September 2011: Economic Drama Update

I rarely post anything on this blog - - after the economic crisis in 2008, I tried to become better informed about economics and finance,  but soon learned that even the "experts" no longer were capable of figuring things out.  

It is September 24, 2011, and stocks are once again tanking.  The unemployment rate for August 2011 in my state, North Carolina, was 10.4.    Will there be a double-dip recession?  Is there a chance that more people will become employed anytime soon?

I might try to write a few posts each month on this topic, if I can figure out where I should begin!

Old news about Rupert Murdoch and previous difficulties

I haven't kept up with this blog, but the news about Rupert Murdoch's recent "scandals" got me interested learning more about his far-reaching influence around the globe.   I'm interested in how this web is-and was-connected, and the stories behind the characters who are likely to be caught and trapped.

Troubles That Money Can't Dispel David Carr, New York Times 7/17/11


"In 2009, a federal case in New Jersey brought by a company called Floorgraphics went to trial, accusing News America of, wait for it, hacking its way into Floorgraphics’s password protected computer system...The complaint stated that the breach was traced to an I.P. address registered to News America and that after the break-in, Floorgraphics lost contracts from Safeway, Winn-Dixie and Piggly Wiggly."


News Corp. Reaches $500 Million Settlement with Valassis
Zacks.com, Seeking Alpha, 2/1/10

News America Exec Testifies Unilever, Conagra and Kraft Got Higher Prices for Not Taking Bundled Ad Deals Jim Edwards, BNET, 6/16/09

"In hours of testimony focused on the arcana of supermarket and coupon pricing, Curtner attempted to get Leprine to admit that clients were punished with higher prices if they gave any of their coupon business to Valassis or if they failed to take a bundled deal on News America’s newspaper coupons and in-store supermarket ads, where News America has a virtual monopoly. On at least two occasions in the first day of his testimony, Leprine admitted that News America used its coupons and supermarket prices as leverage to make sure clients took both, because taking one alone would be too expensive..."


News America Marketing Forces Whistleblower Into Bankruptcy  Jim Edwards, BNET, 4/27/09

News America Marketing Group Winds Summary Judgment Against Whistleblower Rober Emmel Jim Edwards, BNET, 3/16/09


News Corp.'s trouble in aisle three: A little-known unit in Rupert Murdoch's empire is faing some nasty allegations, reports Fortune's Jennifer Reingold
Jennifer Reingold, 7/20/07


"But another juicy melodrama is unfolding at News Corp., one that may shed some light on how the $25 billion company sometimes does business.
It involves a little-known subsidiary called News America marketing, which comprises the bulk of News Corp.'s (Charts, Fortune 500) magazines and inserts division. It produces newspaper coupon inserts, in-store supermarket ads, and the like. That may seem boring next to, say, movies or MySpace, yet, its profitability is anything but: Its 28% operating margins are the highest at News Corp., while operating profit is triple that of Dow Jones (Charts). Even more scintillating is a series of lawsuits alleging that News America used anticompetitive behavior to try to drive its rivals out of the market, and the recent emergence of a former employee who claims the company tried to pay him off to keep quiet. His lawyer: Philip Hilder, best known for representing Enron whistleblower Sherron Watkins. The saga has become the talk of the industry."