News of the World, final edition.
Jul. 4th, 2011 07:55 pmAs a result of this obscene piece of journalistic fuckwittery, my occasional news summary posts will no longer carry this synonymous title.
I won't go back and change all the others - I don't believe in erasing history - but the reason for the change demands explanation.
Words cannot describe what a loathsome and appallingly stupid thing this was for those self-styled "journalists" to do. Occasionally - very occasionally, when momentous events affecting national security or government probity are afoot - it might be permissible for a news service (any news service) to hack the communications of a Government minister and/or the private citizens with whom they may be dealing.
To hack the mobile phone of a missing thirteen year old girl, with the results described in the article, was not a defensible act, would not today be a defensible act, can never be a defensible act - except by the relevant experts in Law Enforcement, who might thereby detect, analyse and trace to its source a demand sent for ransom or some sort of clue which might help them locate the victim (and thereby the offender). It is not, was not, and should never be something for the news media to do.
It would appear that Mr Murdoch and the Prime Minister have each chosen one of their high-level staff rather poorly. Were I either Mr Murdoch or the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the relevant employee would be out the door at once and could forego any hope of a good reference.
ETA 8th July: OMFG.
FInal edition indeed. The owners have announced that they are shutting the paper down in order to atone for its crimes.
This being the case, I may yet keep the "News of the World" title for my posts. Indeed there is no reason not to do so now that the disgraceful rag which I would not wish to name... will no longer be around to be named.
I won't go back and change all the others - I don't believe in erasing history - but the reason for the change demands explanation.
Words cannot describe what a loathsome and appallingly stupid thing this was for those self-styled "journalists" to do. Occasionally - very occasionally, when momentous events affecting national security or government probity are afoot - it might be permissible for a news service (any news service) to hack the communications of a Government minister and/or the private citizens with whom they may be dealing.
To hack the mobile phone of a missing thirteen year old girl, with the results described in the article, was not a defensible act, would not today be a defensible act, can never be a defensible act - except by the relevant experts in Law Enforcement, who might thereby detect, analyse and trace to its source a demand sent for ransom or some sort of clue which might help them locate the victim (and thereby the offender). It is not, was not, and should never be something for the news media to do.
It would appear that Mr Murdoch and the Prime Minister have each chosen one of their high-level staff rather poorly. Were I either Mr Murdoch or the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the relevant employee would be out the door at once and could forego any hope of a good reference.
ETA 8th July: OMFG.
FInal edition indeed. The owners have announced that they are shutting the paper down in order to atone for its crimes.
This being the case, I may yet keep the "News of the World" title for my posts. Indeed there is no reason not to do so now that the disgraceful rag which I would not wish to name... will no longer be around to be named.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}