The end for the News of the World

By Simon Wright (News and personal piece)

CLOSURE: The final edition of the paper will be on Sunday

AFTER 168 years of exposing celebrities, shaming politicians and campaigning for better human rights, this Sunday will see the final ever edition of the News of the World.  Rupert Murdoch has taken the controversial decision to axe the newspaper, in a desperate bid to bury the phone hacking scandal which has dominated news headlines across the world this week.  Some 200 journalists have lost their jobs as a result of the decision taken by News International at its Wapping headquarters, but chief executive of the company, Rebekah Brooks – who was editor of the paper during the scandal, has remarkably held onto her job.  This morning, Andy Coulson – another former editor of the tabloid paper and former press aide in David Cameron’s coalition government was arrested for his role in the phone hacking, as well as allegations into payment to members of the Metropolitan Police.

     The News of the World has come under significant fire for the phone hacking of famous celebrities and politicians already this year.  Film star Sienna Miller, former deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, PR guru Max Clifford and TalkSport radio host Andy Gray were amongst the victims.  Some of these disputes were being settled with significant compensation packages.  However, the twisted events of the last week have led to the downfall of the biggest selling newspaper in the UK. 

      The trouble started when it emerged that the mobile phone of murdered teenager Milly Dowler in 2002 had been hacked into by rogue journalists.  As the days rolled on, more scandals emerged.  Also targeted were the parents of murdered Soham schoolgirls, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman and victims of the 7/7 terrorist attacks in London – on the eve of the sixth anniversary.  The final death knell was when it emerged that some families of servicemen who fought for the country in Afghanistan, but never came home also had their phones and voicemails listened into.  Police have confirmed that they have had 4,000 complaints of mobile phones being targeted and the scandal is likely to cost News International £120million.  Media regulator OFCOM is investigating News International’s other businesses, including fellow newspapers under the branch; The Sun and The Times.  It also throws the proposed takeover of BSkyB into severe doubt, with culture secretary Jeremy Hunt forced to delay the go-ahead for the bid until September at the earliest.

QUESTIONS: Murdoch has decided to keep his chief executive

     Murdoch was reeling yesterday.  For a man who loves making news, he looked scared as he desperately tried to escape questions from pressing journalists on a golf course in Idaho, USA.  It seems though that under fire Brooks will keep her job as chief executive of the organisation, despite the cost of many other innocent positions.  Labour leader Ed Miliband, who has criticised David Cameron for his handling of the situation all week, is furious that Brooks still has a job, despite her knowledge of such illegal journalism practices.  He told the Daily Mirror;

     “It’s clearly people power that has forced this decision.  It’s the result of the revulsion that people felt at what happened at the News of the World.  The one person who seems to be staying in her job in chief executive Rebekah Brooks who was the editor at the time Milly Dowler’s phone was hacked.  I don’t think News International can hope to start to move on while she remains in place.” 

     The lawyer for the Dowler family, Mark Lewis is also saddened that those responsible are still in higher positions; “It’s sad that people will end up losing their jobs, but those responsible are still there.”  Current chairman of News International James Murdoch was interviewed by ITN’s political editor Tom Bradby last night.  He gave his full backing to Brooks and insisted he had no choice to announce the pulling of the plug for the paper;

     “The good things the News of the World does has been sullied by behaviour that was wrong.  Indeed, if recent allegations are true, it was inhuman and has no place in our company.  The News of the World is in the business of holding others to account, but it failed when it came to itself.”

     Celebrities have used Twitter to express their views on the newspaper’s axing today.  Singer George Michael said; "Today is a fantastic day for Britain.  These beliefs are in no way an excuse for any of my behaviour in recent times.  I was happy to do my time, because I was so ashamed.  But... I believe every individual, whether privileged or the average citizen, deserves the law.  And many of us rich or poor have been denied it by News International.  You gotta have faith in Karma.  Today it's very real. And I hope the families of Milly Dowler and all the others who died...."

     Former editor of the Daily Mirror Piers Morgan lamented the move, although he did slam their actions; “Shocked and saddened by closure of the News of the World.  Scandals of past week indefensible, but has been a great British newspaper."

     Founded in October 1843, the News of the World has an annual circulation of 3million readers today, despite the powers of 24-hour rolling news, social networking sites and the radical growth of the internet.  It is famous for its hard-hitting interviews and massive investigations that send celebrities into a pit of shame.  Some of its most famous moments included the undercover sting that exposed Sven-Goran Eriksson into agreeing to take over as Aston Villa manager in January 2006.  Eriksson, contracted to England at the time announced his departure after the 2006 World Cup finals just days following the ‘fake sheikh’ investigation.  It has also revealed Prince Harry’s experimentation with drink and drugs in 2002 and the spot-fixing involving Pakistan cricketers during last summer’s test series in England.  Unsurprisingly, the News of the World has also had to fight many libel cases.  England footballers Ashley Cole and Wayne Rooney have received damages out of court for sleazy stories that made the front page headlines, whilst former FIA president Max Mosley used an invasion of privacy into allegations regarding his private life in March 2008.  Mosley won £60,000 in damages, but lost the battle to change privacy laws in the UK only two months ago.  The News of the World has been underneath Rupert Murdoch’s News International banner since 1969.

MY VIEW

My symphony is with those affected by the disgusting practices

Although the celebrity phone hacking scandal is totally the wrong way to go, the cynics would say that to be famous, you are going to get negative headlines and therefore, these sort of practices.  However, once bereaved families are targeted, it becomes totally indefensible and inexcusable.  The practices are sick and I can’t believe that some rogue journalists would stoop so low to get a story.  Clearly there was no news in the world!  I am very saddened by the whole issue and of course, I have every symphony with the families of Milly Dowler, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, the 7/7 victims and families who have lost their loved ones at war.  For their families to basically go through the whole nightmare in the public eye once again is really sad. 

     I am not saddened by the closure of the News of the World.  Frankly, I felt the paper was full of unproven gossip and garbage.  I already boycotted The Sun anyways, due my anger over their coverage of the 1989 Hillsborough football stadium disaster.  Who I do feel sorry for are the innocent journalists, who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own.  However, Rebekah Brooks keeps hers.  It is unbelievable that she can still be backed by News International, especially after being the editor while Milly Dowler’s phone was being hacked into.  How can she sleep at night!  If she had any decent piece of soul in her body then she should do the honourable thing and resign.

     I do hope the BSkyB takeover doesn’t go through either.  Murdoch did introduce the concept of 24-hour rolling news into the UK and has revolutionised English football with the Sky Sports Premiership deal.  Great things for sure, but I don’t think it would be in the audience’s interest for a rogue media organisation to own BSkyB, no matter how viable and profitable it is. 

     Will people miss the News of the World?  Honestly, I don’t think so.  The Today newspaper was the last major paper to get the chop and that was owned by Murdoch in November 1995.  No-one remembers it today.  Rumours are already flying around that The Sun on Sunday will be launched, so it will probably just be same stories, and similar angles with different name.

     If there is a winner this week, it has to be Ed Miliband.  The Labour leader has really managed to show some steel and determination to push for change in the British press industry this week.  Miliband has put David Cameron under pressure and for me; the Prime Minister has not been convincing enough.  If Andy Coulson is charged by police, it puts David Cameron in a very difficult and stressful position.

     Ultimately, one of the main losers will be those studying journalism at colleges and universities.  The Press Complaints Commission code needs a total rework and the new restrictions and ratifications that will come into force will just make the job for journalists even tougher.  Fewer jobs will be around and if any budding journalism student had commonsense, don’t work for Rupert Murdoch!  He doesn’t care about people’s feelings; he’s only after money and that’s all he’s ever thought about.  So, he is the male version of Janine Malloy from EastEnders then!

     It has been a sad and damaging week for the British press industry.  The phone hacking scandal has dragged the reputation of many names in media through the mud and there are many losers in this.  The story won’t go away and is going to drag on for the rest of the year, especially with enquiries and investigations likely to continue.  If News International can ditch a newspaper and think it will solve the problems, they are seriously mistaken!

One more message; RESIGN REBEKAH! YOU’RE A DISGRACE! 

2010: A year in showbiz

BY JASON WRIGHT

2010 was another crazy and outrageous year in the world of showbiz, so here are the big talking points of 2010.

JANUARY – Katie Price & Alex Reid – A Match Made In Heaven?

HAPPY: Can Katie and Alex's marriage survive?

One is a reputable hard man and has perhaps put the death-defying sport of cage fighting into the public spotlight.  The other is a glamour model/TV personality whose high profile celebrity split in 2009 made her become “The Nation’s Bitch”.  So when Katie Price (a.k.a. Jordan) and Alex Reid tied the knot in Los Angeles, it was expected but also surprising considering they hadn’t formally reconciled after splitting up a few months beforehand.  The marriage took place just days after Reid had won the last series of Channel 4’s Celebrity Big Brother and the public’s perception on him was changed completely.  Since the private wedding in the Atlantic, their relationship has hit the rocks so many times with conflicting reports of the couple’s separate work commitments getting the upper hand of their private life.  Despite this, they held a second public wedding to prove their love back at home but still these questions over how long it will last remain today.  It will be remarkable if they make it past the end of next year, let alone the seven-year itch.

FEBRUARY – Cheryl & Ashley Cole – End Of the Line

All too often enough, many footballers can’t resist the odd one night stand now and again but none more so than Chelsea’s Ashley Cole.  He had already gotten away with it in 2008 as wife, singer and X-Factor Judge Cheryl Cole decided to give him another bite of the cherry.  That was bitten right off at the start of February with another tabloid exclusive from a bar stripper claiming he had an illicit romance with her.  Days later, several more girls sold stories of their experiences with the defender and after another tough week’s worth of thought, which included a downbeat appearance at the BRIT awards, Cheryl finally decided enough was enough and announced a split between them, formally filing for divorce soon after.  This came as no surprise really, Ashley had been dicing with danger for long enough but as before, he gave into the temptation and it cost him the girl of his dreams.

MARCH – The Oscars – Mighty Minnow Outfoxes the Giant

The start of March brought the stars of LA out in force for the 82nd Academy Awards.  The past twelve months had been record breaking in the world of movies and coming into the big ceremony itself, it had been widely expected that the epic 3D smash ‘Avatar’ would sweep the board.  However, everyone was wrong as it only took three gongs, mostly for its special effects.  Instead the honours went to ‘The Hurt Locker’, a compelling drama based on a US army experience of the Iraq conflict and made on a paper-thin budget.  It won six awards including the prestigious ‘Best Picture’ and ‘Best Director’ for Kathryn Bigelow, the first woman to win the award.  To make it even more remarkable, Bigelow had been previously married to James Cameron, who was behind Avatar.  It just goes to show that sometimes a big budget isn’t necessarily required to make a massive blockbuster.

APRIL – Adrian Chiles Switches Sides – ITV Get Their Man

SCRUTINY: Adrian Chiles had a tough transition to ITV

When ITV earned terrestrial rights to FA Cup and England football from 2008 onwards, on a four-year deal, they wanted to get in someone who had the pure knowledge of the beautiful game, Adrian Chiles.  The BBC weren’t willing to let him go without a fight.  The start of the year saw cracks beginning to show between Adrian and the BBC, when the former refused to shave and grew a huge and ugly beard, which he finally was forced to give up on if the Sport Relief campaign raised more than £20 million on the night.  Then the Beeb didn’t do themselves any favours when they announced that popular Radio 2 DJ Chris Evans would take over hosting The One Show on Friday nights from the autumn.  Chiles was livid and despite the compensation of being offered a two-year extension to remain at the corporation, he put pen to paper on the contract to join ITV.  As part of the move, Chiles replaced an unhappy Steve Rider as the main man of the channel’s football coverage and present a revamped breakfast show from September.  As far as ITV are concerned, they were happy to have got their man at last but Adrian’s dry wit and humour that made him popular on MOTD 2 and The One Show has not worked out at his new home so far.  Things have got to improve before his reputation is destroyed totally in 2011.

MAY – Britain’s Got Talent – Time for a Change?

CLASS: Spellbound were the stars of BGT in 2010

The fourth series of ITV’s hugely popular talent contest ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ was anticipated to be the biggest and best yet but in the end, it coughed and spluttered its way throughout.  Though the show produced a deserving winner in gymnast act Spelbound, throughout the show’s run, several questions were asked by the media as to whether the show was suffering by having rarely changed its format and adapted successfully to any change over the last couple of years.  Sure enough, show creator Simon Cowell announced his intention to stand down from the auditions phase of next year’s series, only judging from the live semi-finals and Piers Morgan later also quit, focusing on his increasing commitments in the US.  Comedian Michael McIntyre and David Hasslehoff, who is the lead judge in the American version, are to join the show next year which has promised massive changes and surprises.  Let’s hope it works because if it doesn’t, the show will certainly hit the skids.

JUNE – Lindsay Lohan – A Fallen Star

There is some wasted talent in the US from time to time but none more so than Lindsay Lohan.  Since 2007, the actress, famous for roles in The Parent Trap and Herbie: Fully Loaded has rarely been out of headlines for her erratic behaviour when not at work.  It got much worse in June when she was sentenced to 90 days behind bars for violating the court terms of a criminal probation.  She would only serve 14 days of this conviction before being bailed for a yet another stint in rehab.  The amount of times that Lohan has ended up in court on criminal charges has now become beyond a joke and it is still amazing that she is still in showbiz today.

JULY – Cheryl Cole – Fight For Her Life

Cheryl Cole had undergone a traumatic first half of the year and was just hoping it wouldn’t get any worse. In one week in July, it nearly got cut short.  The week started with a simple story of the Girls Aloud star collapsing at a photoshoot for her upcoming new album, at first harmless as it seemed like it was just a case of exhaustion through overworking.  Just 24 hours later came more shocking developments when The Daily Mirror broke the news that she had contracted malaria following a short break in the African country of Tanzania with close friend Derek Hough.  Worse still, the next day, another newspaper scoop in The Sun formally announced that Cheryl had contracted the most lethal strain of the disease and was given just days left to live.  At that point, everyone believed it was over and were simply waiting for the news that she had succumbed to the illness.  Then a week later, treatment in a specialist hospital for tropical diseases like malaria worked and before long Cheryl was back and fighting fit again.  Her experience no doubt raised the issue of malaria into the public spotlight and she later told broadcaster Piers Morgan in an exclusive interview of his popular TV show ‘Life Stories’ the full extent of her illness.

AUGUST – Time to Say Goodbye – Three ITV favourites breathe their last

FAREWELL: The Bill was one of a number of departures on ITV

Towards the end of August, emotions seemed to be running high at ITV as the broadcaster bid farewell to three of its most beloved and popular programmes.  First to go was ‘Heartbeat’, a popular drama set in fictional Yorkshire village in the 1960’s.  It had been on the air since 1992 and despite the obvious dwindling figures of recent, it was still a regular fixture of ITV’s Sunday night schedules.  The programme was killed off due to ITV’s budget cuts within the Yorkshire region.  Next was the closure of ‘The Bill.’  Centred on a fictional London police station, Sun Hill, it had been run continuously for 27 years.  Again in recent times, the programme had been suffering from a decline in viewers.  A massive revamp of the show last year failed to halt this slide and sure enough, the axe swiftly fell on what was considered as one of Britain’s best drama shows.  Finally, the last week of August (stretching into the first few days of September) was to be the end for a morning classic.  Having woken up the nation since 1993, GMTV was put to bed.  In these current times it had been constantly outperformed by rival BBC Breakfast and bosses decides to give a total revamp to help compete better.  A full takeover by ITV late last year sealed the deal and GMTV departed on September 3, to be replaced by Daybreak on the following Monday.  There is no doubt that these farewells have signified changing times at ITV but just how much more can it take of this in the future.  We shall have to wait and see.

SEPTEMBER – George Michael – Banged Up For Getting High

Another celebrity who has seen controversy taken over their status in recent times has been singer George Michael.  September saw him achieve his lowest ebb of his distinguished career as after a long night of partying, he stupidly got behind wheel of his car after taken excessive amounts of marijuana.  The result was inevitable as he crashed his motor into a Snappy Snaps outlet in West London.  He subsequently had his driving license revoked and was jailed for two months for illegal possession of drugs.  It was another embarrassing moment in the recent history of the former legend of music.

OCTOBER – Katy Perry & Russell Brand – Hitched In an Indian Delight

MATCH: Russell Brand has met it in Katy Perry

One of last year’s hottest and unusual new couples was US singer Katy Perry and British comedian Russell Brand.  Their unruly love for one another meant it would soon be inevitable that they would tie the knot.  Months of planning came and went and finally they got married in a private and traditional Indian ceremony in Delhi.  The photographs and stories from the wedding reportedly fetched over $2 million, proving how much attention the pair have received from the media throughout this time.  Considering Russell’s rather controversial past, it seems like his love for Katy has actually changed everyone’s personality on him for the better.  Many will hope they stay together for a long time.

NOVEMBER – Jason Manford – Sex Shame Ends His Dream Job

Jason Manford seemed to be enjoying himself more than ever before.  After landing, to the surprise of many, Adrian Chiles job of hosting The One Show; it looked like nothing would get in his way, or so he thought.  The tabloids once again had a celebrity when the guard was let down and it was revealed he had sent several sexual text messages to five strippers.  Of course, most people would just stay silent but with his reputation called into question, Manford decided to do the honourable thing and confess it was true.  He then resigned from his position on The One Show to focus on rebuilding his relations with his loved ones and focus on his upcoming stand up tour.  It is a shame that it had to come to this but at the end of the day, Manford did the right thing.

DECEMBER – Coronation Street – 50 Years Is No Time for A Party

DERAILED: The tram crash bought carnage to Corrie

Coronation Street, Britain’s and the world’s longest running soap opera hit the big 50 milestone before Christmas month and it did so with an almighty bang.  For the anniversary week itself, producers wanted to run a storyline that had the nation gripped for the entire duration.  The week started with a massive explosion that destroyed the recently opened Joinery nightclub before a tram derailed from the damaged viaduct above and smashed onto the cobbles.  The disaster claimed the lives of popular characters Ashley Peacock (Steven Arnold) and Molly Dobbs (Vicky Binns) whilst several others were injured and scarred permanently over the experience.  It earned Corrie its highest ratings in years and will surely receive a spate of awards next year.

So there we have it. It has been another massive and explosive year on the showbiz front.  Let’s hope 2011 is just as sensational as the one gone by!

Eight Weeks Behind Bars For George

George Michael’s shocking decline continued on Tuesday, after he was sentenced to eight weeks in jail for crashing his Range Rover, whilst under the influence of cannabis.  Michael has also been banned from driving for five years and has been ordered to pay £1,300 for damages.  The judge at Highbury Magistrates Court told Mr. Michael that he would spend at least four weeks in prison, with the rest on a suspended license.

The latest incident in George Michael’s colourful private life happened on July 4^th, when he hit a pavement and crashed into a photography store in Hampstead, North London.  Police found him slumped at the wheel, and later tests proved that he had taken a high and dangerous doze of prescription and illegal drugs.  At the time of the incident, police were convinced that he had been high on drugs, as his pupils were dilated and there was a constant amount of abuse coming from his slurred mouth.  It isn’t the first time that he has had a brush with the law in recent years, which made a jail term all the more inevitable. 

The former Wham! Star, who became a star for his music in the 1980’s and 1990’s, was famously fined in 1998 for engaging in “a lewd public act” in a California toilet.  This both raised questions about his sexuality and his mental health.  Since then, he has had several other minor accidents, and has been cautioned for being caught possessing drugs.  It is the third time that he has been charged for a similar offense to the one that he finds himself now behind bars.

Fans of the music star turned up outside court on Tuesday afternoon and were devastated when news brokethrough of the sentence.  George Michael has since apologised for this latest act of ungrateful behaviour via a statement on his website, and his defence team at the hearing did admit that he was getting public help for his downward spiral.

For someone who had a fantastic voice, it is sad to see George Michael has fallen from grace.  Hopefully, this stint in prison will make him think about what he does in future.  He has had enough brushes with the law, this might make him think that he has learnt his lesson.