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We Are Nothing To Them

Archive for April, 2012

US shareholders troubled by Murdoch testimony – begining of the end

Apr 27

Posted by Michael Collins in Big Money, Corruption, Criminal Justice, News Corporation, Rupert | Comments off


US shareholders worry testimony raises new questions and poses threats to other areas of company’s media empire

Dominic Rushe and Jill Treanor
The Guardian

Thursday 26 April 2012 14.19 EDT

Advisers to News Corporation shareholders say they are “deeply troubled” by the performances of Rupert and James Murdoch at the Leveson inquiry into media ethics.

US shareholders are said to be worried that the Murdochs’ testimony this week has raised new questions about the management of the company and posed potential threats to other areas of its media empire.

Michael Pryce-Jones, senior policy analyst with Change To Win (CtW), a US advisory group that works with pension funds with over $200bn in assets, said the Murdochs’ testimony raised two immediate concerns for shareholders: the future of the firm’s control of broadcaster BSkyB and the ethics of top management.

“The big question is what does this mean for BSkyB,” he said. “Sky is one of their best assets.”

See: Murdoch watch – apocalypse when? and Murdoch watch – signaling the end

by Michael Collins

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independentaustralia.net – The Sky falling on the fox

Apr 25

Posted by Michael Collins in Big Money | Comments off

(How gratifying! An independent Australian web site republished my story on Murdoch and BSkyB. The original was published on the 22nd but this was perfect tming given the revelations today at the Leveson hearings about Murdoch influence over the Cameron government actions on BSkyB.)


The Sky falling on the fox
independentaustralia.net, April 24

Rupert Murdoch’s grip on News Corporation hinges on whether British regulators decide he is a fit and proper person to own cable giant BSkyB. Michael Collins reports.

Rupert Murdoch’s reign over the $33 billion News Corporation hinges on events surrounding the company’s ownership share of Britain’s dominant pay TV network, BSkyB (Sky). As Business Insider said, “it’s the only asset that really matters” in the News Corp collection of media properties.

Link: http://www.independentaustralia.net/2012/business/media-2/the-sky-falling-on-the-fox/

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Gagging Canadian environmental scientists – stuck to the tar sands

Apr 24

Posted by Michael Collins in Big Money, Censorship | Comments off

How about this?  The Harper government is reviving the old Soviet system of controlling what scientists say, in this case environmental scientists. (Image: Isaac Mao)  Take a look at this report:

Government media minders are being dispatched to an international polar conference in Montreal to monitor and record what Environment Canada scientists say to reporters.

“If you are approached by the media, ask them for their business card and tell them that you will get back to them with a time for (an) interview,” the Environment Canada scientists were told by email late last week.

“Send a message to your media relations contact and they will organize the interview. They will most probably be with you during the interview to assist and record,” says the email obtained by Postmedia News.   Vancouver Sun, April 23

Why would Harper this?  Did he mistake 1984 for an instruction manual?  Is he nuts?  No to both.  This is not about control per se, it is bout tr sands, the cruel hoax that promises riches beyond imagination (they think).  Harper probably got word someone would simply tell the truth.

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Rupert watch – signaling the end

Apr 22

Posted by Michael Collins in Big Money, Corruption | Comments off

By Michael Collins

Rupert Murdoch’s reign over the $33 billion News Corporation hinges on events surrounding the company’s ownership share of Britain’s dominant pay TV network, BSkyB (Sky). As Business Insider said, “it’s the only asset that really matters” in the News Corp collection of media properties.

As a result of Murdoch scandals, News Corp lost the chance to buy 100% of Sky’s shares. More troubling for the media monarch, the company may lose the 39% interest it already holds if British regulators determine that Murdoch is not a fit and proper owner. This would fuel the major News Corp shareholder suits in Delaware and New York that seek to remove Murdoch as board chairman and vastly diminish his power and that of his family and cronies.

Sky reaches 25 million viewers in 10 million homes. Revenues are growing at 10% a year with adjusted operating profit growth averaging around 16% of revenues  (see 2009 through 2011). Revenues from 2012 through 2016 should top $70 billion total with adjusted operating profits around $11 billion. What happens with Sky really matters. Read the rest of this entry »

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Hmmm … Murdoch’s News Corp reduces foreign voting shares to keep U.S. TV licenses

Apr 19

Posted by Michael Collins in Big Money, Corruption, News Corporation, Pay TV Piracy, Phone Hacking | Comments off

By Michael Collins

Is Murdoch getting ready to trade his kingdom for a horse?  Supposedly, News Corp did a compliance review on the voting rights of foreign shareholders.  The company discovered that it was way out of line for the amount of foreign shareholder voting rights, thus imperiling its bid to renew the licenses for it’s domestic television properties (based on the Communications Act of 1934).

“News Corp, which has spent most of the last year battling the fallout from the News of the World phone-hacking scandal, inadvertently allowed foreign investors to hold 36pc of Class B voting stock – well past the 25pc limit enshrined in American 1934 Communications Act.

“In order to fix the problem, on Wednesday it suspended 50pc of the Class B voting rights of its investors outside the US, effectively halving the power of certain foreign investors.”  The Telegraph, April 18 &  Financial Times, April 18

This includes Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, Saudi investor, who will have his 7% share cut in half for voting.  Talal is a big Murdoch supporter.

Two points.  This is a sign of weakness.  They knew or should have known this was the case but now they’re acting.  News Corp probably got a tip from some “friendly” in government and preemptively corrected the problem.  One commentator asked, When was the last time they reviewed voting rights, 1936?

The prompts the second point, which consists of three questions?  Was News Corp out of compliance on foreign voting shares when it last renewed it’s domestic broadcasting license?  Will anyone in authority investigate?  If they determine that the licenses were renewed with News Corp violating the 1934 Communications Act, will anything be done about it?

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Grandparents Oppose Tar Sands – from James Hansen

Apr 18

Posted by Michael Collins in Big Money, Environment | Comments off

Dr James Hanson is probably our greatest living scientist and the first to define the problems of climate change.  This is a letter from him that explains most of what we need to know about the tar sands adventure.  His website is here.

From:  James Hansen

Alberta tar sands are estimated to be 240 GtC (gigatons of carbon); see Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2007) Working Group 3 report.  That is about seven times greater than the cumulative historical CO2 emissions from oil use by the U.S. (36 GtC).  U.S. oil use was 28% of global oil use for the cumulative amounts over the past 200 years.  So Alberta tar sands contain about twice the total amount of carbon emitted by global oil use in history. Image hidden side

Yet some people argue that tar sands are not so great that we need to be concerned about their effect on climate.  They argue that only about 40 GtC of the tar sands are presently economically extractable.  However, if an addiction to tar sands is established, as it would be with big pipelines, you can be confident that the addiction would lead eventually to ways of cooking the oil out of most of the tar sands.  Moreover, these numbers do not include the emissions from conventional fossil fuels used to mine and process the tar sands into useable fuel.  Nor do they include the other greenhouse gas emissions produced by the mining and processing.

The global stampede to find every possible fossil fuel is not being opposed by governments, no matter how dirty the fuels nor how senseless the energy strategy is from long-term economic and moral perspectives.  Instead governments are forcing the public to subsidize the polluters, as discussed in The Case for Young People and Nature.

Fortunately, people are beginning to recognize the situation.  Today the Norwegian Grandparent’s Climate Campaign, supported by 27 other organizations, delivered a demand to Statoil (Norwegian government being 2/3 owner of Statoil), the principal tar sands funder, to withdraw support for tar sands development.

Given the stranglehold that the fossil fuel industry has on governments worldwide and their effective campaigns to misinform the public, this may seem to be a small step.  But do not underestimate the potential of people dedicated to a righteous cause to initiate a broader public recognition and understanding of where the public’s interest lies.

Jim Hansen
17 April 2012

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NDS claims face scrutiny

Apr 18

Posted by Michael Collins in Big Money, Corruption, Criminal Justice, News Corporation | Comments off

Australian Financial Review
By Neil Chenoweth 14 Apr 2012

British lawyer Mark Lewis is investigating claims by a client that News Corporation’s controversial security company, NDS Limited, was involved in a dirty tricks campaign in Britain to undermine a competitor’s technology.

“The allegations made against them are uncannily similar to what’s been alleged in Australia,” Mr Lewis said in an interview with ABC Lateline host Emma Alberici.

“The practice seems very, very similar.”

Mr Lewis has been the leading British lawyer pursuing cases against News International for telephone hacking by its News of the World newspaper.

Full Article

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