Site Presented By
Monday, Nov 23, 2009
Why is Rupert Murdoch's media empire publishing Ralph Nader's latest tome?
Jul 9, 2004 | When former Democratic presidential contender Howard Dean faces third-party candidate Ralph Nader in a 90-minute debate to be aired on National Public Radio Friday, Dean is sure to press Nader on whether his run for the White House will again help Republicans on Election Day, and on whether Nader has become that party's pawn.
Another good question Dean might ask Nader, critic of corporate-controlled Washington and foe of rampant media consolidation, is why Nader's new book, which arrived in stores this week and kicks off his presidential campaign, is being published by Rupert Murdoch. Chairman of the expansive conglomerate News Corp., the conservative Murdoch has been a chief advocate for more than two decades of extensive media deregulation. And his HarperCollins is not only publishing Nader's "The Good Fight: Declare Your Independence and Close the Democracy Gap" but providing the candidate with expensive public relations promotion and media bookings.
"Is this a coincidence, or a backhanded way of helping Nader out?" asks Chellie Pingree, president of Common Cause.
"I just think it's kind of hypocritical," says Tricia Enright, a former Dean aide who now runs TheNaderFactor.com. "Isn't Rupert Murdoch just the kind of corporate megalomaniac Ralph Nader despises?"
During a May 29, 2003, appearance on CNN's "Crossfire," Nader spoke out against the then-pending Federal Communications Commission vote to loosen media ownership rules -- rules that would greatly benefit Murdoch's News Corp. Nader insisted that the debate "is about Rupert Murdoch. It's about five giant media conglomerates controlling magazine, newspaper, TV. I mean, it's getting worse and worse." Then he labeled Murdoch's News Corp. a "conglomerate rat."
Asked about the book deal, Nader's campaign spokesman, Kevin Zeese, responded that "it's kind of a stretch to say he's now dealing with Rupert Murdoch," since it's a HarperCollins imprint, ReganBooks, that's publishing "The Good Fight." "On the book tour, Ralph is very critical of the corporate control of many aspects of our lives. So even if Murdoch is putting money into the book, he's giving it to a messenger who disagrees with him," says Zeese.
But Murdoch's publication of Nader's book fits in with an emerging pattern of political activities. Recent news reports indicate Republican groups nationwide are actively aiding Nader's effort to secure space on election ballots in the hope that he will hurt John Kerry's chances. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that "Bush-friendly forces have been openly aiding his ballot efforts in Oregon and Arizona; according to a review of Nader's Arizona petitions by the state Democratic Party, 65 percent of the signatories were Republicans. On June 27, the Oregon chapter of Citizens for a Sound Economy -- led nationally by former U.S. House Majority Leader Dick Armey and financed by the corporate interests that Nader has opposed -- phoned members and said, 'Nader could peel away a lot of Kerry support in Oregon ... Liberals are trying to unite [but] we could divide this base of support' by signing up for Nader."
Against that backdrop, Nader's alliance with the publishing arm of Murdoch, who has been a lavish supporter of Republican candidates and uses his media outlets -- including Fox News, the New York Post and the Weekly Standard -- to advance Republican causes and his own business interests, raises questions about the media mogul's intentions. "I can't get in the mind of Rupert Murdoch, or his motivation," says Gene Kimmelman, senior public policy director for Consumers Union, which opposes media deregulation. "But is it plausible that there could be a political motive to promote Ralph Nader and help him draw votes away from the Democratic candidate who's opposed to further media consolidation? Of course it's plausible. Murdoch has a history of making decisions that involved politics that ultimately benefit his business."
