Head Scratchers

Was Murdoch Really Pretending to be the “Old, Frail” Man?

As more than a few people have noticed already, Rupert Murdoch seemed a little off during the News Corp Parliament hearings this week. Confused, senile, agitated… take your pick. But was this all an act? Was the 80-year-old media honcho “playing old” at his convenience? That seems to be the conclusion many have jumped to — but is it true?

What’s odd is that, prior to the hearings, a lot of people were ready to discount Murdoch as being past his prime. Just two months ago, major news outlets began pondering who might replace the News Corp titan. And why? His age. How odd.

It would seem that — just as the Murdoch is accused of trading on his age when it’s to his advantage — the media has played the “Murdoch age card” when it’s convenient, as well.

For the record, Mogulite has long argued that the Murdoch-getting-to-old-to-work rumors were ridiculous. But it’s a narrative a lot of other people seem to be fond of. And it did make sense, on a certain level. The guy’s 80 — and there are plenty of other octogenarian moguls who’ve had the same speculation surround them.

And yet, now, the legitimacy of his age-related befuddledness appears in question. As one CNN item put it, this “old and rather frail man” act (and humble talk) might have been “a tactical attempt to manage a situation.”

Although, for what it’s worth, just a little over a year ago, Gawker was making senile “grandpa” cracks — and they’ve stuck to their guns on that one.

So which is it? Genuine? Or, as CNN put it, a phony, “senile demential infomercial for a big pharma?” We may not ever know.

TAGS: murdoch age | murdoch faking age | murdoch hearings | murdoch parliament | murdoch phone hacking

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