I've been wanting to share this snippet from Al Franken's excellent Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them ever since I read it. The extract itself isn't written by Franken, but comes from an article in the Columbia Journalism Review, concerning everyone's favourite Australian media magnate, Rupert Murdoch.

Murdoch uses his diverse holdings... to promote his own financial interests at the expense of real news gathering, legal and regulatory rules, and journalistic ethics. He wields his media as instruments of influence with politicians who can aid him, and savages his competitors in his news columns. If ever someone demonstrated the dangers of mass power being concentrated in few hands, it would be Murdoch.

What a delightful attack on one of the world's most loathsome men. Rarely have words both thrilled and incensed me to such great effect.

If you fancy weighing in yourself, try this.

As for Franken himself... well, he's given me a lot to ponder. More of that later.