Al Gore Blasts News Corp. For “Abuse Of Power” In Kicking Current Off Italian TV
Published
As the Guardian reported, former Vice President Al Gore is fighting back against News Corp. for forcing his television network off the air in Italy. According to Gore, Current TV was told it would be dropped from News Corp.'s Sky Italia because of the network's decision to hire Keith Olbermann.
Gore pushed back against the News Corp. decision, noting that the incident demonstrates how the company lets ideology get in the way of its business decisions:
In an interview with the Guardian, Gore said the Current TV news and documentary channel was told unexpectedly three weeks ago that it could no longer be carried by Sky Italia because of its decision to hire a US left-leaning commentator often critical of Murdoch's company.
He added that the decision reflected how News Corporation operated worldwide. “News Corporation is an international conglomerate with an ideological agenda. It seeks political power in every nation they operate. They wield that power to shut down voices that disagree with the agenda of Rupert Murdoch,” Gore said.
Gore also noted that the incident should give pause to UK decision makers, who are currently reviewing a proposal for News Corp. to become the sole owner of BSkyB:
“I know that News Corp is close to reaching an agreement to buy BSkyB. Now I may not be a party to that debate, but if anybody believes that [News Corp] will remain hands off if there are diverse opinions that do not agree with its ideological agenda then they are fools. This is proof positive of their abuse of power,” Gore said.
Media Matters' Senior Advisor Ilyse Hogue agreed, telling the Telegraph, “We hope this will give the UK decision makers a pause before they allow the company more control in their country.”
Olbermann also responded to the controversy via his Twitter feed, writing:
He went on to quote Winston Churchill, tweeting:
[...]
[...]
[...]
