Murdoch battles back

Rupert Murdoch, appeared to be very much on the back-foot. His British media empire was under fire from all sides over claims that journalists were involved in phone hacking and bribing public officials. Morale amongst his British staff was said to be low following the arrests of various senior journalists. But Murdoch is something of a Comeback Kid and his new Sunday Sun proved to be a huge success when it was launched last weekend. It sold in excess of three million copies, an incredible amount if you take into account that most national newspapers are in crisis. The fact that it sold far more than its rivals clearly underlines the fact that the Great British public has not lost any faith in the Murdoch stable of newspapers despite the phone hacking claims. Newspapers are all about sales and Murdoch should obviously be pleased. Granted we will have to wait until a few more editions of the Sunday Sun hit the news-stands until its full success can be confirmed but at the moment it is a runaway success. In some ways I am pleased. The demise of the News of the World was a sad blow to journalism but it has risen from the ashes again in the form of the new Sun. Murdoch lawyers have spent the last few months reaching settlements with many of the celebrities whose phones had allegedly been hacked. The Leveson Inquiry into press standards will not achieve much. So slowly the Murdoch empire is steering away from the troubled waters.