While the mainstream media are reporting about how much money Rupert Murdoch lost over the phone hacking scandal, the headlines do not reflect the full picture.
The scandal has not damaged Murdoch in the slightest, in fact it’s been very good for business.
Despite cashing out $56m on the scandal, Murdoch’s News Corporation have announced that profits have more than doubled compared to the previous year, bringing total profits to $9.5bn.
According to The Press Gazette, Murdoch said:
“Double-digit gains in our Cable and Television businesses, along with improvements in our Publishing segment, drove revenue and earnings growth even as we seized opportunities to invest in our core businesses for long-term and sustainable growth.
“The strategies we executed against in the quarter continue to bolster News Corporation’s competitive position and enhance our ability to benefit from global demand for content, especially sports programming. As we make progress toward the proposed separation of our entertainment and publishing businesses later this year, I am confident in the future prospects for both businesses.”
As Murdoch’s empire goes from strength to strength, it demonstrates how the “payouts” as a result from the scandal have, in reality, been little more than “sound investments”.