The scum of the earth (tabloid media) - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Strange Famous · 07-04-2011, 09:14 AM

I have to qualify this by saying this is an allegation that News International has not confirmed or denied.

But if this is true, these people are the scum of the earth.

They cannot argue that this was one bad apple, because if it happened, there MUST have been people who covered it up. Media freedom is seen as one of the key values of the West, but freedom for this kind of dispicable gutter journalism? Freedom MUST be contailed by the boundries of law of decency.

BBC News - News of the World 'hacked Milly Dowler phone'

Quote:

News of the World 'hacked Milly Dowler phone'
Milly Dowler Schoolgirl Milly Dowler went missing nine years ago
Continue reading the main story
Phone-hacking scandal

* Phone-hacking probe: Key people
* Timeline: Phone-hacking row
* How will pay-outs be calculated?
* How the papers got their stories

An investigator working for the News of the World newspaper allegedly hacked into the mobile phone of murdered girl Milly Dowler, a lawyer has said.

Mark Lewis, who represents the Dowler family, said her parents were told by police that Glenn Mulcaire hacked into her phone while she was missing.

The Guardian has claimed he intercepted messages left by relatives and said the NoW deleted some it had listened to.

NoW owner, News Group Newspapers, has not yet responded to the reports.

Mr Lewis said the hacking dated from 2002 when the News of the World was under the editorship of Rebekah Brooks (nee Wade) - now News International's chief executive.

In a statement he said: "Sally and Bob Dowler have been through so much grief and trauma without further distressing revelations to them regarding the loss of their daughter.
'Despicable and evil'

"It is distress heaped upon tragedy to learn the News of the World have no humanity at such a terrible time.

"The fact that they were prepared to act in such a heinous way that could have jeopardised the police investigation and gave them false hope is despicable.

Solicitor for the Dowlers, Mark Lewis: "It is distress heaped upon tragedy"

The Guardian claims that after Milly's voicemail facility became full, the News of the World deleted messages it had already listened to.

It quotes one source as saying that this gave false hope to friends and family, who mistakenly believed that Milly herself had cleared her message inbox and that therefore she was still alive.

By that time, she had been murdered by a nightclub doorman, Levi Bellfield, who was convicted of the killing last month.

The Guardian also alleges that the News of the World employed another private investigator, Steve Whittamore, to illegally obtain ex-directory numbers for families called Dowler living in Walton-on-Thames, where Milly and her family lived.

Reacting to the story, Tom Watson MP told the Commons it was a "despicable and evil act that will shock parents up and down the land".

He also said it strongly suggested that parliament was misled in the press standards inquiry that was held by the Department for Culture Media and Sport last year.

The claims about Milly Dowler are significant in the overall phone hacking inquiry, which has until now focussed largely on the intrusion into the private lives of celebrities.

In January, the High Court will hear claims from five test cases involving public figures who say their phones were hacked into.

They are former footballer Paul Gascoigne, actor Jude Law, sports agent Sky Andrew, interior designer Kelly Hoppen and MP Chris Bryant.

The cases arise out of the disclosure of information by the Metropolitan Police relating to material forfeited by Mulcaire.

He and former News of the World royal editor Clive Goodman were jailed in 2007 over tapping the phones of members of the royal household.

Daniel_ · 07-04-2011, 11:47 AM

I believe that they should have the freedom to investigate and print hard stories.

I certainly do not believe that they should be able to do this and get away with it. If it's true, I hope he's done for contempt of court, and that the family take a huge civil action against News International for pain and suffering.

chinese crested · 07-04-2011, 11:15 PM

We are not talking corrupt politician and beasts of that nature - I can understand that if they are searching for further evidence....... I also think these extraordinarily highly paid footballers get some of their money because they are seen as role models so should act like role models. Do I care that shreck has shagged grannys? Not realy, but I do pity his wife. Gagging orders I find make me very uncomfortable - why should a married man in disguise be able to out his mistress or shag whilst remaining anonymous with a gagging order.
A missing child however. An on going case. Millys phone was Millys phone, and it was no buisness of the press who the friends of a child are - unless of course a groomer type was found on there, and then yes, the police should release details as they would on crimestoppers, and the press could rally people - look for him - find him. Removing her messages - I was thinking how awfull, then remembered a tv reporter recently taking a card off a childs wreath and using the message as a 'human interest story' - write your own crap press people, dont steal condolence cards.
Scum? Afraid theres far worse in the world.
Daniel - notw reporter at Lewes this nov 5th?

chinese crested · 07-07-2011, 12:07 AM

Todays news - they have been hacking the mobile phones of the families of dead servicemen - repatriated - most try to treat these lads and their families with kindness and dignity. Seems some of the families who met each other at Wootton Bassett found that things were appearing in print, and the families didnt understand how the papers had gotten hold of such informantion that as far as they knew had only been spoken of in private telephone conversations. Those on the paper staff responsible - surely they should have everything about themselves open to public scrutiny. Who wants to see a film of the previous editor being checked out for anal polyps with a camera? I think it should all be available on tinternet.
The police they paid received between 20 and 30 thousand a go. Doesnt it fill you with confidence that the police will be looking into their own dirty house.
Govt enquiry my ass, what happened with Chillcott? It would not be fair thats pretty obvious - and you can do a Bliar and lie all the way through your evidence, and nothing will happen to you. I prefer the idea of a judge looking into it - but it would have to be the right judge.

thesurgeon · 07-07-2011, 08:06 AM

Excellent news - The News of the World is being closed down, last edition on Sunday.

Hopefully it will cost Murdoch a few million.

Strange Famous · 07-07-2011, 09:40 AM

Has Murdoch done a deal, and this is the price of the BSkyB deal?

---------- Post added at 06:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:21 PM ----------

edit...

So far it looks like its just a rebrand to "The Sunday Sun" or something.

Just a publicity stunt? If so, not sure that this will stop the contagion.

I cant see how Rebekah Brooks can survive now, but even if she was sacked its probably gone too far, be interesting to see what the Guardian have up their sleeves.

Not scientific, but three people at my work (company of 40/50 people) have cancelled their Sky TV contracts that I know of. I think NI lost 3/4% of share price today... I think they are now in real trouble because they have let this fester 3 or 4 days rather than taking real and immediate action.

In my opinion, LFC fans know how to treat the sun correctly.

roachboy · 07-09-2011, 11:17 AM

Rupert Murdoch flies in to stop fallout poisoning BSkyB takeover bid | Media | The Observer

this isn't over. reneault has pulled all advertising. the church of england is threatening to sell all its murdoch related stock if they don't hold folk to account. it's interesting that even the generally ethics-challenged holders of capital who may think about their activity in the narrowest of terms are apparently rousing themselves to action---and more that it took this long. the implications for murdoch could be quite significant. hopefully his triage will be a failure. i'd love to see this reactionary sleazebag come undone.

Strange Famous · 07-09-2011, 03:29 PM

he is holding Rebekah Wade back I think as the next sacrifice to save this son.

But I think its maybe gone too far now, suddenly the politicians arent afraid of him and scores are going to be settled.

Hugh Grant said it best when he said that hacking his or Sienna's phone... people may have agreed it was wrong, but it didnt attack them in the guts in the way the Milly Dowlers revelation did (and then the 7/7 survivors, parents of the Soham murder victims, parents of dead soldiers, etc etc)

I think closing NOTW is a stunt, the day before they bought the website for sunonsunday and BBC were reporting Sun staff were warned they would be going to a 7 day operation in weeks.

I hope that the general public dont take their boot of Digger's throat

Willravel · 07-09-2011, 04:36 PM

A free press is not above the law. Both those who are directly responsible for and those overseeing with knowledge and who may have ordered the hacking should be charged in accordance with the law and prosecuted.

This is also the first time the Murdoch empire, the greatest weapon in the corporatist arsenal, has been wounded in this way. That wound is exposed, and the empire has slowed to patch it. And for the record, I enjoy applying two different metaphors to the same thing. I find it funny.

Strange Famous · 07-10-2011, 11:27 AM

Its really interesting how the internet has changed the dynamic of this.

It was NOT corporations who lead this, not was it politicians. Even the week before it broke, Labour MPs were being briefed "dont take on News Int'l, they are too powerful, its not worth the fight"

It was mums.net who took them on, lead the campaign that targeted one big advertiser after the next until they pulled out of NOTW, and lead to Digger's reaction. The final blow I believe was when the Royal British Legion ended their association with News Intl.

_

Its a funny old world, where mum.net charge into the ground where Ed Milliband and the so called radical politicians are afraid to fight. But then the NOTW can destroy a politican, they would never dare take on the mothers of Britain.

And what really makes you wonder is that Brooks has said "worse is to come" in this scandal

ie - worse than hacking into the phone of a murdered child and giving her parents false hope she could be alive. Worse than bribing the police to get the mobile numbers of the parents of murdered kids also. Worse than hacking the phones of the parents of dead soldiers. Worse than hacking the phones of civilians maimed by a terrorist attack...

You shudder to think of these worse things.

Willravel · 07-10-2011, 05:58 PM

So they hacked the poor dead girl's phone giving the parents false hope, then we find out they hacked the phones of 7/7 victims, and now it's coming out that they likely hacked the phones of 9/11 victims.

I'm shuddering right there with you, SF.

chinese crested · 07-10-2011, 09:46 PM

I am waiting for the names of the bent coppers to come out too. Twenty to thirty thousand was average payout it seems, and that envelopes were handed over in fast food establishment. Reporters, by nature, will do what they can to find a story - not that any of this debacle is acceptable - but those police officers are supposed to uphold the law are they not, and to enforce it. Why werent they busy nicking each other. I am sure, like staff at the paper, some knew more about what was happening than others, but almost all must have had an inkling.
I made their front page in my youth. Reading festival - 'hippy drug fiends busted at reading festival' - that translated to a cid woman stopped me walking back to site, asked where I lived, chatted a bit as we were from the same area.... small world and all that. I was also on news at ten - and in a couple of other papers/mags. The press never left the hotel - the photographers took photos from the windows of the bar I believe - hardly journalism as we thunked it.
Pity it didnt retire with its good name intact as what it originaly was - a news paper for the ordinary man. Pity when ownership changed hands, that the name never got changed, and the name NOTW now means something far different than it was born as.

07-04-2011, 11:47 AM	#2 (permalink)
Daniel_ Evil Priest: The Devil Made Me Do It! Location: Southern England	I believe that they should have the freedom to investigate and print hard stories. I certainly do not believe that they should be able to do this and get away with it. If it's true, I hope he's done for contempt of court, and that the family take a huge civil action against News International for pain and suffering. __________________ ╔═════════════════════════════════════════╗ Overhead, the Albatross hangs motionless upon the air, And deep beneath the rolling waves, In labyrinths of Coral Caves, The Echo of a distant time Comes willowing across the sand; And everthing is Green and Submarine ╚═════════════════════════════════════════╝

07-07-2011, 09:40 AM	#6 (permalink)
Strange Famous follower of the child's crusade?	Has Murdoch done a deal, and this is the price of the BSkyB deal? ---------- Post added at 06:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:21 PM ---------- edit... So far it looks like its just a rebrand to "The Sunday Sun" or something. Just a publicity stunt? If so, not sure that this will stop the contagion. I cant see how Rebekah Brooks can survive now, but even if she was sacked its probably gone too far, be interesting to see what the Guardian have up their sleeves. Not scientific, but three people at my work (company of 40/50 people) have cancelled their Sky TV contracts that I know of. I think NI lost 3/4% of share price today... I think they are now in real trouble because they have let this fester 3 or 4 days rather than taking real and immediate action. In my opinion, LFC fans know how to treat the sun correctly. __________________ "Do not tell lies, and do not do what you hate, for all things are plain in the sight of Heaven. For nothing hidden will not become manifest, and nothing covered will remain without being uncovered." The Gospel of Thomas

07-09-2011, 11:17 AM	#7 (permalink)
roachboy Super Moderator Location: essex ma	Rupert Murdoch flies in to stop fallout poisoning BSkyB takeover bid \| Media \| The Observer this isn't over. reneault has pulled all advertising. the church of england is threatening to sell all its murdoch related stock if they don't hold folk to account. it's interesting that even the generally ethics-challenged holders of capital who may think about their activity in the narrowest of terms are apparently rousing themselves to action---and more that it took this long. the implications for murdoch could be quite significant. hopefully his triage will be a failure. i'd love to see this reactionary sleazebag come undone. __________________ a gramophone its corrugated trumpet silver handle spinning dog. such faithfulness it hear it make you sick. -kamau brathwaite

07-09-2011, 03:29 PM	#8 (permalink)
Strange Famous follower of the child's crusade?	he is holding Rebekah Wade back I think as the next sacrifice to save this son. But I think its maybe gone too far now, suddenly the politicians arent afraid of him and scores are going to be settled. Hugh Grant said it best when he said that hacking his or Sienna's phone... people may have agreed it was wrong, but it didnt attack them in the guts in the way the Milly Dowlers revelation did (and then the 7/7 survivors, parents of the Soham murder victims, parents of dead soldiers, etc etc) I think closing NOTW is a stunt, the day before they bought the website for sunonsunday and BBC were reporting Sun staff were warned they would be going to a 7 day operation in weeks. I hope that the general public dont take their boot of Digger's throat __________________ "Do not tell lies, and do not do what you hate, for all things are plain in the sight of Heaven. For nothing hidden will not become manifest, and nothing covered will remain without being uncovered." The Gospel of Thomas

07-10-2011, 11:27 AM	#10 (permalink)
Strange Famous follower of the child's crusade?	Its really interesting how the internet has changed the dynamic of this. It was NOT corporations who lead this, not was it politicians. Even the week before it broke, Labour MPs were being briefed "dont take on News Int'l, they are too powerful, its not worth the fight" It was mums.net who took them on, lead the campaign that targeted one big advertiser after the next until they pulled out of NOTW, and lead to Digger's reaction. The final blow I believe was when the Royal British Legion ended their association with News Intl. _ Its a funny old world, where mum.net charge into the ground where Ed Milliband and the so called radical politicians are afraid to fight. But then the NOTW can destroy a politican, they would never dare take on the mothers of Britain. And what really makes you wonder is that Brooks has said "worse is to come" in this scandal ie - worse than hacking into the phone of a murdered child and giving her parents false hope she could be alive. Worse than bribing the police to get the mobile numbers of the parents of murdered kids also. Worse than hacking the phones of the parents of dead soldiers. Worse than hacking the phones of civilians maimed by a terrorist attack... You shudder to think of these worse things. __________________ "Do not tell lies, and do not do what you hate, for all things are plain in the sight of Heaven. For nothing hidden will not become manifest, and nothing covered will remain without being uncovered." The Gospel of Thomas

07-04-2011, 11:15 PM	#3 (permalink)
chinese crested Insane Location: hampshire	We are not talking corrupt politician and beasts of that nature - I can understand that if they are searching for further evidence....... I also think these extraordinarily highly paid footballers get some of their money because they are seen as role models so should act like role models. Do I care that shreck has shagged grannys? Not realy, but I do pity his wife. Gagging orders I find make me very uncomfortable - why should a married man in disguise be able to out his mistress or shag whilst remaining anonymous with a gagging order. A missing child however. An on going case. Millys phone was Millys phone, and it was no buisness of the press who the friends of a child are - unless of course a groomer type was found on there, and then yes, the police should release details as they would on crimestoppers, and the press could rally people - look for him - find him. Removing her messages - I was thinking how awfull, then remembered a tv reporter recently taking a card off a childs wreath and using the message as a 'human interest story' - write your own crap press people, dont steal condolence cards. Scum? Afraid theres far worse in the world. Daniel - notw reporter at Lewes this nov 5th?

07-07-2011, 12:07 AM	#4 (permalink)
chinese crested Insane Location: hampshire	Todays news - they have been hacking the mobile phones of the families of dead servicemen - repatriated - most try to treat these lads and their families with kindness and dignity. Seems some of the families who met each other at Wootton Bassett found that things were appearing in print, and the families didnt understand how the papers had gotten hold of such informantion that as far as they knew had only been spoken of in private telephone conversations. Those on the paper staff responsible - surely they should have everything about themselves open to public scrutiny. Who wants to see a film of the previous editor being checked out for anal polyps with a camera? I think it should all be available on tinternet. The police they paid received between 20 and 30 thousand a go. Doesnt it fill you with confidence that the police will be looking into their own dirty house. Govt enquiry my ass, what happened with Chillcott? It would not be fair thats pretty obvious - and you can do a Bliar and lie all the way through your evidence, and nothing will happen to you. I prefer the idea of a judge looking into it - but it would have to be the right judge.

07-07-2011, 08:06 AM	#5 (permalink)
thesurgeon Upright	Excellent news - The News of the World is being closed down, last edition on Sunday. Hopefully it will cost Murdoch a few million.

07-09-2011, 04:36 PM	#9 (permalink)
Willravel ... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.	A free press is not above the law. Both those who are directly responsible for and those overseeing with knowledge and who may have ordered the hacking should be charged in accordance with the law and prosecuted. This is also the first time the Murdoch empire, the greatest weapon in the corporatist arsenal, has been wounded in this way. That wound is exposed, and the empire has slowed to patch it. And for the record, I enjoy applying two different metaphors to the same thing. I find it funny.

07-10-2011, 05:58 PM	#11 (permalink)
Willravel ... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.	So they hacked the poor dead girl's phone giving the parents false hope, then we find out they hacked the phones of 7/7 victims, and now it's coming out that they likely hacked the phones of 9/11 victims. I'm shuddering right there with you, SF.

07-10-2011, 09:46 PM	#12 (permalink)
chinese crested Insane Location: hampshire	I am waiting for the names of the bent coppers to come out too. Twenty to thirty thousand was average payout it seems, and that envelopes were handed over in fast food establishment. Reporters, by nature, will do what they can to find a story - not that any of this debacle is acceptable - but those police officers are supposed to uphold the law are they not, and to enforce it. Why werent they busy nicking each other. I am sure, like staff at the paper, some knew more about what was happening than others, but almost all must have had an inkling. I made their front page in my youth. Reading festival - 'hippy drug fiends busted at reading festival' - that translated to a cid woman stopped me walking back to site, asked where I lived, chatted a bit as we were from the same area.... small world and all that. I was also on news at ten - and in a couple of other papers/mags. The press never left the hotel - the photographers took photos from the windows of the bar I believe - hardly journalism as we thunked it. Pity it didnt retire with its good name intact as what it originaly was - a news paper for the ordinary man. Pity when ownership changed hands, that the name never got changed, and the name NOTW now means something far different than it was born as.