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| Paul Barry answers your questions – live Q&A | Paul Barry answers your questions – live Q&A |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Paul Barry, the host of the ABC's Media Watch, is also the author of a new book about Rupert Murdoch, entitled Breaking News: Sex, Lies and the Murdoch Succession. It is an investigation into where Murdoch goes now: at 82, recently divorced from Wendi Deng, battered by the phone hacking scandal and by corporate struggles, which of his children will he choose to succeed him? James is in disgrace; Lachlan doesn't want it; and Elisabeth, says Barry, is counted out because she's a woman. So what's likely to happen next? | Paul Barry, the host of the ABC's Media Watch, is also the author of a new book about Rupert Murdoch, entitled Breaking News: Sex, Lies and the Murdoch Succession. It is an investigation into where Murdoch goes now: at 82, recently divorced from Wendi Deng, battered by the phone hacking scandal and by corporate struggles, which of his children will he choose to succeed him? James is in disgrace; Lachlan doesn't want it; and Elisabeth, says Barry, is counted out because she's a woman. So what's likely to happen next? |
| Paul has written extensively about Alan Bond, Shane Warne and James Packer, and in his day job is an expert on what's happening in Australian media. | Paul has written extensively about Alan Bond, Shane Warne and James Packer, and in his day job is an expert on what's happening in Australian media. |
| Post your questions for Paul below; he'll be answering them here from 12.30 AEST. | Post your questions for Paul below; he'll be answering them here from 12.30 AEST. |
| Your questions, and Paul's answers: | Your questions, and Paul's answers: |
| While the Murdochs may retain a large amount of power over News Corp, how significant is the role of ordinary shareholders in determining the future of the company? | While the Murdochs may retain a large amount of power over News Corp, how significant is the role of ordinary shareholders in determining the future of the company? |
| Not much, frankly. There were big votes against James and Lachlan as directors at the last two News Copr agms, and attempts to change a range of other things, but they were defeated by the Murdoch block vote, even though up to 2/3 of outside shareholders wanted change. The Murdoch family owns 12% of the shares but has 40% of the vote approx. | Not much, frankly. There were big votes against James and Lachlan as directors at the last two News Copr agms, and attempts to change a range of other things, but they were defeated by the Murdoch block vote, even though up to 2/3 of outside shareholders wanted change. The Murdoch family owns 12% of the shares but has 40% of the vote approx. |
| You've written extensively about the media from the perspectives of Murdoch and Packer. How do you rate the ABC, both on air and on the web ? | You've written extensively about the media from the perspectives of Murdoch and Packer. How do you rate the ABC, both on air and on the web ? |
| I think the ABC is excellent. Better than 10 years ago when I was last there. The more commercial pressure there is on newspapers and TV the more we need public broadcasting I reckon | I think the ABC is excellent. Better than 10 years ago when I was last there. The more commercial pressure there is on newspapers and TV the more we need public broadcasting I reckon |
| How do you think the Abbott governments new practice of the Prime Minister's office vetting and approving nearly every press release/ media appearance will affect the reporting of political news in the future? | |
| It will make it more difficult but I reckon it will make reporters try harder. Could improve coverage! | |
| Good afternoon Mr Barry, | |
| In last night's Media Watch program, you stated that new media regulation laws (similar to the ones briefly proposed by Stephen Conrol earlier this year) were now unlikely to be implemented under a Coalition government. | |
| Do you believe that such media regulation laws are warranted in this day and age when people have so much freedom to access digital content? If you still believe they are warranted, can you please explain how a government regulator (or a government appointed regulator) on the media would affect freedom of the press? If we create a media police so to speak, who do you propose should police the police? | |
| I wasn't a great fan of the Labor government's reforms and I'm glad they weren't implemented. I was talking last night about a very limited change: more powers for the ACMA which regulates commercial radio. For newspapers I think self-regulation can be made to work but the Press Council needs more funds. | |
| Concerning the shock-jock style broadcast and print media, exemplified by Alan Jones, Ray Hadley and Andrew Bolt, and the unwavering zeal of its anti-left (anti-progressive) invective: is there, in your view, an intrinsic link between far-right conservatism and this type of media? And do you agree with Julia Gillard's intimation (in her Anne Summers interview) that it is in the beginning of its death throes? | |
| Yup. There aren't many left wing shockjocks. The audience are mostly 60+. And no I don't see it dying out. Commercial talkback is doing well. And it's still going string in the US. | |
| Is it an absolute that Elisabeth is counted out because she is a woman? I thought she was, by all accounts, deemed the most competent and reliable of the Murdoch clan ... Expand on this topic, please, as it also seems Rupert had no problem marrying a Chinese tiger in Wendi Deng. Thanks. | |
| Marrying a woman .... bit different from letting your daughter run the business. Rupert was born in 1931, his Dad in the 1880s. He's an old fashioned man from a different generation, for all his attempts to reinvent himself. It took 30-odd years before News got a female director. Elisabeth is probably the most competent, but she was never taken seriously as a successor by Rupert. More so now, maybe, but I don't see her as a chance to run 21st Century Fox, whereas James still is, despite everything that's happened. | |
| Do you think Wendy deng is a Chinese government agent or simply one the most successful gold diggers of all time? Does ed miliband's response to the daily mail in the UK offer a hint as to how the Labor party here should treat the Murdoch media. After all, the daily telegraph and the courier mail seem to have hardly had a roaring success in their campaign against labor at the recent election. | |
| I don't think Wendi is a Chinese spy! She's certainly dug some gold in her relationships though. As for Ed Milliband and the Mail in the UK, I hope it works for him. The Mail has been vile. And as for the ALP here, attacking the Tele (as Conroy did) didn't go too well, did it? | |
| How do you think the Abbott governments new practice of the Prime Minister's office vetting and approving nearly every press release/ media appearance will affect the reporting of political news in the future? | |
| It will make it more difficult but I reckon it will make reporters try harder. Could improve coverage! | |
| Given the couple of times that News Corp came close to insolvency, and now the split between profitable and money sucking properties, could the print area of News disappear quietly or can it continue to hemorrhage money? | |
| I think all newspapers are in difficulty. Tabloids less so than broadsheet papers which relied so much on classifieds. God knows how long they will last and what they will morph into, but if anybody makes a go of it, it will probably be Rupert. He understands the industry better than anyone else in the world; he takes risks and he acts quickly. But personally I wouldn't be investing in them. | |
| Hi Paul, The MSM is doing more 'opinion' pieces than deep investigative journalism these days - or so it would appear. Why do you think this is? (Guardian are doing a top job IMO) | |
| Cheaper. Opinion costs nothing. Facts take time to dig up. | |
| Do you think there is any chance that the Murdock press will investigate all the times that Abbott has claimed 'expenses' for his bike rides, volunteering, fire fighting, swims, and indigenous community stunts. | |
| Most of these, more that twenty trips claiming more than 10's of thousands of dollars seemed to have been undertaken to satisfy Abbott's obsessive need for exercise and for making himself look good rather than nay public benefit. | |
| The whole tenor of these exercises were sold as 'Look at me, how generous I am and helpful to the community'. Where is seems he was being paid from the public purse to undertake all this self aggrandizement. | |
| Will the Murdock press report it? Will the Murdock press pursue it? | |
| The Australian is leading its website this morning with a story on Abbott claiming travel expenses for an Ironman competition. I don't think they'll run cold on that story. They'll go after it. | |
| BBC massive taxpayer funded mouthpiece for tiny circulation leftist Guardian. Meanwhile print media about to be gagged to protect toffs. | |
| And | |
| Huge lack of balance in UK media with 8000 BBC left wing journalists far outnumbering all national print journalists. | |
| Would love to hear your thoughts about these latest tweets from Rupert. | |
| ROFL I think. Rupert Murdoch criticising others for lack of balance??? | |
| Do you think the shock-jock clique are aware of how blatantly ridiculous their comments are? Is there some sort of self-conscious cynicism masquerading behind their convictions? | |
| Nope. They think you're ridiculous. They think the same of me. | |
| What do you think about community journalism and its role in developing stories on issues that the MSM/ABC don't bother with e.g. Ashbygate | |
| It can be great. I don't think it replaces mainstream journalism with people paid to do it. The ABC is starting to do it with regional reporters on video. It will be interesting to see how it works. As for stories like Ashbygate, Schapelle Corby etc ... I'm not sure | |
| Hi Paul, | |
| Do you think there is any possibility of truth to story that it was Murdock Press phone tapping that leaked details from the Rudd cabinet during the 2010 election? | |
| What are the chances that the Murdock press did indulge in phone tapping in Australia. | |
| I have no evidence whatsoever, and no reason to believe it's true. | |
| Hi Paul. Who's your favourite recording artist? | |
| Miles Davis, John Coltrane, The Audreys. And I love Joe Walsh's song about being a rock star: Life's been good to me so far. | |
| Hi Paul, | |
| Do you think the fact that the media reported that Rudd was about to take over 1000 times and then got it right once justified the other 999 times? | |
| Disunity was obviously an issue with Labor, but the constant reporting of Rudd's possible takeover when he had nowhere near the numbers was plain wrong, and I'd argue that the constant mentions of Rudd were key to bringing down Gillard's popularity as it made her look less 'legitimate'. | |
| I'm sure it had an effect. Journalists get used by politicians, of course | |
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