Via the AFR:
Lachlan Murdoch held two rounds of drinks with Sky TV and News Corp staff at his Bellevue Hill mansion where he initiated the media storm that led to Malcolm Turnbull’s downfall, according to a new account of events last August.
In a three-part New York Times magazine feature published on its website on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT), Rupert Murdoch is also portrayed as being at arms length over the family’s role in Mr Turnbull’s ouster.
The account follows up on one revealed by The Australian Financial Review’s Rear Window column in September, which was that Rupert Murdoch told Seven West media boss Kerry Stokes the Liberal leader “had to go”.
Murdoch played a role, sure. But let’s not forget other key agitators. Those most guilty of creating the news not reporting through the crisis were Ray Hadley and Alan Jones at 2GB. Previously from Fairfax:
One of Peter Dutton’s strongest supporters in the media has stumbled in a tirade over the Liberal Party’s turmoil, provoking questions about the close links between the leadership challenger and parts of the media.
The questions came after 2GB host Ray Hadley told listeners of a text message he had received from a “Liberal Party MP” that attacked Scott Morrison, a potential leadership rival to Mr Dutton.
…Mr Dutton has received vocal support in recent days from 2GB radio host Alan Jones and Sky News commentator Peta Credlin as well as Hadley.
“The Liberal party room needs to have a long, hard think about who is manipulating it, and to what ends,” said Imre Salusinszky, a former adviser to Liberal NSW premiers Barry O’Farrell and Mike Baird.
Also, later:
All publicity is good publicity, it seems, as 2GB’s Alan Jones and Ray Hadley again cemented their spots atop Sydney’s radio ratings.
The AM stalwarts both saw their ratings spike in the latest survey period, which took in the period from July 15 to September 22, when the pair’s names were scrutinised as instigators in Peter Dutton’s ultimately unsuccessful leadership tilt against Malcolm Turnbull in August.
Jones saw his breakfast audience share jump 2.1 points to a commanding 19 per cent, while stablemate Hadley bounced 1.2 points to a massive 20.2 per cent share in the later morning period.
The figures represent Jones’ best result since 2011, and Hadley’s highest in over seven years, a Macquarie Media spokesperson confirmed.
Returning to where we began, the AFR today forgot to mention that during the spill is was Fairfax that owned Macquaire Radio, 2GB and itself. Since sold to Nine. In short, Fairfax killed Turnbull as much as anyone.
The truth of it is that Turnbull killed himself through poor policy and weak kneed leadership. Especially in allowing One Nation to destroy the party’s QLD base. But that is now so buried under post-truth manure that even sinking your hands into it is difficult. This is characteristic of all debate these days.
Fake dialectic transpires as if enclosed within social media feedback loops between entrenched positions. The content of the “debate” is meaningless, entirely incidental to the spectacle of it; an endless loop of noise designed to keep: eyeballs attached to ads; folks buying houses they can’t afford, and those in control of the fake debate in clover.
