British prime minister David Cameron texted onetime Rupert Murdoch deputy Rebekah Brooks to “keep her head up” the week she resigned from News Corp. over phone-hacking, the Times of London reports via a forthcoming book, just a few days before Brooks appears again before parliament.* Cameron also apologized to her for his “sudden coldness,” but said he was “on the run” because of the sweeping scandal. Brooks’ coziness with Cameron is well-known (see: horsegate), but the specifics may prove embarrassing and are guaranteed to come up as she faces the ethics inquiry on Friday, as larger concerns about the Murdoch media company’s political connections loom amid allegations of not only hacking, but also bribery.
As the investigations continue, chatter around the company is still swirling after last week’s damning report as they prepare to release earnings numbers for the quarter tomorrow. “I really hope that this is behind us because really it is not helping the name of the company,” Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the largest News Corp. shareholder after the Murdochs, said of the scandal today. “We hope that this page is folded and put behind us because really it is not something to be proud of.”
But, as always, the bottom line matters most, and it’s hardly been affected at all, save the millions spent on settling lawsuits — estimates put profits up 19 percent from last year for the period ending in March, the Guardian reports. “The share price is really separating from what is happening in the UK,” Alaweed said. “We see the price is hovering around $20 and the results are very good.” Everything else is just an annoyance.
*This post previously referred to Cameron as the former prime minister. He is, of course, still in office.
