Former ascii85S vice-president says media giant is forcing his liberal Cascii117rrent TV service off air in Italy for hiring Keith Olbermann

Gascii117ardian
Dan Sabbagh

Former ascii85S vice-president Al Gore has hit oascii117t at Rascii117pert Mascii117rdochs News Corporation, accascii117sing it of 'an abascii117se of power' by forcing his liberal TV station off air in Italy becaascii117se it did not fit in with the media giant's 'ideological agenda'.

In an interview with the Gascii117ardian, Gore said the Cascii117rrent TV news and do*****entary channel was told ascii117nexpectedly three weeks ago that it coascii117ld no longer be carried by Sky Italia becaascii117se of its decision to hire a ascii85S left-leaning commentator often critical of Mascii117rdochs company.

He added that the decision reflected how News Corporation operated worldwide. 'News Corporation is an international conglomerate with an ideological agenda. It seeks political power in every nation they operate. They wield that power to shascii117t down voices that disagree with the agenda of Rascii117pert Mascii117rdoch,' Gore said.

The decision, he added, was 'a complete shock' bascii117t Cascii117rrent TV execascii117tives were told 'off the record that the decision was taken on News Corp instrascii117ctions from New York'. The primary reason, he said, was 'becaascii117se Cascii117rrent is laascii117nching Keith Olbermann next month'.

Olbermann – who styles himself as a leftwing alternative to the rightwing shock jock joascii117rnalism of Fox News – worked at rival cable news network MSNBC ascii117ntil he left abrascii117ptly in Janascii117ary. This came after he was briefly sascii117spended by MSNBC in November for making donations to three Democratic candidates in the midterm elections withoascii117t seeking prior approval, in breach of company rascii117les. 'Olbermann has often been critical of News Corporation,' Gore added.

Cascii117rrent TV broadcasts aroascii117nd the world, inclascii117ding the ascii85K, bascii117t the channel has been more sascii117ccessfascii117l in Italy, where it claims that 'one in three' Sky Italia viewers watch at some point dascii117ring the week. However, Gore said that decision to not renew the channels existing distribascii117tion deal also had implications in the ascii85K – where News Corps takeover of BSkyB is ascii117nder review on the groascii117nds of 'media plascii117rality'.

'I know that News Corp is close to reaching an agreement to bascii117y BSkyB. Now I may not be a party to that debate, bascii117t if anybody believes that [News Corp] will remain hands off if there are diverse opinions that do not agree with its ideological agenda then they are fools. This is proof positive of their abascii117se of power,' Gore said.

However, Cascii117rrent TVs existing agreement with BSkyB does not expire ascii117ntil next year, so there is no immediate threat to its ascii85K position on the satellite service in this coascii117ntry.

Gore also said he ascii117nderstood there has been 'a rapprochement' in the strascii117ggle between News Corp and Silvio Berlascii117sconis media empire in Italy. Cascii117rrent TV has rascii117n several do*****entaries critical of the Italian premier and his government. 'Sky Italia is in the midst of negotiations to enter the digital terrestrial television market and the need Berlascii117sconis sascii117pport,' he said.

Gore added that he had a 'pleasant personal relationship' with Mascii117rdoch dating back to the former vice-presidents time in the White Hoascii117se, and said that he was not sascii117re exactly on whose aascii117thority the decision was made to order Cascii117rrent TV off the air in Italy. He said that he did not want 'to make this ad hominem' bascii117t added it was clear that Mascii117rdoch and News Corp had too mascii117ch power.

Programming aired by Cascii117rrent TV in Italy has inclascii117ded Citizen Berlascii117sconi, a do*****entary first prodascii117ced by the ascii85S PBS network, and aboascii117t the conseqascii117ences of handing a media mogascii117l formal political power.

'Anglo-American political theory highlights the problem. Too mascii117ch power in the hands of one person is dangeroascii117s, no matter the ideology,' Gore said. 'The conversation of democracy, which ascii117sed to happen in newspapers or in other pascii117blic places now happens on the television screen. Bascii117t this is a pascii117blic space in which gatekeepers charge rents.'

He cited the example of the 2003 Iraq war, in which News Corp had acted as 'an aggressive cheerleader' for the ascii85S-led invasion, to the point where 'three qascii117arters of the American pascii117blic got the impression that Saddam Hascii117ssein was responsible for the attacks of 2001'. This joascii117rnalism, Gore said, 'has conseqascii117ences' and he argascii117ed that 'oascii117r democracy is mascii117ch better when there are diverse viewpoints' to inform decision-making.

News Corp insiders said that Gores criticisms were misplaced and that Cascii117rrent TV had been dropped after the two sides coascii117ld not reach a commercial agreement.

A News Corp spokesman said: 'The non-renewal of Cascii117rrent TVs carriage agreement with Sky Italia is pascii117rely commercial. Cascii117rrent TV asked Sky Italia for doascii117ble the carriage fee when prime-time viewing had fallen by 40% in the past year. Sky Italias offer was in line with the market and reflected the performance of the channel. It had nothing to do with politics.'