The Hero
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- Jun 29, 2008
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'I've never asked a Prime Minister for anything': Rupert Murdoch begins his historic appearance at Leveson Inquiry (flanked by wife Wendi... in case there are any pie-throwers again)
81-year-old said he was looking forward to 'putting some myths to bed' about his dominance of British public life and the media
Mr Murdoch denied he had not forgiven David Cameron for the fall-out of the phone hacking scandal despite tweeting about 'toffs'
Media mogul also agreed 'abuses' within newspapers go further than phone hacking
He defended rights of his newspapers to investigate politicians saying 'you have to look behind the facade, and they must expect it'
He is is to reveal his dealings with Prime Ministers over the last 30 years to which he had unparallelled access and influence
Mr Cameron will come under pressure over links with Murdoch empire, which supported him at last election, and friendship with Rebekah Brooks
Follows James Murdoch's sensational testimony and release of emails which led to calls for Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt to resign
Mr Hunt's adviser Adam Smith resigned this morning after admitting he 'went too far' in negotiations with the Murdochs over the BSkyB bid
Rupert Murdoch today said 'he'd never asked a Prime Minister for anything' in his first comments at his historic appearance before the Leveson Inquiry this morning.
The opening hour was dominated by his influence over politicians and British life over the last few decades.
Asked about a secret lunch at Chequers with Margaret Thatcher on 4 Jan, 1981 when he wanted to buy the Sunday Times and Times he was asked if he was seeking to gain anything from the meeting. He replied: 'I've never asked a Prime minister for anything'.
Speaking deliberately and slowly throughout the questioning, the 81-year-old added that he was looking forward to 'putting some myths to bed' and that he didn't have any special 'aura' that drove his empire.
Mr Murdoch also denied that he had not forgiven David Cameron for setting up the Leveson Inquiry, but drew laughs when it was pointed out that in recent 'hostile' tweets he had hit out at toffs.
SCROLL DOWN TO WATCH THE INQUIRY LIVE
Witness: Rupert Murdoch appears before the Leveson Inquiry this morning for the start of his two-day grilling. The 81-year-old is News Corp's chairman and chief executive
The media mogul is expected to lift the lid on his meetings with top British politicians over the last three decades today following sensational claims by his son of secret collusion between the government and News Corporation over the controversial BSkyB bid.
Yesterday, James Murdoch's shocking testimony led to calls for the Culture Minister Jeremy Hunt to resign after he released a damning dossier of emails that revealed he was apparently determined to push the deal through and ride roughshod over the correct procedures.
This morning, his special adviser Adam Smith quit his position after admitting he 'went too far' in negotiations with the Murdoch empire over the bid.
The extraordinary development came just over an hour before Mr Hunt is due to defend his department's actions in the Commons.
He's all smiles: With trademark grin, Rupert Murdoch on his way to the Royal Courts of Justice this morning to face Lord Leveson, with wife Wendi and son Lachlan
Mr Murdoch, pictured with his notes on the way to the inquiry, is being quizzed about his connections to top levels of government and was asked about the bidding process for the Sunday Times and Times
Mr Murdoch said he remained and always was a great admirer of Margaret Thatcher after she was re-elected as prime minister in 1983.
He refers to the strikes and says: 'I think we all wanted change' and then on the subject of the bid for the Times and Sunday Times he said: 'I didn't expected any help from her. Nor did I ask for any.'
Counsel for the inquiry QC Robert Jay turns to the recent 'toffs' tweets by Mr Murdoch.
Mr Murdoch replies: 'Don't take my tweets too seriously people on all sides were piling in on me'.
He added that he wanted to put some myths to bed, but agreed that abuses within newspapers had gone beyond phone hacking.
Mr Murdoch is asked whether he pushed commercial interest in his paper, to which he replied: 'No, I take a particularly strong pride in the fact that we have never pushed our commercial interests in our newspapers'.
Mr Jay then reads him extracts of memoirs of the former editor of the Sunday Times, Sir Harold Evans, and asks about his style of management.
Mr Murdoch says he tries 'very hard to set an example of ethical behaviour'. He pointed to the Sun's mission statement, saying: 'Always to tell the truth, to interest the public, to get their attention, but always to tell the truth ... I have great respect for the British public, I try to carry that through.'
Later, Mr Jay returns to Mr Murdoch's relationship with Mrs Thatcher and he denies he was 'one of the main powers' behind her leadership. He also denied consulting with her regularly on every important matter of policy. but he did agree that he shared her political views.
Never has the News Corp's chairman and chief executive been questioned so thoroughly in public and crucially, under oath in front of a judge and his evidence is expected to drag the government further into the scandal.
Many believe the performance of his son yesterday was an act of clinical revenge aimed at tarnishing a government that at first sought his patronage and then deserted him when the phone hacking scandal blew up last year.
Allegations that the government had sought to help Mr Murdoch in his business dealings go to the heart of the issue in Britain, that Murdoch wields too much influence and that this resulted in a company culture which bypassed and bent rules and regulations.
Wendi Deng lunges towards a man trying to attack her husband with a foam pie during a parliamentary committee hearing on phone hacking in July last year
His company still owns The Sun, The Times and the Sunday Times, and has a 39 per cent stake in satellite broadcaster BSkyB.
His Sunday tabloid the 168-year-old News of the World closed down last July after revelations that the paper listened to the voicemails of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler.
Yesterday, the press standards inquiry heard - to gasps in the courtroom - claims that Mr Hunt backed News Corp's bid to take over BSkyB and leaked inside information to the media giant in an 'absolutely illegal' manner.
Labour last night called for Mr Hunt's resignation after Mr Murdoch's company released the 163-page dossier of emails detailing contacts between his office and senior News Corporation executive Frederic Michel
.
Rebekah Brooks, former chief executive of News International and Rupert Murdoch pictured in July last year. His company still owns The Sun, The Times and the Sunday Times
There to defend him again: Rupert Murdoch's wife Wendi Deng Murdoch, who intervened when a pie was thrown at the media mogul, appears at the Beijing International Film Festival on the 23rd April
Mr Hunt, who said it was 'not a time for knee-jerk reactions', later wrote to Lord Justice Leveson asking if his appearance could be brought forward, promising in a statement that his evidence would show the public he had conducted the process 'with scrupulous fairness'.
In addition, today's hearing will be an excruciating experience for the Prime Minister, who was facing renewed questions over his links to the Murdoch family, after James revealed that Mr Cameron discussed the takeover with him at the Oxfordshire home of News
International boss Rebekah Brooks in December 2010
.
Revelations: James Murdoch gives evidence to the Leveson Inquiry which yesterday heard allegations of the Murdocch Empire's extraordinary level of collusion with Jeremy Hunt the Culture Secretary
81-year-old said he was looking forward to 'putting some myths to bed' about his dominance of British public life and the media
Mr Murdoch denied he had not forgiven David Cameron for the fall-out of the phone hacking scandal despite tweeting about 'toffs'
Media mogul also agreed 'abuses' within newspapers go further than phone hacking
He defended rights of his newspapers to investigate politicians saying 'you have to look behind the facade, and they must expect it'
He is is to reveal his dealings with Prime Ministers over the last 30 years to which he had unparallelled access and influence
Mr Cameron will come under pressure over links with Murdoch empire, which supported him at last election, and friendship with Rebekah Brooks
Follows James Murdoch's sensational testimony and release of emails which led to calls for Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt to resign
Mr Hunt's adviser Adam Smith resigned this morning after admitting he 'went too far' in negotiations with the Murdochs over the BSkyB bid
Rupert Murdoch today said 'he'd never asked a Prime Minister for anything' in his first comments at his historic appearance before the Leveson Inquiry this morning.
The opening hour was dominated by his influence over politicians and British life over the last few decades.
Asked about a secret lunch at Chequers with Margaret Thatcher on 4 Jan, 1981 when he wanted to buy the Sunday Times and Times he was asked if he was seeking to gain anything from the meeting. He replied: 'I've never asked a Prime minister for anything'.
Speaking deliberately and slowly throughout the questioning, the 81-year-old added that he was looking forward to 'putting some myths to bed' and that he didn't have any special 'aura' that drove his empire.
Mr Murdoch also denied that he had not forgiven David Cameron for setting up the Leveson Inquiry, but drew laughs when it was pointed out that in recent 'hostile' tweets he had hit out at toffs.
SCROLL DOWN TO WATCH THE INQUIRY LIVE
Witness: Rupert Murdoch appears before the Leveson Inquiry this morning for the start of his two-day grilling. The 81-year-old is News Corp's chairman and chief executive
The media mogul is expected to lift the lid on his meetings with top British politicians over the last three decades today following sensational claims by his son of secret collusion between the government and News Corporation over the controversial BSkyB bid.
Yesterday, James Murdoch's shocking testimony led to calls for the Culture Minister Jeremy Hunt to resign after he released a damning dossier of emails that revealed he was apparently determined to push the deal through and ride roughshod over the correct procedures.
This morning, his special adviser Adam Smith quit his position after admitting he 'went too far' in negotiations with the Murdoch empire over the bid.
The extraordinary development came just over an hour before Mr Hunt is due to defend his department's actions in the Commons.
He's all smiles: With trademark grin, Rupert Murdoch on his way to the Royal Courts of Justice this morning to face Lord Leveson, with wife Wendi and son Lachlan
Mr Murdoch, pictured with his notes on the way to the inquiry, is being quizzed about his connections to top levels of government and was asked about the bidding process for the Sunday Times and Times
Mr Murdoch said he remained and always was a great admirer of Margaret Thatcher after she was re-elected as prime minister in 1983.
He refers to the strikes and says: 'I think we all wanted change' and then on the subject of the bid for the Times and Sunday Times he said: 'I didn't expected any help from her. Nor did I ask for any.'
Counsel for the inquiry QC Robert Jay turns to the recent 'toffs' tweets by Mr Murdoch.
Mr Murdoch replies: 'Don't take my tweets too seriously people on all sides were piling in on me'.
He added that he wanted to put some myths to bed, but agreed that abuses within newspapers had gone beyond phone hacking.
Mr Murdoch is asked whether he pushed commercial interest in his paper, to which he replied: 'No, I take a particularly strong pride in the fact that we have never pushed our commercial interests in our newspapers'.
Mr Jay then reads him extracts of memoirs of the former editor of the Sunday Times, Sir Harold Evans, and asks about his style of management.
Mr Murdoch says he tries 'very hard to set an example of ethical behaviour'. He pointed to the Sun's mission statement, saying: 'Always to tell the truth, to interest the public, to get their attention, but always to tell the truth ... I have great respect for the British public, I try to carry that through.'
Later, Mr Jay returns to Mr Murdoch's relationship with Mrs Thatcher and he denies he was 'one of the main powers' behind her leadership. He also denied consulting with her regularly on every important matter of policy. but he did agree that he shared her political views.
Never has the News Corp's chairman and chief executive been questioned so thoroughly in public and crucially, under oath in front of a judge and his evidence is expected to drag the government further into the scandal.
Many believe the performance of his son yesterday was an act of clinical revenge aimed at tarnishing a government that at first sought his patronage and then deserted him when the phone hacking scandal blew up last year.
Allegations that the government had sought to help Mr Murdoch in his business dealings go to the heart of the issue in Britain, that Murdoch wields too much influence and that this resulted in a company culture which bypassed and bent rules and regulations.
Wendi Deng lunges towards a man trying to attack her husband with a foam pie during a parliamentary committee hearing on phone hacking in July last year
His company still owns The Sun, The Times and the Sunday Times, and has a 39 per cent stake in satellite broadcaster BSkyB.
His Sunday tabloid the 168-year-old News of the World closed down last July after revelations that the paper listened to the voicemails of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler.
Yesterday, the press standards inquiry heard - to gasps in the courtroom - claims that Mr Hunt backed News Corp's bid to take over BSkyB and leaked inside information to the media giant in an 'absolutely illegal' manner.
Labour last night called for Mr Hunt's resignation after Mr Murdoch's company released the 163-page dossier of emails detailing contacts between his office and senior News Corporation executive Frederic Michel
.
Rebekah Brooks, former chief executive of News International and Rupert Murdoch pictured in July last year. His company still owns The Sun, The Times and the Sunday Times
There to defend him again: Rupert Murdoch's wife Wendi Deng Murdoch, who intervened when a pie was thrown at the media mogul, appears at the Beijing International Film Festival on the 23rd April
Mr Hunt, who said it was 'not a time for knee-jerk reactions', later wrote to Lord Justice Leveson asking if his appearance could be brought forward, promising in a statement that his evidence would show the public he had conducted the process 'with scrupulous fairness'.
In addition, today's hearing will be an excruciating experience for the Prime Minister, who was facing renewed questions over his links to the Murdoch family, after James revealed that Mr Cameron discussed the takeover with him at the Oxfordshire home of News
International boss Rebekah Brooks in December 2010
.
Revelations: James Murdoch gives evidence to the Leveson Inquiry which yesterday heard allegations of the Murdocch Empire's extraordinary level of collusion with Jeremy Hunt the Culture Secretary
