloomberg / Getty Images
8
. Clive Goodman, the
News of the World
’s royal editor, jailed in 2007 © Chris Jackson / Getty Images
9
. Les Hinton, Rupert Murdoch’s loyal man for five decades © Bloomberg / Getty Images
10
. Max Mosley, Formula I motor-racing chief, who triumphed over the
News of the World
in 2008 © Michael Cooper / Getty Images
11
. Gordon Taylor, chief executive of the PFA and the first phone-hacking victim to mount a legal challenge to News International (pictured with the footballer Cristiano Ronaldo) © John Peters / Man Utd / Getty Images
12
. Charlotte Harris, one of the first lawyers to take on the
News of the World
© Nick Harvey / WireImage / Getty Images
13
. Nick Davies, the Guardian journalist who unpicked News Corp’s defence © Guardian News & Media Ltd 2011
14
. Neville Thurlbeck, the
News of the World
’s chief reporter © Yui Mok / Press Association Images
15
. John Yates, Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, who declared his faith in Operation Caryatid © Dan Kitwood / Getty Images
16
. Neil ‘Wolfman’ Wallis, deputy editor of the
News of the World
, later hired by Scotland Yard (with friends) © Dennis Stone / Rex Features
17
. David Cameron and Andy Coulson: Coulson helped the Conservative Leader acquire the ‘tabloid touch’ © Tom Stoddart Archive / Getty Images
18
. Cameron and Murdoch in bed: in 2010, the Conservatives backed News Corp’s takeover bid for BSkyB © Sang Tan / AP / Press Association Images
19
. The Golden Lion, the site of Daniel Morgan’s murder in 1987 © Rex Features
20
. Jonathan Rees, the private detective re-employed by Coulson’s
News of the World
, after he was jailed for conspiracy to pervert the course of justice © Rex Features
21
. Daniel Morgan, Rees’s murdered business partner © Press Association Images
22
. ‘The world’s greatest newspaper 1843–2011’ Colin Myler and
News of the World
staff outside the office as the paper closes down © Yui Mok / Press Association Images
23
. Sir Paul Stephenson resigned as Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police in July 2011 © Leon Neal / AFP / Getty Images
24
. Rebekah Brooks and Rupert Murdoch after the closure of the
News of the World
– and shortly before she resigned © Ian Nicholson / Press Association Images
25
. Detectives raid Andy Coulson’s home in July 2011, on suspicion of phone hacking and corruption © Paul Hackett / Reuters
26
. ‘I Regret Hiring Coulson’ © Ray Tang / Rex Features
27
. Protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in July 2011 © Paula Bronstein / Getty Images
28
. James and Rupert Murdoch appear before MPs – and the world watches © Press Association Images
29
. Steve Coogan, Hugh Grant and Max Mosley at Parliament’s joint committee on privacy in December 2011 © Press Association Images
30
. J. K. Rowling felt as though she was being ‘blackmailed’ by the
Sun
over a leak of the fifth Harry Potter book © David Miller / Empics / Press Association Images
31
. Charlotte Church, harassed by News International papers from an early age © NBC via Getty Images
32
. Sienna Miller began a High Court case against News International in 2010 © Reuters
33
. Bob and Sally Dowler, Milly Dowler’s parents, arrive at the Leveson Inquiry with Mark Lewis © Rex Features

The Cotswold Triangle [map]

 

Cartographer: Michael Hill / Maps Illustrated

1. Rebekah and Charlie Brooks © Alan Crowhurst / Getty Images
2. The Brooks Residence © Rui Vieira / Press Association Images
3. Hackers Lane © INS News Agency
4. Burford Priory © Prixnews / Alamy
5. Elisabeth Murdoch and Matthew Freud © Dave M Bennett / Getty Images
6. David Cameron’s constituency home © INS News Agency Cartoon © Howard McWilliam /
The Daily Telegraph

 

Really what Rupert Murdoch managed to do was break the civil compact of this country through achieving a degree of control over the essential institutions of a free society: the press, the police and the politicians.

I’ve been one who has never accepted any of this ‘gate’ stuff and all the parallels – that are usually made by the Murdoch press – to some sex scandal … but this is for real. And the parallels are remarkable.

– Carl Bernstein, asked how the hacking scandal compares to Watergate, 29 September 2011

 

Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.

– Lord Acton, 1887

 

Dramatis Personae

 

NEWS CORPORATION

Rupert Murdoch, chairman and chief executive
James Murdoch, chief executive, News Corp Asia and Europe; Chairman, BSkyB
Les Hinton, chief executive, News International
News of the World
:
Rebekah Brooks (nee Wade), editor
(Later editor of the
Sun
and chief executive, News International)
Andy Coulson, editor
(Later, communications director, Conservative Party)
Colin Myler, editor
Tom Crone, legal director
Neville Thurlbeck, chief reporter
Clive Goodman, royal editor

METROPOLITAN POLICE

Sir Paul Stephenson, Commissioner
Andy Hayman, Assistant Commissioner
John Yates, Assistant Commissioner
Sue Akers, Deputy Assistant Commissioner

PRIVATE DETECTIVES

Steve Whittamore
Glenn Mulcaire
Jonathan Rees
LAWYERS
Mark Lewis
Charlotte Harris
Mark Thomson

POLITICIANS

John Prescott
Tom Watson
Chris Bryant

LITIGANTS

Gordon Taylor
Max Clifford
Sienna Miller
Steve Coogan
Hugh Grant
Max Mosley
Charlotte Church

JOURNALISTS

Guardian
:
Nick Davies
Amelia Hill
New York Times
:
Don van Natta Jr
Jo Becker
Graham Bowley
BBC
:
Glenn Campbell
Independent
:
Martin Hickman
Cahal Milmo

Preface

 

This book tries to explain how a particular global media company works: how it came to exert a poisonous, secretive influence on public life in Britain, how it used its huge power to bully, intimidate and to cover up, and how its exposure has changed the way we look at our politicians, our police service and our press. Some political ‘friends’ have tried to portray the hacking and bribery which has exposed the workings of News Corporation as part of the price you pay for good tabloid journalism. They’re wrong. Of course, tabloids sometimes get out of hand, but this is not (at least, not much) a story of harmless mischief, of reporters in false moustaches and rollicking exposés of hypocrites. It is not just the famous and wealthy who have been damaged, but ordinary decent people who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

BOOK: Dial M for Murdoch: News Corporation and the Corruption of Britain
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