Thu, 03/10/2011 - 20:05

Rupert Murdoch, bringing out the best in Britons

There’s nothing like a bit of discontent to get the masses motivated – even in lethargic Britain, where the electorate has been wallowing in a sombre indifference for years. Not anymore. Financial woes, followed by a messy election and a subsequent government that nobody truly believes in, have managed to get Brits off their apathetic arses and into politics.

One of the results of this new-found gusto is grassroots movement “38 Degrees”, which has been pestering the government over a range of issues since it was launched in May 2009 (the same month the coalition came into power).

After successfully campaigning against the privatisation of the country’s forests, the activists’ most recent crusade has been to stop media mogul Rupert Murdoch from owning a dangerous amount of Britain’s news market.

This time, they failed – Murdoch was given the green light Thursday to buy up the remaining 61% of satellite broadcaster BSkyB that he did not already own, making his news empire more powerful than ever; potentially illegal by European standards.

The fight isn’t over yet though. One of the services 38 Degrees offers is a readymade email, addressed to your local MP, in protest of the deal with Murdoch and his clan. They’ll even find your MP for you (by using your postcode). So those lethargic bums really have no excuse…

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3 Comments

beyond - Mon, 03/21/2011 - 22:14

Dear kaangarude, it would be nice to see France 24 funded solely by the state, but like most international news channels, (BBC World for example) it is funded partially with advertising revenue. We are, however, a state-run channel, which in a democratic country, is certainly safer than privately owned media, such as those included in Rupert Murdoch's conglomerate, which have potentially influential business interests.

d2b (not verified) - Sun, 03/20/2011 - 02:54

murdoch empire will fall eventually

kaangarude - Sat, 03/19/2011 - 10:28

Forget Murdocht. I watch France 24 on analog broadcast here in the US. I will never pay for knowledge. Knowledge should be free. Anything that gets advertized is automatically taken off my shopping list. This is the revolt and for true free speech. Congatulations Rupert for launching France 24!