I would have thought the no-strings $40M gift from the federal government was honour enough. Or the $0 tax paid by News Australia Holdings racked up $16bn income but paid zero tax over six years even on the $246m they declared in taxable income. Source Michael West Media. Or the scope of interference almost daily in our democracy. No, not reward enough, not the for the Australia Day Foundation in the UK. They have bestowed a new award. And, in his acceptance video Mr Murdoch says he’s not done. Sheesh.
500 THOUSAND AUSTRALIANS
Signed a petition seeking a #MurdochRoyalCommission and Scott Morrison responded by giving Rupert Murdoch, one of Australia’s highest honours – The Lifetime Achievement Award.
He then used his acceptance speech to rail against social media 🙄🙄#Auspol pic.twitter.com/cl1pbPzo75
— 💧 Sleeping Giants Oz 📣 (@slpng_giants_oz) January 24, 2021
The Australia Day Foundation is supported by a bunch of commercial sponsors. UPDATE (27/01): And, they operate rent free out of Australian Government funded Australia House in London.
It is surprising that some companies have more capacity for donations than they have for paying tax in Australia.
Now, a couple of things:
- I have embedded this tweet as it is the only one with the video of the speech and for no other reason.
- Also, if you disagree with me, it’s okay. I have not written this to change your mind. I do think News Corp is a cancer in our democracy, that News Corp regularly interferes in our democracy and that News Corp is not a socially responsible entity when it comes to its tax affairs.
Daily, News Corp. tells us and governments what to do yet daily it works to limit the resources available with which to do these things.
UPDATE (27/01): It turns out the trust does have ties to the Australian government and that this ‘honour’ is irregular. This thread, including evidence, is well worth reading:
This week, a strange little coterie calling themselves the ‘Australia Day Foundation UK’ dusted off an old Word template and created a nice certificate for Rupert Murdoch in time for today’s Australia/#InvasionDay controversies.
But what is the Aust Day UK Foundation you ask? pic.twitter.com/DOUlrMQeIL
— RonniSalt (@RonniSalt) January 26, 2021
Murdoch underpaid newsagents for decades while imposing demands on us in terms of home delivery. Then, in the blink of an eye, his company took our home delivery business from us for no compensation. I suppose that does deserve an award.
peter, In all fairness of which Murdoch may have none, I would have to say the establishing of MSM in on -line presence was a definite move toward the collapse of physical home delivery.
This made many, newsagents in the Metro areas of the Capital cities unviable. In 2001 February the Newsagency Industry as aRetail zoned area (block system) was dissovled by the Government. This was granted to us some twent years before. The appeal for newsagents to hold the home delivery component was loud and was granted.
It was agreed between the newsagents in every State to have two contracts thus either or could be disposed of separately. Bit by bit as the delivery at low cost, where it could not be absorbed by the retail business was either sold to make a larger Depot or handed back. A clause in the Distribution contract, insisted upon by newsagents set out te they could give 3 months notice to quit if they wished or the publisher could give 6 months notice.
Bit by bit since then newsagents gave up the H.D. with the publisher announcing the 2020 vision statement in amalgamationg the territories into a more viable economical business. We were included in this process.
The closer it got to 2020 the more apparent it became that it was over in these greater metro areas. The reast is as they say history.
It is interesting that Mark has had a vision that did not include these contracts of services as he could see tem of little financial value and restrictive in trade He separated his businesses in divesting the rounds form retail. He promotes Retail, Retail and Retali and has been promoting on-line retail which is where the World is going including Murcdoch with our delivery of MSN. There are many a variety of ideas a plethra of them posted her at least every day, yet a lot and incredible lot have not gone there.3How much notice and offers of help do they need?
This industry of retailers in incredibly positioned with established outlets to take advatange of the growth in both B&M retail as well as On Line.
If one doesn’t think they have the ability to convert then they are not retailers for all the good ons are doing it very successfully.
No Newsagent has one business cobining th Distribution with te Retail store and before someone says rubbish just look at your contracts and if you don’t understand them go to a lawyer.
The retail only newsagent doesn’t have a contract worthy of selling for they are resellers on 12.5% G.P. Margin. The Distribution contract even if owned by the retailer is a separate business that needs approval from the publishers and can be only sold to an approved by them purchaser.
This is our cake, with some it needs a new recipe some careful baking and then proof is in the eating.
Peter there is plenty to blame Murdoch for, he is headline all the time this is evolution not Murdoch he is just moving with it it and if I may add he was very slow on the uptake for he wanted newsprint to stay where it was. This has been well documented.
Fairfax to NINE Rural Press has been bought by Digital genius Businessman Catalino (The Cat) and bet your bedsocks he will go where the increasing market takes him as we all should do.
I bought a business with thriving home delivery and on a promise if a bright future. I did everything News told me to do. I got more customers. year after year they paid me less in real terms. Then they said they wanted it all back. They paid me nothing for all my work. And now I have locals who hate me because of the problems with paper delivery. I have moved on. BUT what the Murdoch business did to me and to my customers disgusts me. It is selfish business lining their pockets and treating us all like mugs.
I am not under their spell like some.
Good speech. Can’t believe he’s 89, amazing. Newsagents have made a ton of money in partnership with him and his family. Same with Tatts and yet they both get smashed on this “newsagency” blog. Meanwhile Tyro get no critical assessment whatsoever for their massive recent fail.
Suffice to say whilst I agree that the tax contribution by the Murdoch empire is questionable Lord Rupert’s contributions are far greater in his chosen field than those of Kevin Rudd. I say good on him for taking on the might of the new Digital Media empires for if he doesn’t journalism and free speech as we know it will be dead.
I think we all realise that the old world print media is heading down the extinction path so those of us who cling onto our old world distribution models without planning for the future do so at our own peril. Digital media should never be used to bully or intimidate and former PMs in particular should know better.
Hang on he is an American citizen. He gave up his Australian citizenship to buy Fox.
Murdoch gave up his rights so why should we honor him.
Murdoch changed his citizenship to further his business interests in the most important media market in the world. I believe him when he says he still a proud Australian. In the same way many Australians have unbreakable bonds with their place of birth, he is no different.
Post 7 Peter
what you say is correct that’s what he did and I believe the rest is true.
All else is about business and he has been no more ruthless than others to achieve so much. Arguably the greatest businessman we have produced.
Mixing emotion and believing that “he did or is doing this to me” is character weakness. We are what we choose. If you let it happen, it happens to you if you make it happen it happens for you.
Murdoch made very forcastable decisions and people reacted according. I don’t believe he actually guaranteed anybody’s future as he didn’t know himself for he wqs too busy making it happen and like his Mother he keeps on keeping on.
Such is life
It says something for an honours system that rewards Rupert Murdoch with an ‘Australia Day’ honour even though Murdoch swore an oath to “entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity” to Australia 35 years ago.
Since then, of course, Murdoch’s UK arm has been found to have engaged in widespread criminality, hacking the phones of dead schoolkids and being found by the Leveson Inquiry to have colluded with politicians and the police to cover up wrongdoing and engaged in “practices tantamount to blackmail”.
His US arm didn’t do any better, enabling Donald Trump and weaponising the campaign of disinformation and outright falsehoods that fuelled the recent attempt to overthrow US democracy. Even Rupert’s own son, James, has implicitly attacked his father’s Fox News for propagating lies which have unleashed “insidious and uncontrollable forces.” You wouldn’t have read about it in News Corp’s papers, though, because what isn’t in Murdoch’s interest isn’t considered to be in the public interest.
Murdoch has had an influence on the world, for sure. But then so has cancer.
I’d remind people that this ‘honour’ is not from any government. It is from what looks like a lobby or special interest group funded by some big Australian businesses.
You could always just stop stocking Newscorp titles. Maybe tally up what you’ve earnt from them over the last 30 years and donate it to a good cause. It could help plant some trees to offset your carbon footprint.
Not sure who the you is Peter. In my own case, I’ve not owned newsagency businesses for 30 years. That aside, I already carbon offset. As for stocking the titles, I’ll continue to stock them, but be mindful of there interference.
Fair enough Mark. I just find it hard to equate your thoughts on Murdoch with your willingness to make money from his product.
I don’t make money from his product. GP from revenue does nothing more than cover costs.
Ok, take the money factor out of it then. You’re left with a case of principle. This blog has had post after post against Murdoch and all that he stands for. Yet you still stock his titles. There is a Greek word for that.
Mark and importantly the honours are for Australian ex-pats for their contribution in the UK. Like you say it has nothing to do with the Australian government . Like a lot of social media comments the Twitter comment that you have shared in this post is misleading as it implies that the honour was awarded by Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Like you say it wasn’t.
Steve, you are right. I could not find another tweet with the video of the speech. To be fair, the person posting the tweet later corrected the record as to organisation bestowing the honour.
Evidence has now come to light indicating that the Australia Day Foundation in the UK has significant ties to the Australian government. This Twitter thread has the details, including evidence:
RonniSalt, Great Stuff I am laughing my self stupid.