1 ISSN 1179-4275 August 2011 NOT the 9 OCLOCK NEWS
ISSN 1179-4275 August 2011 NOT THE 9 OCLOCK NEWS Members will no doubt have watched with morbid fascination as the British gutter press tactics have been dragged into the harsh light of day recently. The NZSA constantly reminds people that good governance is the keystone without which the whole corporate castle can come crashing down. Rupert Murdoch, an octogenarian Australian who became an American primarily for business purposes, and the rest of his motley bunch have provided a clear example of why this is all so important. Murdoch built his empire from Australia, and despite some debt issues in 1992, he has now accumulated a vast media empire. To put this in perspective, worldwide he controls over 70 major newspapers ( including the Times and Wall St Journal), two book publishers (HarperCollins is one), 3 music publishers, 30 major magazines, 17 TV studio/network conglomerates, over 80 major TV channels and over 30 major internet channels. There is much, much more as well. In short, pretty much anything you read, watch or hear will have his influence on it. He has also in the past, been quite successful at “avoidance.” In 1999 it was reported that despite earning over a billion pounds per annum for the previous 11 years, he had paid no net corporate tax. The Murdoch empire has two classes of shares. Only one of these has voting rights. The Murdoch family owns about 35% of News Corp, but nearly all are voting shares, effectively giving him absolute control. The huge 17 member board is dominated by Murdoch and 3 of his children.
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