Italian porn wars

Berlusconi’s latest move in Italy’s media war involves banning pay-per- view pornography and other adult programming during daylight hours. If Parliament approves the ban, it would give Berlusconi the edge over Rupert Murdoch’s Sky Italia station, Berlusconi’s biggest competitor. Launched in 2003, Sky Italia is the leading pay-TV platform in Italy, reaching almost 5 million subscribers. Critics believe this is just another instance of Berlusconi using his office to boost his media empire. Click here to read the full story.

Sky Italia grossed roughly 45 million euros (£39 million) in sales from porn programming, half of all pay-per-view revenue, according to a report in October in L’Espresso magazine. Without this revenue, Sky Italia would perhaps not be able to compete with Mediset. This is of course, exactly the result Berlusconi is after. Less competition means fewer opposing views. Italians would be another step closer to having only one voice – that of their leader – to listen to, removing all possibilities of forming an informed and balanced opinion.

I’ve come across this interesting blog post on Reuters.

The on-going feud between two of the world’s most influential media moguls doesn’t seem to be ending any time soon. In an interview with Corriere della Sera, Mediaset’s Vice Chairman Pier Silvio Berlusconi (Berlusconi’s son) said that “there’s a risk war” with Sky Italia over the regulation.

Last year, Berlusconi accused Murdoch of waging a vendetta against him. The battle continues….

Fox News – Fair and Balanced?

“Fair and Balanced” is not something easily associated with Fox News, but how does the US broadcaster live up to its self-imposed motto?

As is the case with all outlets under the News Corporation umbrella, Fox’s editorial direction is guided by the aging yet firm hand of Rupert Murdoch.

“In evidence to a House of Lords select committee in 2007, Murdoch even said that he acted like “a traditional proprietor” in regard to the Sun and the News of the World by “exercising control on major issues, such as which party to back in a general election or policy on Europe.”

This guidance also applies in the US, with Fox appearing to be a staunchly Republican channel. The attitude Fox took towards Barack Obama during his campaign for the US Presidency, as well as throughout his first year in the White House, only serves to highlight this:

Oh, and this…

By taking sides, this completely negates journalistic objectivity and neutrality and converts their output into a form of propaganda. This does not seem to bother Fox, who staff their studios with right-wing presenters, including Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck, and long-time contributor Ann Coulter. It could be argued that it would amount to censorship if Fox didn’t let their non-journalistic contributors state their opinions. However, a counter-argument is that they chose their guests specifically to cater for their own point of view. Any guests that do offer a counter-argument end up as a recipient of aggression and anger,  as this clip of Bill O’Reilly shows.