Journalist from News Corp’s tabloid faces new questions
British Prime Minister David Cameron took time out of his visit to Afghanistan to comment on allegations that the British tabloid News of the World — part of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp media empire — hacked into the cell phone voicemail of a murdered 13-year-old girl. Milly Dowler was abducted in 2002, and her killer was found guilty of murder last month. Cameron said that if the allegations are true, then “this is a truly dreadful act.” Questions are now coming up regarding the conduct of Rebekah Brooks, head of News Corp’s British newspaper division and editor of News of the World at the time of the alleged hacking. Cameron is close to both Brooks and the Murdoch family, and is reportedly trying to keep the scandal disassociated with his government’s approval of the planned takeover of broadcaster BSkyB by Murdoch’s company.