The End of the (News of the) World [Archive]

BonnieShels

07/07/2011, 4:04 PM

This weekend's edition is to be the last ever edition. An incredible decision.

http://telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8623597/News-of-the-World-to-close-following-phone-hacking-scandal-James-Murdochs-statement-in-full.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14070733

Charlie Darwin

07/07/2011, 4:36 PM

Boom. Smacks of opportunism - consolidation was always gonna happen at some stage, this just happened to be a convenient excuse.

20 staff in the Irish office, definitely won't all be accommodated by the Sun.

The Fly

07/07/2011, 5:13 PM

The domain names sunonsunday.com and sunonsunday.co.uk, were both registered two days ago.

Hmmm.......what could it mean?

culloty82

07/07/2011, 7:24 PM

The advertisers have been so short-sighted that most companies haven't pulled ads from the Sun or the Times yet as far as I know. Murdoch's prepared to take a hit on newspapers, but what would really kill him is if people cancelled their Sky subscriptions.

Charlie Darwin

07/07/2011, 7:43 PM

Different situation. The tabloids duplicate one another for the most part - Sky's coverage is unique. People aren't going to drop it as easily as they would a newspaper.

cornflakes

07/07/2011, 9:10 PM

The whole situation is incredibly fascinating. Seems everyone is turning against Murdoch's empire and hopefully all hes rags are boycotted. There might also be another motive to why he shut down the NOTW.
http://blogs.reuters.com/mediafile/2011/07/07/is-murdoch-free-to-destroy-tabloids-records/

Eminence Grise

07/07/2011, 10:53 PM

Seems more like a stroke to kill off an underperforming part of the Evil Empire and replace it with a seven day Sun. There's a lot of guesswork about the corporate structure of the NotW, so I don't know whether closing it means that litigation/prosecution can or can't be pursued with the parent company. Of course, it could also be a wheeze to persuade the regulator that Murdoch is a decent bloke who takes his responsibilities seriously and can be absolutely trusted to take over BSkyB...

Whatever the reason, I won't miss the News of the Screws, though I did appreciate its influence on me during my teen years when it had outstanding contributors like Kathy Lloyd, Maria Whittaker, Sam Fox etc etc...

Macy

08/07/2011, 8:50 AM

Another attempt to draw a line under the phone hacking, as well as a handy excuse to consolidate. Really can't see it working on the former to be honest. Why would the weekday sister paper not be using the same tactics, if nothing else? Although all the red tops have been slow to condemn...

BSkyB is where the money's at - billion a year profits - hence the desperation to take it over, no matter what the print media cost.

BonnieShels

08/07/2011, 11:17 AM

Oddly this night help the decision now on BSkyB in Murdoch's favour as he has less control of the media sector now in Britain with the NOTW closure. Initially it was rumoured that they had moved in his favour but a decision was taken to delay the announcement as there was so many more submissions to consider.

That's not to say further revelations won't scupper the decision, but the Competition Secretary's remit is about News Corp holding too large of a presence in Britain's media not public revulsion or opinion.

Eminence Grise

08/07/2011, 11:23 AM

Andy Coulson arrested in England. http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0708/hacking.html

A few minutes ago on Newstalk, Harry Browne said he thought that in the next few weeks Murdoch's other titles will try to implicate as many other titles as possible in hacking to prove that The Screws wasn't the only one it. Wouldn't surprise me at all.

Wolfie

08/07/2011, 12:22 PM

Whatever the reason, I won't miss the News of the Screws, though I did appreciate its influence on me during my teen years when it had outstanding contributors like Kathy Lloyd, Maria Whittaker, Sam Fox etc etc...

Yes, the above named contributors did have their knockers - but they were never afraid to let it all hang out.

culloty82

08/07/2011, 1:07 PM

Pot is introduced to Kettle. (http://twitpic.com/5mozhb)

Macy

08/07/2011, 1:22 PM

A few minutes ago on Newstalk, Harry Browne said he thought that in the next few weeks Murdoch's other titles will try to implicate as many other titles as possible in hacking to prove that The Screws wasn't the only one it. Wouldn't surprise me at all.
Problem is, if it's that widespread, why wouldn't The Sun be at it too? And will they have to hack the hackers to prove it!

Eminence Grise

08/07/2011, 1:40 PM

And will they have to hack the hackers to prove it!

Hacks hack hackers in hacking horror.

Possibly the ugliest headline imaginable, but it'd be a sub's dream!

dahamsta

08/07/2011, 3:08 PM

I really dislike the use of the work "hack" in this context. It's offensive to hackers, both legit and black hat.

Eminence Grise

08/07/2011, 3:34 PM

True, it's more intercepting messages than hacking proper. But journos have been called hacks for longer than computer hackers have been around, so maybe it's just a convenient verbal contortion.

dahamsta

08/07/2011, 3:55 PM

Sorry, but typing '0000' is not hacking in any way, shape or form.

BonnieShels

08/07/2011, 4:30 PM

Said the same thing to the missus last night and she said yeah, right. So I proceeded to tell her that I could listen to her vms if I wanted to. She said yeah right.

I went right ahead and listened to them. She was gobsmacked.

Not as gobsmacked as me though, who the f**k is Lorenzo?

Eminence Grise

08/07/2011, 6:51 PM

Sorry, but typing '0000' is not hacking in any way, shape or form.

So, we're broadly in agreement then...

Ofcom getting involved now: it wants to run a fit and proper rule over News Corporation. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-14082692
Gosh! I wonder what its finding will be?

Edit
BBC exposes the nefarious doings of NotW journos in the 1940s and '50s...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-14077634

From the time that Rae and Procter were operating, and most probably long before, tabloid hacks have had to be flexible to the point of immorality to get the type of stories that made their paper fly off the stands.

Neish

09/07/2011, 10:24 AM

Was reading on ceefax today that they reckon sales of tomorrows last NotW will be one of the highest ever, so much for the boycott and with them registering the "sun on sunday" domain name they prob have a new sunday paper within a month or two and everyone will forget the Notw scandal and buy this paper thinking its something new and different. But the simple fact is as long as the public have this need(which I'll never understand) to see celeb and wanna be celebs in compromising positions this wil not stop

BonnieShels

09/07/2011, 12:14 PM

James Murdoch said that the proceeds from this Sunday will go to charity.

dahamsta

09/07/2011, 12:53 PM

Magicme

18/07/2011, 5:28 PM

Anyone watching the RTE news there where Mark Hennessy talking to Dobbo from London called Rebekah Brooks "Rebekah Whore" then coughed and said excuse me and called her by her given name. Too funny!

BonnieShels

18/07/2011, 7:08 PM

This story just keeps on going: Sean Hoare found dead!!!

NoW whistle-blower Sean Hoare found dead in Watford

Sean Hoare had told the BBC that phone hacking was "endemic" at the News of the World
A former News of the World journalist who made phone-hacking allegations against the paper has been found dead.

Sean Hoare had told the New York Times the practice was far more extensive than the paper acknowledged when police first investigated hacking claims.

Hertfordshire Police said the body of a man was found at a property in Langley Road, Watford, on Monday morning.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14194623

pineapple stu

19/07/2011, 8:10 AM

Was in today's Metro Herald that he left the NoTW for drink and drugs reasons (also mentioned here (http://www.news.com.au/business/news-of-the-world-whistleblower-sean-hoare-found-dead/story-e6frfm1i-1226097240186)). Kind of implied that the death was probably natural causes arising from that.

That said, given the main protagonist in this story, it's hard to know who to believe really.

Amazing times we're living in though.

Macy

19/07/2011, 8:16 AM

Any danger of the gardaí actually putting down their donuts long enough to investigate whether it happened in this state? Murdoch papers have active journalists in the state, and Irish editions including (until it's closure) the News of the World. We've already had the revelation from a former NOTW journo that the "grey arts" were employed here. So why no investigation? I thought once they were away of an allegation of criminal behaviour, regardless of whether a complaint was made, they had a duty to investigate?

A cynic might suggest that the lack of action might be linked to how well informed some prominent crime journo's appear to be about Garda investigations, and it's a whole can of worms they don't want to open...

Eminence Grise

19/07/2011, 12:15 PM

Any danger of the gardaí actually putting down their donuts long enough to investigate whether it happened in this state? ...

A cynic might suggest that the lack of action might be linked to how well informed some prominent crime journo's appear to be about Garda investigations, and it's a whole can of worms they don't want to open...

Speculative, but certainly plausible, and not reserved for cynics. There does seem to be an unhealthy relationship between a few select crime hacks and the Garda press office. It might take a formal complaint to get the Garda to look into NotW activities. Given that some of the Irish editions brought in English management, I'd be surprised if there weren't a few hacks able to memorise 0000... or remember their friends in Phoenix Park.

Macy

19/07/2011, 1:05 PM

Given that some of the Irish editions brought in English management, I'd be surprised if there weren't a few hacks able to memorise 0000... or remember their friends in Phoenix Park.
It's essentially been confirmed that there was no difference in methods between their UK or Irish editions. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2011/0708/1224300302178.html

bennocelt

19/07/2011, 5:44 PM

What about the "well Known ar se licker" - according to Vinny Browne?:)

Eminence Grise

20/07/2011, 8:31 AM

Interesting piece in the current Phoenix about a few of the NotW crimefighters in Ireland. (http://www.thephoenix.ie/phoenix/welcome.do subscription required; p12 of the mag).

“[Debbie] McCann’s dad is Detective Superintendant John McCann, head of the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Unit in the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (NCBI). Ciaran’s [McGowan] parentage is even more impressive as his dad is Detective Inspector Jim McGowan and his mum is Deputy Commissioner Noirin O’Sullivan. With a background like that, it’s obvious that the two journalists were committed to the Irish NOW’s crusade against crime without engaging in the sort of skulduggery that Rebekah’s hacks got up to in the UK.”

McCann is a journalist, while McGowan is a photographer.

Like you said, Macy: a big can of worms. And an obvious reason why nothing will be done in Ireland.

BonnieShels

20/07/2011, 10:40 AM

You leave the National Council of the Blind in Ireland out of this!

Would be interesting to make s formal complaint though, wouldn't it?

Eminence Grise

20/07/2011, 12:14 PM

Given the number of times they may have turned a blind eye to The Screws shenanigans, that's a very apposite moniker for the Garda!

Agree that a formal complaint would put the cat among the pigeons. Is the reported word of a former journalist enough for Joe Citizen to make the complaint?

Edit
It occured to me whatever Joe Citizen makes the complaint, he'd better make sure his car is taxed, insured, has its NCT, four new wheels etc etc. Clannish bunch the boys in blue...

BonnieShels

20/07/2011, 12:25 PM

Well I don't think there is a level set on the severity of the complaint before it's made. It would be up to the Gardaí to investigate the claims if they believe they would result in a case and conviction.

It is a tricky one.

Macy

20/07/2011, 3:17 PM

Surely they investigate, and then whether it would result in a case and/ or conviction is up to the DPP? As I said earlier, my understanding that the Gardaí were duty bound to investigate if there were aware of possible criminal behaviour, regardless of a formal complaint being made. They've definitely opened investigations based on media reports and stories before.

dahamsta

20/07/2011, 3:22 PM

I think Foot.ie has reached it's sell-by date. Somebody used the word "apposite".

John83

20/07/2011, 3:28 PM

I think Foot.ie has reached it's sell-by date. Somebody used the word "apposite".
The guy's handle is an obscure loanword from French, it's not that surprising.

Eminence Grise

20/07/2011, 11:18 PM

Meh. I really hope that's the worst thing you had to worry about all day.:p

culloty82

17/02/2012, 1:50 PM

It's taken seven months, but... (http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/feb/17/rupert-murdoch-sun-crisis-live), and just when everyone thought the Sun itself was going to be shut.

the 12 th man

17/02/2012, 6:06 PM

They haven't gone away you know...

Charlie Darwin

17/02/2012, 6:50 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYyXREJSHGs

legendz

01/03/2012, 12:31 PM

As was said over the weekend, no matter how many times they say it's not the news of the world, it effectively is. Just like FF, the gangster won't go away.