A former Fox executive now argues Murdoch is unfit to own TV stations
This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by Omaha Steve (a host of the Latest Breaking News forum).
Source: NPR
Preston Padden joined the Fox broadcast network a few years after its launch and helped founder Rupert Murdoch make it viable. Its ultimate success echoes Murdoch's triumphs around the globe, including in Australia, the U.K., Europe, Latin America and Asia. Fox introduced the world to The Simpsons, COPS, House, computerized first down lines on NFL broadcasts and more. Padden worked for Murdoch as a senior executive for six years in the 1990s.
"At the time, the company motto was 'Fortune favors the brave'," Padden says now. "He was my hero. There was no question in my mind that what we were doing was good for America, good for viewers, good for advertisers, good for television stations, good for democracy."
An Associated Press photograph from the time shows him conferring with Murdoch in Washington, D.C., at a crucial Federal Communications Commission meeting in 1995. He later left to become president of ABC Television.
Now, a generation later, Padden is once more now front and center at a fight in Washington involving the FCC - this time on the other side from Murdoch and his powerful corporation. Padden has joined a small band of highly vocal critics objecting to Fox's effort to seek renewal for its station in Philadelphia, called Fox 29.
Read more: https://www.npr.org/2023/08/09/1192824440/former-executive-murdoch-unfit-station-fox-news
The FCC is in the process of renewing the WTXF license and the battle has ensued (although that local station is NOT nor shows Faux Snooze but is one of the corporate-owned stations).
The petition to not renew was spearheaded by Media and Democracy Project - https://www.mediaanddemocracyproject.org/
Latest update - https://www.mediaanddemocracyproject.org/fcc-license-renewal-challenge
The following statement can be attributed to the Media and Democracy Project (MAD):
WASHINGTON, D.C., July 31, 2023 — MAD has received FOX's response to our FCC Petition and is thoroughly reviewing it. As expected, Murdoch's attorneys are attempting to manipulate FCC procedure to evade scrutiny, but the truth will prevail. WTXF is one of 29 stations owned by FOX, and the ultimate control lies with Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch. There is no hiding from that reality. This isn't an issue of protected speech; it's an issue of egregious misconduct that shocks the conscience following decisions by FOX's most senior management to knowingly broadcast false news.
Never before has the Commission been confronted with so much evidence attached to a petition that clearly shows that an FCC broadcast licensee undermined that trust. The FCC must initiate a hearing on FOX's qualification to be trustees of our nation's airwaves.
Any attempts to silence our all-volunteer group is an attempt to silence citizens seeking to participate in our democratic institutions and petition the agencies empowered to hold companies like FOX to account.
For media inquiries, please contact Aaron Alberico at [email protected].
WTAF Channel 29 was an indie station until the mid-80s when it was gobbled up by a private media entity during the era of media deregulation, consolidation, and realignment, and the call letters for WTAF (originally owned by Taft Broadcasting) were changed to WTXF. This was also when Fox first came on the air as the "4th network".
A decade after the creation of Fox, more OTA broadcast networks (UPN, WB) came on the air and they all scrambled to buy up indie stations in major media markets including here (where UPN linked with WPSG channel 57 and WB with WPHL channel 17). WTXF was initially a Fox affiliate but was eventually bought by Fox as a corporate-owned station in the mid-90s. UPN and WB are no more but have been replaced with CW (which is on channel 57 but as I just found out will move to 17 and 57 will go back to indie
).
= new reply since forum marked as read
