RELEASE: Think Progress Urges Department of Justice to Investigate Rupert Murdoch, News Corporation

July 12, 2011

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Contact: Madeline Meth
Phone: 202.741.6277
Email: mmeth@americanprogress.org

Washington, D.C.— Today, Think Progress launched an effort to tell the Department of Justice to investigate Rupert Murdoch and possible illegal acts by News Corporation and their subsidiaries. Allegations that Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation bribed police officers and tapped phones, both abroad and potentially in the United States, may violate U.S. law.

Think Progress is collecting signatories from readers and will send the following letter to Attorney General Eric Holder:

Attorney General Holder:

We are writing to express our concerns of potential corrupt practices by News Corporation. Specifically, there are credible reports that News Corp subsidiaries bribed police offers to obtain information about former Prime Minister Gordon Brown and others. Further, there are reports that News Corp subsidiaries hacked into voicemails of politicians, celebrities, and murder victims. Some of this activity may have even occurred on U.S. soil. Although initial reports focused on the U.K. paper News of the World, recent reports suggest that this disturbing conduct extended to several other News Corp properties.

Given the seriousness of these allegations, we ask that you immediately begin an investigation of all entities controlled by News Corp, including domestic subsidiaries such as Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post.

The purpose of the investigation should be to determine whether any conduct by News Corp, domestically or abroad, violated The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (15 U.S.C. §§ 78dd-1, et seq.), the Electronic Privacy Communications Act (18 U.S.C. § 2510-2522) or any other applicable U.S. laws.

cc: SEC Chair, Mary L. Schapiro

To see the full letter, click here.
 

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