Twenty-First Century Fox 2011 Annual Report Download - page 11

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2011 Annual Report 9
As I write this letter, our Board of Directors and senior management are acting decisively
to get to the bottom of what happened. I have asked Joel Klein, who formerly served in
the U.S. Justice Department, to lead our efforts in this matter. He reports to independent
director Viet Dinh, who in turn is having regular meetings with all the other independent
directors. The Board of Directors and the Company have retained independent counsel,
and we are cooperating with the relevant authorities in both the U.K. and the U.S.
In sum, we have taken decisive actions to hold people accountable – and we will do
whatever is necessary to prevent something like this from ever occurring again. We will
put things right.
News Corporation Has a Great Future
Notwithstanding the difficult chapter represented by News of the World, I wish to
reiterate my enthusiasm for where News Corporation is today and where we are going.
I realize the current flavor of the day is economic pessimism, and it is clear that Europe
in particular is in the midst of a period of extreme volatility. However, I am optimistic
about the future because I believe that News Corporation – the most global of media
companies with the most compelling content – will continue to shape it. We are better
positioned financially and operationally than we have ever been. Our culture is, and
always has been, entrepreneurial. As we proved this past year, News Corporation is not
the kind of company – and we are not the kind of people – to fear a changing market.
Across the world, our 51,000 employees are working every day to discover new and
profitable ways to create and deliver our content for the benefit of our stockholders
and global viewers and readers. That means looking for – and delivering – the inventive
solution where others simply throw up their hands in despair. Every day some new
technology up-ends somebody’s old established business model. Our people recognize
that as an opportunity.
I could not be more impressed with the caliber of our colleagues or their performance this
past year. I congratulate them on their efforts. I continue to count on them to turn
opportunity into profit … to keep our Company a leader in every area where we compete
… and at all times to be guided by our most fundamental belief that the combination
of free speech and free markets is the most effective guarantee of a free society.
Sincerely,
Rupert Murdoch
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
News Corporation