The battle between News Corporation and the government of the United Kingdom has been going on for upwards of a year now, and News Corp.’s prominent position in the US media world has sparked close interest in this side of the pond. But cooperation on the matter will not likely be forthcoming.
The primary issue has been phone hacking by the company’s now defunct News of the World. There has been some question as to whether or not US citizens were among the hacked, and the questions were tied to the thorny topic of the events of 9/11/01.
The case picked up renewed steam last week when a House of Commons panel labeled News Corp. honcho Rupert Murdoch as unfit to lead a large company.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) asked UK authorities for access to any evidence that might pertain to the US.
According to Reuters, that cooperation will not be possible. The inquiry into News Corp. headed by judge Sir Brian Leveson is simply not authorized to share its findings.
RBR-TVBR observation: If Rockefeller can be said to have been on a fishing expedition, we’d have to point out that attempting to cast the line clear across the Atlantic is an ambitious angling tactic.
