Why does Downing Street encourage Dirty Des? Because he threatens the Daily Mail. (Media Studies).(Richard Desmond)(Brief Article)

Publication: Spectator

Publication Date: 30-NOV-02

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COPYRIGHT 2002 The Spectator Ltd. (UK)

One of Richard Desmond's heroes is Rupert Murdoch, who was profiled in glowing terms in the most recent Sunday Express. The proprietor of the Express group regards the Australian-born adventurer as an outsider like himself. In fact, Desmond is far more of an outsider than Murdoch. His fortune is based on his pornographic magazines and television channels, some of which by my definition are hard-core. By comparison Murdoch--Oxford-educated, son of Sir Keith--is almost out of the top drawer. But Murdoch's Sun did take on and topple the established Daily Mirror, introducing a new brand of popular journalism including `Page Three girls'. Desmond hopes to work a similar trick on Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Daily Mail.

It is tempting to write off Desmond as a loudmouth who knows very little about national newspapers. But there is no question that he is making advances. The pornographer not infrequently pops into No. 10--he was there last week with his editors--and is on good terms with Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair's director of communications. His newspapers are not in too bad shape,...

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