how I left Murdoch's war machine and survived !

[WearyOne]

I have a confession.

Up until 18 months ago I worked for Rupert Murdoch's News Ltd in Australia. Not as a journalist but in a capacity that was directly involved in bringing in the financial rewards News Ltd reaps from advertising.

Before the illegal invasion of Iraq I began to feel uneasy the way the Murdoch dominated print media in Australia was gung-ho in promoting the war, which our Prime Minister in Australia John Howard as a George Bush 'deputy sheriff 'slavishly followed his master into without consulting his people ( the first time in our history a Prime Minister committed the country to war without a people's mandate).

Within a few months of the 'shock & awe' campaign I could no longer stomach working directly for an organization which, as the writer John Pilger : http://www.resist.com.au/comments/c68.asp: has pointed out a number of times, was an active promoter of this war by it's constant repetition of the lies used to justify it. In fact Pilger goes as far to say that without Murdoch's News Ltd support via his media empire in Britain, the US and Australia, Bush & the Neocons could not have invaded Iraq.

I resigned telling my co-workers and supervisor the reason . Some laughed but many expressed a similar wish but pointed out the usual reasons they couldn't follow, mortgages,rent, family etc. But I had these as well.

I was immediately offered a well paid job with Murdoch's competitor the other Australia Media mogul Kerry Packer's PBL Publishing which
dominates television. I declined because they too helped promote Howard and his Bush led war.

It took a hard and stressful 12 months but now I work for myself and although I don't make the same money I feel free because I will only work with other corporations or individuals who hold the same ethics..which DU'ers express on here every day and which I have no need to explain. I've never been happier.

I urge all other workers on News Ltd world-wide empire : Fox News etc, to plan your exit now. Treat it like a military operation, even if it's going to be a year down the track. Plan your getaway from this evil empire because I know from experience, the brightest and best minds in this organization think like I do and like all the other members of this board. You're only there for money and you know
as well as I do this rapacious organization will replace you with a machine the minute it can.

And it can't go on forever.
Murdoch is an old man and his successors, his sons aren't up to the job. Five years ago Lachlan Murdoch as CEO of News Ltd in Australia ,in a cost cutting exercise, sent a directive around to journalists to cease using the Internet for reference because it wouldn't last .That's how in touch they are. And despite all appearances News Ltd is built on a sea of debt with moneymakers like Fox News propping up huge debt laden other areas of the corporation. His newspapers world-wide have declining circulations.


Now Rupert Murdoch is bleating about how he and the other handful of like-minded media barons in the USA must seize the initiative and grab hold of those Internet advertising dollars. This man isn't the media genius he is credited as. No doubt he paid afortune to a US marketing firm to write his speech and come up with this initiative.

Together we can stop this evil empire from continuing to spread
it's tentacles and it's influence on the White House.

( please appreciate I can't use my name for a number of personal reasons )

[Clark2008]

1. Oh, if you could only share how you did it!

I've been out of media for six years - left to raise a son shortly before the pendulum took that hard right.

Now, I wouldn't go back for love nor money - even though I miss it. However, I've been laid of of two jobs in four years and am neither making money nor enjoying what I do.

Congrats to you! You give me hope! And that's a lot coming from where I am right now!

:hug:

[WearyOne]

5. I guess the circumstances are different here ..he's put heir apparent

Lachlan ( hopeless )in charge of the his New York newspaper and spent nearly a billion dollars on cable tv in Australia which won't start paying off for at least 10 years. Likewise in Britain. Murdoch's on a campaign to get Bush and other like-minded leaders to change media rules so he can grab other profitable media areas he can't get his hands at present.

I think there's a real possibility of News Ltd breaking up into smaller companies because of the enormous debts. This guy's only brilliance is weaving spells around bankers to lend him money.

If News Ltd breaks apart..there will be jobs galore in all areas.

[leftchick]

11. Didn't murdoch purchase a satelite tv system?

Direct TV comes to my mind. How will that be affected. Thank you so much for the insight. You are a person of great integrity!

:applause: :)

[WearyOne]

30. He's invested a fortune in Star TV in Asia and in cable TV in

Australia and the UK. None of these will return a ptofit of for years.
The investment in Australia runs into $$billions and they're almost giving away the service. There just isn't the population and they're not signing up in the numbers he needs and others abandon it because it's an expensive round of repeats we've seen a dozen times.

I think he's banking on Star TV to be a huge payoff and that's why he's sucking up to the Chinese regime and why he's totally toned down his rhetoric gainst them. He's also dropped running BBC cable because of their anti-Chinese government stories.

I think the Chinese will run rings around him though.

[roguevalley]

47. honey, god bless you. Doesn't it feel wonderful to own your own

soul? Bravo to you. Bravo, bravo, bravo.

I have heard the same about Murdoch. He's whining about his circulation. This is good to hear. He has a lot to answer for.

Another reason to visit Australia. :evilgrin:

[LibertyorDeath]

2. Welcome WearyOne thanks for sharing this

"And it can't go on forever."

:toast:

[autorank]

3. Great job. Welcome to DU!!! This is a great story.

I did something like this myself but I wasn't working for an 'evil'empire, just an 'empire.' Either you know it now or you will soon, you now have more job security than ever (working for yourself).

Good to hear the prospects for Morloch are dim. I randomly ran into a speech by Lachlan on CSpan a few years ago. Kind of a stock guy with a shaved head (kindler gentler skin-head look). I figured it was some sort of 'coming out' for him as the heir apparent. My God, he sounded like such an idiot, just this goofy guy speaking to an audience that was present only because of his father.

I think what you did was great. You are a harbinger.

:yourock:

[ReadTomPaine]

4. At some future point, please share some of your experinces...

Interesting stuff!

RTP

[anitar1]

6. Thanks For Sharing This As It

gives me hope that others will leave the Faux ship and also that the ship will go down one day.

[ariellyn]

7. Thanks for sharing a story of real sacrifice. It takes guts to

stand up for what you believe in and it gives hope to us who have yet to take a stand. :D

[nadinbrzezinski]

8. Thanks for waht you did

It took real guts to do it... and cheeryup

[scarletlib]

9. congratualtions to you

it truly does take a strong person to do what you did. so many of us would want to do the right thing but always have excuses why we can't.

[Skinner]

10. Thank you so much for sharing.

Great post. Welcome to DU. :thumbsup:

[DemBeans]

12. well done

Thank you for sharing this act of conscience.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

13. welcome

:applause: :patriot:

[babsbunny]

14. IDEA

Can we send this to all MSM outlets? I am forever wondering how long this propaganda can go on. This story may inspire others to do the same!

[WearyOne]

26. thanks for the compliment...if you think it helps please do

[NJCher]

15. your post gave me insight

I didn't know much of what you posted. Very, very interesting and good news, too.

Like you, I wouldn't have been able to stomach working there, either. No paycheck is large enough to compensate for the evil this man promotes.


Cher

[KoKo]

16. Many thanks for sharing this and giving some of us hope that the

Murdoch Empire will not go on forever.

Welcome to DU!

[CoolOnion]

17. I read the article in "The Guardian"

Welcome to the board WearyOne! I was interested to read the article News must adapt to web, says Murdoch and found these quotes interesting:

He said consumers wanted "control over the media, instead of being controlled by it", pointing to the proliferation of website diaries, known as "blogs", and message boards.

Uhh...yeah, Rupert, and you're the main reason people started turning to the Internet for news in the first place--to get away from the corporate-controlled message and find out what was really going on in the world.

"Certainly, I didn't do as much as I should have after all the excitement of the late 1990s...quietly hoping that this thing called the digital revolution would just limp away.

THANK GOD he didn't grab control of the internet, too!

[WearyOne]

28. I can tell you many media comentators in Aust are really laughing

privately at how out of date Murdoch was with this speech. Most reckon it's the sort of speech he probably should have given about 5 years ago..in other words the guy's just not the media genius he's painted out to be. He's very good at hiring clever people and very good at dealing with banks..but he's been left behind with the internet.

No matter how big these guys get..the fall is a long way down.

[Beetwasher]

18. I Admire Your Principles! Bravo!!!

A hearty welcome to you, Sir! :thumbsup:

[wryter2000]

19. Thank you

I can't imagine where I'd find the courage to walk away from my job as you did. Luckily, I work for a fine organization and don't have to worry about that.

I so hope you're right about Murdoch and his empire.

[Just Me]

20. All I can say is, "WOW"!!!

:yourock:

Thank you SO MUCH for sharing your story!!! :bounce:
It's quite inspiring!!!

[ClayZ]

21. Thank You! You cut them off....

and gave yourself FREEDOM! I hope you are right about the OTHERS, who are still on board!





:yourock:

[anarchy1999]

22. Cheers to you! Welcome to DU and thanks for sharing your story.

I hope others read it and are inspired to follow your lead.

[Zorra]

23. If all the talented and creative people refuse to work for the dark side

all their businesses will fail - the evil companies would be stuck with an "orc" like republican work force.

Franklin Roosevelt, 1936:

"They steal the livery of great national ideals to serve discredited special interests…. This minority in business and industry... engage in vast propaganda to spread fear and discord among the people. They would gang up against the people’s liberties…. They seek the restoration of their selfish power.….
Our resplendent economic aristocracy does not want to return to that individualism of which they prate, even though the advantages under that system went to the ruthless and the strong. They realize that in 34 months we have built up new instruments of public power. In the hands of a people’s government this power is wholesome and proper. But in the hands of political puppets of an economic aristocracy, such power would provide shackles for the liberties of the people. Give them their way and they will take the course of every aristocracy of the past – power for themselves, enslavement for the public."

http://coat.ncf.ca/our_magazine/links/53/all-both.html

[WearyOne]

27. this is what I found..in the News Ltd departments where the creative

people work, the vast majority think like us. They know who they're working for but they are restrained like so many of us because of financial commitments.

We saw some of this in "Outfoxed"..the guys that create the graphics that work so well on Fox news know that the station is a load of crap. I really pray for Murdoch's empire to hit the wall because of his unbelievable debt..his son Lachlan..who will takeover.. lost $50M in Australia on a cell phone deal because he did business with like-minded guys he went to school with..didn't matter they were a load of dunces.

If News Ltd would only hit the wall..imagine how the media would open up to other entrepreneurs.

[yorkiemommie1]

41. thanks so much

we saw Outfoxed at a MoveOn house party. it deserves a much wider showing.

Like John Perkins --" Confessions of an Economic Hit Man " you have

proven to be a person of integrity and i thank you.

as an aside, my daughter, who is currently unemployed, has turned down a couple of job offers because they were for corporations with whose ethics she did not agree. hopefully there are other young people out there like her.

[GettysbergII]

36. Excellent quote. Thanks n/t

[NVMojo]

24. Truly there is hope when there are still people like you out there!

How gratifying to call the machine what it is, a war machine for Bush and his cronies. That's what it all comes down to.

[graywarrior]

25. This is probably the most important writing I have seen on DU

It confirms my belief that we have been on the right track all along. Thank you for your brilliance and honest account of your courage to take steps most of us are afraid to take.

All it takes is power of example from someone as courageous as you to move a tidal wave of resistance across the media.

[UTUSN]

29. Thanks for the Alternative in Rekindling the Fire n/t

[katinmn]

31. Following your concience is always the right thing to do

The world would be a better place if more people refused to feed the beast.

And: Welcome to the world of self employment!

I've been back here since December. The impetus for me getting out of active participation in a society that has run amok were the second stolen election and corporate owned media and government.

[Cleita]

32. I hope many people read this beyond DU..

I too have left jobs for ethical concerns and not always at a good time for me as well. I too felt that burden drop off my shoulders that I was carrying around the devil himself. Most people should try to be as true to their ideals as they can be and if they can't, at least try within their powers to do what they can to topple the evil empires of the world.

[surrey405]

39. i left ROTC for this

I was also a member of my college ROTC, but after the Iraq war i left the program and wrote a letter to my instructors and told them i could not stand the blood of innocent people on the uniform that i wore. people need to stand for their own ideas. i hail all people who stand for themselves.

[Cleita]

40. It will take everyone standing up for their ideals to turn

the tide. In the long run, you may be surprised to find that you are in the majority. Welcome to DU!

:toast:

[spooky3]

46. welcome to DU and kudos to you and the OP on your integrity.

[JoMama49]

33. I too admire your courageous audacity!

You go WearyOne - you are an inspiration to us all!
Jomama.

[annabanana]

34. Thank you WearyOne..

I hope your story encourages others to come forward and help let the air out of the tires of this war machine.

[Catamount]

35. Good one mate!

Glad to hear that you've come through, and that there are still true blue and righteous people in my former home.
Hoping to vist soon, so please advise which newspapers to read now.
When I check them on the net, they all look the same.
Keep up the good work!
:hi:

[GettysbergII]

37. Thanks for not being a 'good Nazi'. Hopefully many of the rest of us will

also do the right thing when the time comes

[frictionlessO]

38. Im playing a happy ol' didgeridoo vibe to you and yours!!

Brave soul, and am proud of what you did.

[evolvenow]

42. Fantastic! This is the template for CHANGE! Good for you, it is always

worth following your heart. It is better for you, your family and the world. This is how we evolve, when we see where we can no longer support anything that causes harm, we will live in a world where the very idea of war and violence will no longer exist. It will take a while, but stories like yours are so vital, as it is the only way. When no one is creating violence on any level, there will just be a few old men, sitting around with very old, terrible ideas, and no one willing to do their dirty work.

What business did you create? It is important for us to help each other in every way possible. This is the future. Wonderful.

[understandinglife]

43. MNA, May 2 2005: A day to reflect on all we can do to stop the "evil...

....(Murdoch) empire" -- among other actions worthy of a day dedicated to contemplation and planning.

Peace.


www.missionnotacomplished.us

[ailsagirl]

44. Welcome to DU and huge kudos for your story!! n/t

[tallahasseedem]

45. Thank you for the story...

It is my wish that many others will be as courageous as you one day! :applause:

[NV Whino]

48. Congratulations!

And welcome to the world of self-employeed where you, and only you, call the shots.

[bullwinkle428]

49. I particularly enjoyed this line...

"Five years ago Lachlan Murdoch as CEO of News Ltd in Australia ,in a cost cutting exercise, sent a directive around to journalists to cease using the Internet for reference because it wouldn't last"

This is classic Homer Simpson!! I recall a quote from a couple of years back from Homer..."The Internet!?!? Is that thing still around?"

[Daphne08]

50. Thank you!

I look forward to the day when Murdoch's News Corporation is no more.

[Hekate]

51. You sought "right occupation" ...

...part of the Buddha's Eightfold Path.

You also found your answer to Jesus' question: "What profiteth a man if he gain the whole world and lose his soul?"

Takes guts -- my hat's off to you.

Congratulations and welcome to DU.

Hekate

[Matilda]

52. Hey, good for you.

It's pretty hard not to work for Murdoch in Oz, seeing as how he
owns 70% of our print media. And I'm sure he's looking forward
to his reward from Honest John for backing him - the changing of
cross media ownership and relaxing of foreign ownership laws come
July.

I don't think Jamie Packer's really got it, either - I figure that's
why Kerry has come back on board. Kerry knows that when he goes,
Jamie will make a right mess of it all. That's probably what's
keeping him alive.

Good luck to you, you deserve it.

[Beregond]

53. Murdoch, etc.

I applaud your courage. Denial has become so endemic in society; denial of our complicity in the evil of these corporations. I live in a town that is utterly dependent on union jobs, and yet I see that money being handed over to WalMart daily. People are marching to a gallows of their own construction. If even ten percent of workers would show the integrity you have, the machine would fail.

You have pointed out something that I think, and hope, is true: these corporations are run by idiots, utterly out of touch and incompetent. It can't be long before they run out of people willing to keep them afloat with loans. The danger is that the resulting economic chaos will take down the good with the bad.

[Kenergy]

54. Good on ya, mate! n/t

[WearyOne]

55. Thank you all you DU'ers..I feel right at home !!!!!!!!

[myrna minx]

56. A big kick for this great essay!

:kick: