Rupert Murdoch is a major, worldwide corporatized Media Baron who is wealthy beyond comprehension of most Americans and certainly most people worldwide. Rupert Murdoch owns a media empire that just keeps expanding, and which now includes the Wall Street Journal, and apparently now, New York City's Newsday. I would like to see a complete list of the extensive list of printing, publishing and printing media Rupert Murdoch owns.
Unfortunately, this Reader is not going to get such useful information from this Article on Slate. Rather, in immediate rejoinder to a 4,000 word article about Rupert Murdoch just published this week -- I mean, the ink on the magazine is not even dry as yet -- Slate's Author does not hesitate to "jump into the Fray" (so to speak) and defend the reputation of Rupert Murdoch -- the man whose Companies buy ink by the barrel -- here on Slate, Washington DC Edition. Oh, I am sorry -- While Slate purports to be Internet based. Slate is said to have been founded in the original instance by Michael Kinsley -- the former CNN Crossfire Co-Host, new book author, and Interviewee today on National Public Radio's Diane Reems Show. Why am I not surprised that her interminable two hours of radio talk daily is based out of Washington, DC, just like Slate.com? However, the assertion that Kinsley founded Slate is disingenous, in that it was founded by the big bucks of Microsoft, and I do not believe Michael Kinsley ever had a meaningful equity or ownership stake in Slate.com. Maybe a few measley stock options, but you know, starting something from scratch, you would think he would have some kind of wealth in his own pocket by now, by virtue of the online success of Slate, rather than being, as Michael Kinsley is now, merely an ex-Employee of Slate.com, and one who cannot seem to get published here anymore, at that. I mean, when is the last time you came across a Michael Kinsley article published here on Slate.com?
But Slate is not Microsoft Slate anymore. Slate was bought out by the Washington Post companies, another Washington DC media fixture megalopolis -- as though the influence of the Washington Post was in need of expansion and further accruals, on the order of -- oh, say, Rupert Murdoch's Media Baron Empire?
I would not be surprised to find an interlocking directorate involving these two Media Giants, although I would presume the two Corporate Media Behemoths would assiduously cultivate their boards of directors to deny me the satisfaction of discovering such a corporate connect. As a Journalist without portfolio, I will just assume it exists, and leave it to my fellow gaggle of Internet posters and readers to find it. See how easy Journalism can be when Open Sourced Online?
As to the idea that people cannot be "controlled" nowadays, I think Noam Chomsky would beg to differ on that assertion, and maybe that is why Professor Chomsky does not have a column, or even a guest article, published on Slate.com.
As to Murdoch, I posted an earlier blog wherein I claimed to have been the author of the Murdoch Fox News cable success story. Can you say Carl Cameron? However, fair and balanced, is not what Carl & Company are about. Neither is my local newspaper, the New Hampshire (Manchester) -- Union Leader daily newspaper. This newspaper and online presence http://www.theunionleader.com/ has taken it's editorial pages out of the Republican National Committee election campaign wire services for many years now. Also, despite my repeated suggestions to the Editor of the NHUL, they resolutely refuse to reinstate the Doonesbury cartoon strip, which everyone else in syndicated America enjoys. Fortunately, I can read Doonesbury here online at Slate.com when I remember this cartoon strip is available here.
However, Jane Pauley is no longer available to the U.S. media consuming Public. Neither is Dan Rather. ABC's Peter Jennings conveniently died, but the news organization he left us over there at Disneyland ABC is whithering away daily. They cannot even give a full one-half hour weekend televised news broadcast anymore, it seems, for all the sports coverage and meaningless broadcast pablum their ABC network studio executives seem to find more compelling.
If America had a functioning and free press, we would not be suffering through our current multiple national disasters. Give that a thought, my dear Reader(s). Take that, Murdoch.
