Spot the Cuckold Competition
A jury has been unable to find that, beyond a reasonable doubt. Rebekah Brooks was a party to the industrial scale phone hacking that was going on all around her. A 5 million pound legal team did its job. Such things happen.
But take a considered view of what that means. While she was Editor, and while she was Chief Executive, numerous people who reported directly to her were engaged in an active criminal conspiracy, the results of which she was seeing almost every single day, and to which hundreds of thousands of pounds of company money were diverted without her noticing. The leader of the criminal conspiracy, Coulson, not only reported directly to her, but she was shagging him too. She still noticed nothing.
If we accept that as true – and the jury did – it makes her one of the most incompetent managers and company executives in corporate history. Her negligence and complete lack of grip, over years, on what those immediately beneath her were doing, wiped off billions in shareholder value and lost a major commercial asset in the News of the World title. It also tarnished the company’s image irredeemably. On top of which she was given to shagging people for whom she had line management responsibility – if she were a man the feminists would be screaming from the rooftops about that.
In a rational world she would never be employed in any position of responsibility again. If Murdoch really did not know about the phone hacking, if he were genuinely disgraced and sorry, he would be furious at her for her gross negligence. Instead he has given her 10.8 million pounds.
Outwith the gilded circle of the stinking rich Brooks would never work again, having destroyed the News of the World and the image of News International. But the gilded circle will close around her.
The ultra-rich are not like you or me. They are treated by totally different standards. They also behave differently. They have no problem with being cuckolded. Charlie Brooks sent his best wishes to Coulson in jail. If I were Brooks, I would be sending money in to pay very large men to help him find the soap in the shower. Although presumably like Aitken and Archer, Coulson is going to one of those jails for posh people where you can play golf and go home at the weekend. I never understood Brigadier Parker Bowles either, though apparently his wife’s shagging was good for his military career. Funny people, toffs.
Being a right slapper seems not to have harmed Brooks’ career (feminists please note, I here apply the term slapper purely in the technical sense that she gave Ross Kemp a good slapping). That particular asset of hers has faded fast. But I think we can be quite certain that her future will be very different from that of anyone outside the top 1% of earners who had totally failed in their employment. It rather removes the argument that the disgusting wealth gap in the country relates to achievement and risk.
Craig
She wasn’t married to Brooks during her affair with Coulson. The affair was much earlier:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2667029/My-car-crash-life-Ex-editor-Rebekah-Brooks-told-court-affair-Andy-Coulson-marriage-Ross-Kemp-struggle-baby.html
Herbie
That depends whether you believe it had stopped.
This seems quite true. Like the world of Jilly Cooper’s novel called “Riders”. The Country House set is just as influential as it was in
the 1920s and Rebekah is one of those women willing to lead society
backwards to feudalism.
Mods – the post is defaulting on italics?
[Mod: Fixed now]
Sean Hoare indicated that Rebekah Brooks had lied about not knowing about all the hacking for which he had to go to the greatest lengths to pull off, and when he finally became a credible witness, he was apparently murdered.
“That depends whether you believe it had stopped.”
Perhaps best to stick to what’s been admitted?
A wider net is needed. Why stop at Brooks? Bankers, politicians and media execs are all lavishly rewarded for failure. A P45 would be too, too humiliating.
“A wider net is needed. Why stop at Brooks? Bankers, politicians and media execs are all lavishly rewarded for failure. A P45 would be too, too humiliating.”
And I was under the impression I had been blogging about all that these last eight years.
“presumably like Aitken and Archer, Coulson is going to one of those jails for posh people where you can play golf and go home at the weekend”
Open prisons, with more relaxed regimes, are indeed a feature of our prison system. You don’t however need to be posh to go to one. They are reserved for non-violent, low-risk prisoners of any background. They are generally considered a humane and positive feature of the prison system. Do you disagree?
“It rather removes the argument that the disgusting wealth gap in the country relates to achievement and risk.”
Removes? You hadn’t noticed before? Blimey. The Queen? The rentier class? ,,,
Seems corrupt police have been lost in the mix after all these years.
One of the favourite arguments of those who wish to moan about Iraq say, or Libya, is to demonstrate that both are now a mess and therefore the US was incompetent in terms of its objectives.
That’s actually the official critique.
But that’s only true if you accept their objectives as publicly outlined, or publicly assumed.
I’d say that Murdoch has realised his objectives, over many many years.
Hair of flame and neck of brass! What a girl!
I did not know the estimable Mr Laidlaw QC was the back up.
In defence of Rebekah Brooks – a British lawyer cripples the prosecution case
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/06/25/uk-britain-hacking-defence-idUKKBN0F02I720140625
http://www.2harecourt.com/barristers/jonathan-laidlaw-qc/
Craig, I liked the post until the penultimate paragraph. I completely agree with you on the issue of her dangerous incompetence and the existance of a gilded cage. However, why drag in the issue of her affair and indeed that of Charles and Camilla? To be honest the list of things I find abhorrent about Brooks and the whole News International outfit is a long one but the fact she was carrying on with Coulson doesn’t feature. Admittedly, ‘toffs’ are more relaxed about bedhopping but then that is one of their more enlightened attitudes towards societal norms. As a a man who has admitted to playing offside I didn’t expect you to take the moral highground.
And I was under the impression I had been blogging about all that these last eight years.
Among much else, yes. Kudos, if you wish.
Think it’s time to treat the disease, not symptoms like Rebekah – who was arguably performing very well by Murdoch’s criteria, indeed. And will still be very employable for that reason. I think you have the wrong target for the argument you seem to be making.
“As a a man who has admitted to playing offside” – and been crucified by the media for it. The super rich just don’t have different sexual morals, they are given a much easier ride for it by the tabloids than ordinary mortals. Can you imagine how Rebekah Brooks’ own tabloids would have covered her sex life if someone else had led it (if you see my meaning – sorry, a convoluted thought).
BLiar/Brooks
Cameron/Brooks
Must we not speak their names in connection with the temptress?
Anyway, I’d always thought this was enough:
“Rebekah Brooks admits to paying police”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1AJjnl2y8U
And yes, a little bit incompetent in admitting to it. Almost seems as if she’d never read that book they’re all supposed to read on Journalism and the Law.
Can you imagine how Rebekah Brooks’ own tabloids would have covered her sex life if someone else had led it?
Yes, with enormous appreciation and theoretical Schadenfreude. But do you imagine it would have damaged her? It all came out at the trial and THAT doesn’t seem to have put her down. She’s a tough and self-assertive cookie, and uses her sexuality in her job – look at her hypnosis of Blair, for instance –
http://www.newsbiscuit.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/350-blair-brooks.jpg
Wow. Er. Mmm. It’s just like invading Iraq meeting you, Rebekah…
Fact seems to be to me, sexual morality has pretty well bitten the dust generally. Screwing around isn’t a dealbreaker unless you are in a sensitive trade, like Catholic bishop. For journalists, since the move to Wapping and the huge influx of little girl scribes from media colleges, sex may have taken the place of drink – problems with which were formerly a given for hacks. And, pace you, this is not restricted to wealthy cliques of greedy bastards – it’s general. Monkey has seen, and monkey is doing.
There is a retrial for Coulson and Goodman.
PM’s Former Spin Doctor To Face Retrial
Andy Coulson and Clive Goodman are to face a retrial on allegations they conspired to buy Royal phone directories from police.
http://news.sky.com/story/1292092/coulson-and-goodman-to-face-bribery-retrial
One of the charges was:
“to cause misconduct in public office by conspiring to pay public officials for stories.”
“Rebekah Brooks admits to paying police”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1AJjnl2y8U
Of course one of the arguments put for her victory is that she had teams of highly paid QCs, whilst the poor old CPS could only muster two paralegals and a sausage sandwich.
But I’d say that even a dead sausage sandwich couldn’t miss the above relationship between charge and admission.
Remember, these parliamentary committees have legal standing.
That expression of Blair’s looks a little camp.
Craig – I understand what you are getting at. I agree that the papers controlled by Brooks would have made a song and dance if any other editor had admitted to banging their deputy. I am not sure I agree with you about the super rich being given an easy ride, the red tops love to splash their lives all across the front pages too, Max Mosley is one example, but there are certainly those who are protected from public ridicule.
Mary – you can talk about whoever you like in connection with the ‘temptress’ but without any proof it is just juvenile conjecture.
So the Met was conducting a separate investigation into the involvement of News Corp, especially Murdoch and Lee Hinton, by the spring of 2012 into the hacking and payment of police, thanks to evidence from some insider (Sean Hoare?), and when it really heated up, he was murdered?
Really getting interesting.
Was this actually established by her trial? Provably on 12 occasions a small number of people (maybe only a handful) were involved in illegal activity.
Do you work for Murdoch Mick?
From the vaults:
The continuing hubris of the News International lot is really quite astonishing. These people do not seem to have realised they no longer have the world in their pocket.
( http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2011/07/rebekah-still-doesnt-get-it/ )
Aaah, but I was so much older then,
I’m younger than that now….
(Bob Dylan)
Press For The Same Old Truths
Thanks for that Craig, she is no Bodica but a woman who knows what made Kurtisans famous.
The old Norfolk capers about the two bedhoppers enjoying each others company whilst Diana was with child are such an old hat.
“I were Brooks, I would be sending money in to pay very large men to help him find the soap in the shower. ”
How gracious, all that pleasure at once, it might have the opposite effect to what you have wished, you never know with these toffs. Aint that right Miranda?