Rupert Murdoch's attempt to obtain the other sixty-one per cent of BSkyB for the cost of a KFC variety bucket or something is of course being laughed out by the independent directors. But it does highlight the need to ban anyone from owning stakes both in newspapers and in broadcasting, or in more than one national daily newspaper, or in more than one national weekly newspaper, or in more than one television station, including more than one ITV regional franchise-holder.
The problem is that the interest most threatened by this is permanently in government. This looks like one for the new Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats. As over compelling British Ministers to absent themselves until the Council of Ministers until such time as it meets in public and publishes an Official Report akin to Hansard, as over the abolition of the Common Agricultural and Fisheries Policies, and as over many other things besides, he can make himself the focal point for an alliance of his own party's backbenchers (of whom he is one), the Guardian and Mirror Tendencies, and those in tune with the increasing reversion of the Telegraph and Mail titles to paleo-Toryism.
But what would become of Oliver Kamm?
ReplyDeleteTime to revive News Bunny in his person. News Olly, who could dance behind the presenters giving a thumbs up or thumbs down depending on the football results. Whether or not those results were at all connected to be the matter under discussion.
ReplyDeleteIt is always good to be reminded that Kamm is a financial dependent of the Sun, the News of the World and Sky Sports. Yet not even that happy fact is a good enough reason to leave things as they are.