By JOHN F. BURNS, DON VAN NATTA Jr. and ALAN COWELL
Published: July 13, 2011
LONDON ? Prime Minister David Cameron offered details for the first time on Wednesday of a broad inquiry into the relationships among the police, politicians and the press in the broadening scandal confronting Rupert Murdoch?s media empire in Britain.
Press Association, via European Pressphoto Agency
This image taken from television shows Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain speaking at the House of Commons on Wednesday.
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Editorial: Britain?s Press Scandal (July 13, 2011)
Speaking to Parliament, Mr. Cameron said the inquiry would be led by a senior judge, Lord Justice Leveson, and would have the power to summon witnesses to testify under oath. The announcement came as Mr. Cameron fought to recover the initiative in a scandal that has turned into potentially the most damaging crisis of his time in office.
He said the inquiry would probe the ethics and culture of the British media as well as the accusations of phone hacking at the News of the World underlying the scandal. It would also investigate why an initial police inquiry failed to uncover the extent of the scandal and allegations that journalists paid corrupt police officers.
He said he wanted the inquiry to be ?as robust as possible, one that can get to the truth fastest and get to work the quickest, and one that commands the full confidence of the public.?
Mr. Cameron said it should complete a report on the future regulation of the press within a year, but he acknowledged that inquiries into allegations of criminal wrong-doing ? which the police are also investigating ? would take longer.
Mr. Cameron?s Conservative Party took power in May 2010, supported by some of the newspapers in Mr. Murdoch?s British stable, and his critics said that he, like some of his predecessors in 10 Downing Street, sought to maintain that support even as the phone hacking scandal smoldered before erupting into a crisis last week.
A week ago, Mr. Cameron said it was not for politicians to interfere in the workings of private companies. But on Wednesday, he urged Mr. Murdoch to abandon his ambitions to complete a takeover of the country?s biggest satellite broadcaster.
In a rancorous session at the weekly encounter in Parliament known as prime minister?s questions, Mr. Cameron also came under renewed pressure from opposition Labour leader Ed Miliband to explain his relationship with his former director of communications, Andy Coulson, a former editor of The News of the World ? a top selling Sunday tabloid at the epicenter of the scandal which the Murdoch family ordered closed last weekend.
A lawmaker also asked if there was evidence that journalists at News International, a British subsidiary of Mr. Murdoch?s News Corporation, had tried to hack into the voice mail of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in the United States, as they are accused of doing in Britain after the July 7 London bombings in 2005.
The Daily Mirror newspaper had reported that journalists had sought to secure phone data concerning Sept. 11 victims from a private investigator in the United States. Mr. Cameron said he would investigate the issue.
In what seemed an indication of further uncertainty at News International, news reports said Tom Crone, the company?s legal manager, had left the firm but it was not clear why.
Mr. Cameron offered his most forthrightyet on Mr. Murdoch?s $12 billion bid for more than 60 percent of the shares in British Sky Broadcasting which he does not already own, saying his companies should ?stop the business of mergers and get on with cleaning the stables.?
The latest exchanges came a day after Mr. Murdoch?s once-commanding influence in British politics seemed to dwindle to a new low on Tuesday, when all three major parties in Parliament joined in support of a sharp rebuke to his ambitions and a parliamentary committee said it would call him, along with two other top executives, to testify publicly next week about the growing scandal enveloping his media empire.
But the argument was also marked with sharp exchanges between Mr. Cameron and Mr. Miliband. ?He just doesn?t get it,? Mr. Miliband said, referring to the worries provoked by Mr. Cameron?s decision to hire Mr. Coulson, who was forced to resign in January as the phone-hacking scandal gathered pace. But Mr. Cameron replied: ?The person who is now not getting it is the leader of the opposition.?
?What the public wants us to do is to deal with this firestorm,? Mr. Cameron said.
Since the scandal broke last week, Mr. Miliband had taken the lead in demanding strong action both against News International and its chief executive, Rebekah Brooks, and in calling for Mr. Murdoch to abandon the $12 billion bid to complete his ownership of British Sky Broadcasting. On Wednesday, Mr. Cameron also distanced himself more abruptly than in the past from Ms. Brooks, reportedly a personal friend.
John F. Burns and Don Van Natta Jr. reported from London, and Alan Cowell from Paris. Reporting was contributed by Jo Becker, Ravi Somaiya, and Graham Bowley from London, and J. David Goodman from New York.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/14/world/europe/14hacking.html?_r=3&partner=rss&emc=rss
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