美国国家公共电台 NPR Beyond Sexual Harassment, Lesser Known Scandals Could Cost The Murdochs A $14B Deal

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

The sexual harassment 1 scandals at Fox News could trip up the Murdoch family's hopes of growing their media empire. British regulators are considering whether the Murdochs are fit and proper owners of the European broadcast giant called Sky.

Meanwhile, a lesser-known scandal in the Murdoch family's media empire has been hiding in plain sight. And this one has a much bigger price tag. It involves allegations of computer hacking 3, accusations 4 of fraud, questions of political influence and payouts exceeding $900 million. NPR's David Folkenflik reports.

DAVID FOLKENFLIK, BYLINE 6: This story centers on a pretty anonymous 7 Murdoch division called News America Marketing 8, which does advertising 9 in retailers 11 like supermarkets and drugstores. Here's Ken 5 Chandler, the former publisher of Rupert Murdoch's New York Post.

KEN CHANDLER: News America Marketing was a crucial part of the company because it generated so much revenue.

FOLKENFLIK: News America Marketing was run by a Murdoch executive named Paul Carlucci.

CHANDLER: And he wanted to win and win at all costs.

FOLKENFLIK: A pair of brothers named George and Richard Rebh found that out the hard way. They founded a small company called Floorgraphics in Princeton, N.J., with a new niche 12 - advertising on decals slapped on the floor of supermarket aisles 13. They met for dinner with Carlucci one day in 1999. Here's what George Rebh later said Carlucci told them.

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GEORGE REBH: You should know that I work for a man who wants it all and doesn't understand anyone telling him he can't have it all.

FOLKENFLIK: This is from sworn testimony 14 first obtained and broadcast by CNN in 2011. That man who wants it all? Of course, Rupert Murdoch. Carlucci went on, according to Rebh's testimony, to make a clear threat - stay out of the retail 10 marketing business. Rebh testified he sought clarification.

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REBH: So let me see if I understand this. You can get into our business and compete with us but if we were to get into yours, you'll destroy us? And he said that's right.

FOLKENFLIK: Paul Carlucci later denied saying he would destroy Floorgraphics, yet Steve Marquis told me a similar story. Marquis was a former vice 15 president at News America. In December 1999, executives from the ANP regional supermarket chain told him Floorgraphics had earned their account. News America had lost it. Marquis said he fled in a panic to News America's holiday party, expecting to be chewed out, yet Paul Carlucci was a happy man.

STEVE MARQUIS: Paul gives me a high-five, gives me a hug and essentially 16 tells me that we're going to get the resources we need to go crush these guys.

FOLKENFLIK: A few years later, the Rebhs realized their computers had been repeatedly hacked 17 over a several month period. Their contracts and future plans had been compromised. The IP address involved in the hack 2 belonged to a News America account. The company admitted the hack but claimed it was impossible to figure out who was behind it. The late Senator Frank Lautenberg was among the lawmakers pushing for a criminal prosecution 18 but it never happened. The Rebhs seethed 19, telling others they were informed the damages were insignificant 20.

New Jersey's top federal prosecutor 21 was then Chris Christie, now the state's Republican governor. Floorgraphics started ailing 22. It sued News America, which paid $29.5 million to settle the case. In 2011, a huge hacking and bribery 23 scandal erupted at the Murdoch's British tabloids 24. Lautenberg turned attention again onto the Murdochs and on to Christie's failure to investigate the Floorgraphics case.

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FRANK LAUTENBERG: There is evidence that News Corporation has been involved in a broad range of misconduct, reaching the highest levels of the New York-based company and involving actions in the U.K. and the U.S.

FOLKENFLIK: In late 2011, Fox News chairman Roger Ailes hired a former Lautenberg adviser 25 as a political commentator 26 - Julie Roginsky. According to what Roginsky told others, Ailes kept pestering 27 her over Lautenberg's possible investigations 28. If Roginsky's name sounds familiar, she sued Ailes and Fox News earlier this month, alleging 29 he sexually harassed 30 her. News America ended up paying another $600 million to two big competitors and paying an additional $280 million to some of its clients who had accused it of fraud.

For years, the Murdochs feared blowback from the British hacking scandal might cost them TV licenses 31 in the U.S. Now, the question arises whether their plans for growth in the U.K. might be tripped up by their American controversies 32, including the drive for supremacy 33 in the supermarket. David Folkenflik, NPR News, New York.