When I first read that media mogul Rupert Murdoch had closed down his sensationalist British tabloid News of the World, my first reaction was, “Good riddance!” But I’m no longer rejoicing — the scandal around the now defunct daily’s unscrupulous journalism will encourage government controls of the media worldwide.
I can already see Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, or Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa, or other demagogues in Latin America, the Middle East and other parts of the world saying, “If the British government is considering stronger mechanisms to control media excesses, why shouldn’t we?”
In fact, since it was first reported that Murdoch’s News of the World had engaged in apparently illegal wiretaps, bribes and other shady tactics to