Friday 3 February 2012

Quotes of the Week: From News Corp to the Hoff


News Corporation statement on the arrest of four senior Sun journalists: "News Corporation made a commitment last summer that unacceptable news gathering practices by individuals in the past would not be repeated. It commissioned the Management and Standards Committee (MSC) to undertake a review of all News International titles, regardless of cost, and to proactively co-operate with law enforcement and other authorities if potentially relevant information arose at those titles. As a result of that review, which is ongoing, the MSC provided information to the Elveden investigation which led to today's arrests."
Neville Thurlbeck on his blog: "It's sad News International had to describe the arrests of Sun men Chris Pharo, Graham Dudman, Fergus Shanahan and the legendary crime editor Mike Sullivan as, ‘draining the swamp’. Notwithstanding the allegations, this is a deeply offensive comment on nearly 100 years of journalistic excellence and dedication to News International."

Rupert Murdoch on Twitter disputes an FT report that plans for a Sun on Sunday have been put on hold because of the arrests of some of the paper's journalists: "F.T. Financial Times or Fawlty Towers? Sun on Sunday story today 100 per cent wrong."

Janet Street Porter in the Independent on Sunday: "Local television current affairs should be culled. Leave it to newspapers and online coverage. As for local radio – just because bands of people complain, it doesn't mean these stations have a meaningful audience."

NUJ organiser Chris Morley: “Stephen Hester has shown the way that most decent people in this country expect directors to act in companies that are failing to deliver growth. We need those at the top of companies such as Trinity Mirror, Newsquest and Johnston Press to show a real example and instead of thinking about their own wallets, to think instead about protecting their workforce and the overall business."

Sir Christopher Meyer defending the Press Complaints Commission at Leveson: “It’s as if you would say to the police, you’re a useless organisation because there is still crime. Or to the bishops that there is still sin. These are ridiculous arguments."

Financial Times report on Trinity Mirror chief exec Sly Bailey's pay: "Shareholders believe Ms Bailey’s pay is above her peers and that she must rebase her remuneration to recognise Trinity Mirror was now a much smaller business than when she joined nine years ago."

Stephen Glover in the Daily Mail: "I don’t suppose we’ll ever know the full truth about Gary Speed’s tragic death. That’s a pity for everyone involved. It’s not in the interests of justice or an open society. And I would suggest that, if the media and coroners’ courts get into the habit of not thoroughly examining the reasons behind the deaths of public figures, that will be a tragedy of another sort."

David Hasselhoff in the Observer: "I have fun with Twitter. When I see something in the press I think, 'Now I can respond to that garbage.' But the press isn't really that bad. My kids say: 'Dad, forget about it, it's bird paper. It doesn't mean anything.' And they're right. The time to worry is when there's no paparazzi."

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