Parliament Summons Rupert Murdoch for a Spanking

The media tycoon is said to welcome the opportunity to appear once again before the British government and explain his side of the secretly recorded pep talk he gave his alleged phone-hacking reporters.

It may just be a matter of grandstanding on both sides. As the BBC reports, “with more than 20 arrests so far in the Elveden inquiry and several people charged, the committee would be extremely restricted in what questions it could ask.”

BBC:

A spokesman for News Corporation said: “Mr Murdoch welcomes the opportunity to return to the select committee and answer their questions. He looks forward to clearing up any misconceptions as soon as possible.” Earlier on Tuesday, Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Cressida Dick told MPs on the Home Affairs Committee that the force was seeking a court order to get hold of the tape recording.

She said voluntary co-operation with News Corp had “significantly reduced” in the past couple of months and all new requests for material were now subject to the approval of a judge – a process she described as “protracted”. Read more

— Posted by Peter Z. Scheer