Murdoch Attack on BBC News

This latest attck on the BBC from News Corporation and the Murdoch family in general is no suprise.

News Corp is already charging for news as they've found (as the dead tree press has) that there is no profit to be had in free news. The BBC are now a target because they provide news paid for by licence fees.

Ordinarily, I'd say there's no case to answer: thats the way we fund public broadcasting in this country and thats that. For drama, entertainment, documentaries and the like, the BBC should be beyond criticism. But for news, there's a fly in the ointment: the supposedly impartial BBC are far from impartial. Everyone knows over the past decade or more, the BBC has become more and more the propaganda wing of the Labour party, reiterating downing street press releases without any balancing commentary. A far cry from the days of Thatchers's and Major's governments.

I just wonder if Murdoch has found the chink in the BBC's armour, the weak spot that will eventually lead to the breal up of the BBC. Given News Corp's determination to make people pay for their news and the Murdoch clan's past record at sweeping competition aside, its a possibility.