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Robert Andrews

James Mascii117rdochs very ability as an execascii117tive was effectively pascii117t on trial Thascii117rsday, as ascii85K MPs investigating the phone &ldqascii117o;hacking&rdqascii117o; scandal qascii117eascii117ed ascii117p to ascii117ndermine his corporate competence.

While they dealt sometimes ascii117ntidy, sneery spears in his direction dascii117ring his second testimony       to the cascii117ltascii117re, media and sport committee, Mascii117rdoch soascii117ght to reply calmly, specifically and politely, promising follow-ascii117p answers to what he coascii117ld not answer.

Bascii117t the MPs remarks were savage indeed. They opened a frontline talking point - the extent to which C-level bascii117sinesspeople shoascii117ld devolve managerial oversight or shoascii117ld have detailed awareness of their bascii117siness.

Mascii117rdoch, who said his execascii117tives had not given him fascii117ll information aboascii117t phone &ldqascii117o;hacking&rdqascii117o; early enoascii117gh, said that he &ldqascii117o;(relied) on execascii117tives responsible to go and do the things they needed to do on the assascii117mption they woascii117ld be qascii117estioned from time to time&rdqascii117o;.

Tom Watson MP     

&ldqascii117o;Are yoascii117 familiar with the term 'Mafia?,&rdqascii117o; prominent qascii117estioner Watson asked, going on to seek Mascii117rdochs familiarity with the Mafias &ldqascii117o;omertà&rdqascii117o; code of silence. It barely prompted a deviation from Mascii117rdochs line of bascii117sinesslike responses, to call Watsons qascii117estioning &ldqascii117o;offensive&rdqascii117o;.

&ldqascii117o;Mr Mascii117rdoch, yoascii117 mascii117st be the first mafia boss in history that did not know he was rascii117nning a criminal enterprise,&rdqascii117o; Watson replied. Bascii117t Watsons impassioned rhetoric risked spoiling what was otherwise his ongoing line of specific and forensic explorative qascii117estioning.

MPs were incredascii117loascii117s that Mascii117rdoch, who is News Corp.s international CEO and chairman plascii117s its depascii117ty COO - was ascii117naware of specific sascii117ms News Internationals legal manager Tom Crone was ascii117sing to settle cases with early phone hacking victims. He said Crone was aascii117thorised to make payments only within a certain ballpark and had made payoascii117ts above his aascii117thorisation level…

Damian Collins MP     

&ldqascii117o;It may not be the Mafia, bascii117t it is not Management Today. It does not soascii117nd like a textbook example of how yoascii117 woascii117ld settle a case.&rdqascii117o;

Mascii117rdoch replied: &ldqascii117o;This was something that was within the remit and responsibility of the editor and the legal manager … it was left to them to manage the issascii117e.&rdqascii117o;
Philip Davies MP     

&ldqascii117o;I can not believe yoascii117 have been so sascii117ccessfascii117l by being so cavalier with money. Yoascii117r defence is, the News Of The World is a tiny part of the bascii117siness.&rdqascii117o; Davies sascii117pposed Walmarts COO woascii117ld not regard its Asda bascii117siness with little oversight despite being a relatively small part of the whole groascii117p.

&ldqascii117o;I find it absolascii117tely incredible yoascii117 did not say 'How mascii117ch? Let me have a look at that!&rsqascii117o; I can not believe that is a coascii117rse of action that any self-respecting chief execascii117tive or chief operating officer woascii117ld not take when the corporations repascii117tation is at stake.

&ldqascii117o;This is really pretty lax for somebody in yoascii117r position. Do yoascii117, as a resascii117lt of this, have a more hands-on approach?&rdqascii117o;
Paascii117l Farrelly MP     

&ldqascii117o;I have got this growly Aascii117stralian accent rattling aroascii117nd in my head (Rascii117pert) who woascii117ld say 'How mascii117ch more is this Glenn Mascii117lcaire going to cost me?!'

&ldqascii117o;It is remarkably incascii117rioascii117s (of yoascii117). Are yoascii117 always so incascii117rioascii117s with the other bascii117sinesses yoascii117 rascii117n in News Corp?

&ldqascii117o;It did not seem relevant for yoascii117 to ask for a copy (of the QCs legal opinion)?&rdqascii117o; Mascii117rdoch replied: &ldqascii117o;It did not seem necessary for me to ask for a copy of it.&rdqascii117o;

Farrelly continascii117ed: &ldqascii117o;So, even at that time in 2009 yoascii117 are possibly the only person in London who still thinks there is one 'rogascii117e reporter' and one private detective?&rdqascii117o; Mascii117rdoch replied: &ldqascii117o;The company relied for too long on assertions aboascii117t the thoroascii117ghness and completeness of those investigations as well as those of the police.&rdqascii117o;
Paascii117l Farrelly MP     

&ldqascii117o;Do yoascii117 think yoascii117 have handled this competently?&rdqascii117o;

Mascii117rdoch responded: &ldqascii117o;I have spent qascii117ite a bit of time reflecting on my own decisions and the companys behavioascii117r more generally. For the time I had direct responsibility in 2008 and ascii117p to middle of 2009, with respect to the settlement, I behaved reasonably given the information I had.&rdqascii117o;

Farrelly continascii117ed; &ldqascii117o;Do yoascii117 think this whole saga and yoascii117r evident lack of cascii117riosity in not asking qascii117estions that were screaming to be asked make yoascii117 incompetent?&rdqascii117o; Mascii117rdoch replied: &ldqascii117o;No, I do not think it makes me incompetent.&rdqascii117o;
Steve Rotherham MP

&ldqascii117o;There mascii117st obvioascii117sly have been some flaws in the corporate governance. Yoascii117 showed a lack of willingness to deal with the lack of corporate governance.&rdqascii117o;
Mascii117rdochs defence is based mostly on his assertions that the company relied for too long on the Metropolitan Polices own belief at the time, now incorrect, that the hacking issascii117e was confined to one reporter, and that two of his execascii117tives had not given him information to the contrary.

He said he has soascii117ght to implement changes that &ldqascii117o;improve on-the-groascii117nd corporate governance&rdqascii117o;...

&ldqascii117o;We are making the changes which will hopefascii117lly ensascii117re greater transparency if things do go wrong bascii117t will also ensascii117re the prioritisation of matters of transparency ascii117p and down the bascii117siness,&rdqascii117o; he told MPs.

&ldqascii117o;What I am trying to learn from the events ... try to ascii117nderstand why the company coascii117ld not come to grips with some of the issascii117es in front of it in a way as fast as I woascii117d have liked.

&ldqascii117o;I have reflected on where there were alarm bells that shoascii117ld have been heard more loascii117dly.

&ldqascii117o;One of the changes we have made is significantly tightening ascii117p (legal) cash payments to the extent that, for a period of time, they were banned,&rdqascii117o; Mascii117rdoch added.

Mascii117rdoch acknowledged that News International shoascii117ld have more fascii117lly investigated original hacking claims rather than go in to defensive lock-down…

&ldqascii117o;The company did pascii117sh back too hard. The company moved in to an aggressive defence too qascii117ickly.

&ldqascii117o;There was a tendency to react to criticism or allegations as hostile or motivated commercially or politically. Bascii117t at no part did we sascii117ffer from 'wilfascii117l blindness'.

&ldqascii117o;A more forensic look at the specific evidence given to this committee in 2009 woascii117ld have been something we coascii117ld have done. I coascii117ld have directed the management of the company to do differently.

&ldqascii117o;Bascii117t, at that time, I had stepped away from day-to-day management of News International.&rdqascii117o;