Media Godfather Rupert Murdoch

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THE last few days must feel like a never-ending cinematic news reel for the Murdochs and their companies News Corp and News International.

So while the film keeps rolling, here's something to think about, in relation to this never-ending reel of information.

RUPERT MURDOCH IS LIKE A GODFATHER MAFIA BOSS

If you've watched the film The Godfather, here are some parallels that are quite revealing.

Remember in the first Godfather? That ageing Don, Don Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) was an untouchable mafia figure who ran his business with a rod of Iron, and kept his friends close and his enemies closer. Who were the friends, and who were the enemies?

In this case of Murdoch, the enemies (and to some extent friends) were the UK state, but it was important to keep those with power in a firm grip of your hand. Give them enough, just so that they needed and wanted more. Give them too much, and they would then break free, and disown you. And now, it's over?

Here, politicians for years were given just enough of a tantalising gourmet wooing, just to keep them from needing and wanting more of it. Tony Blair and Gordon Brown needed the Murdochs. David Cameron needed, and wanted the Murdochs.

"15 YEARS AGO COULD I HAVE GOT TO HIM?"(OR BETTER STILL, WOULD I HAVE WANTED TO?)

This is the quote from the drug dealing wheeler dealer Senor Solazzo in the first film, who has the Godfather shot down in public, and has his son Fredo look on in despair as his father is shot 5 times in the chest - but, surprisingly to the annoyance of Solazzo, Don Vito still ends up surviving and bouncing back. The parallel here is, Rupert Murdoch has suffered a barrage of bullets - and is heavily wounded. You could almost say, the Murdoch empire is comatosed. It hasn't yet woken up to the fact of what has happened. And when it does, the business will take on a whole different ball part.

Will he bounce back like the Don?

"IT'S NOT EASY BEING A SON FREDO..."

Now, this is the quote from the second Godfather film. An interesting look back at how the young Don rose to the summit of his mafia enterprise, and a look at how the son is going to try to change the business, and make it completely legitimate. The promise was five years and the Corleone family will be completely legitmate. Guess what? It never happened. Could that possibly be what happens to the media? I say media, and not Murdoch media, because where money and power is concerned, there is always someone who will want to control the media to suit them.So Michael, (James Murdoch) has a tough task. Does he?

A) Just cut loose, and let it all go?

B) Try to do what (Michael did in Godfather Two), but then accept that you just cannot change an institution (unless ordered too....?

"MICHAEL, WE'RE BIGGER THAN US STEEL" (WELL, WE THOUGHT WE WERE)

At one stage, it seems gangsters were "bigger than US steel." So too were parts of the media it seems, in this case? And do you know what? Political senators crushed that Iron when it was brave enough to do so. You saw that yesterday in the UK parliament.

Any Brit directors brave enough to shoot this as a gangster flick when it's all over?