More companies suspended advertising in the News of the World yesterday amid the backlash against the newspaper.
After Ford Motor Company’s decision to pull advertising on Tuesday, more companies followed yesterday, including Lloyds Banking Group, Mitsubishi and The Co-operative Group. Other companies said that they were awaiting further evidence before making a decision.
Shares in News Corporation, the parent company of the News of the World and The Times, closed down 3.6 per cent in New York, wiping more than $1.5 billion (£1 billion) off the value of the company. Shares in BSkyB fell 2.2 per cent.
Renault, Wickes, Virgin Holidays, Vauxhall, the owner of Butlins’ and SJM Concerts all suspended advertising. Mitsubishi’s managing director in Britain said that the alleged hacking of Milly Dowler’s phone was “despicable” and that the car manufacturer would donate its News of the World advertising spend to Childline.
Co-op, the country’s sixth biggest supermarket group, said that the allegations had been “met with revulsion by the vast majority of members”.
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Other companies closely monitoring the situation included Tesco, npower and T-Mobile. Mumsnet, the online forum for mothers, said it had pulled a Sky advertisement on the website.
None of the newspaper’s ten largest advertisers has yet pulled advertising.
Meanwhile, pressure from activist groups and politicians to block News Corp’s acquisition of BSkyB fell on deaf ears as the public consultation required to secure regulatory approval was concerned only with the issue of media plurality and not allegations about journalistic practices.
Ed Richards, chief executive of the media regulator Ofcom, said that there was scope to investigate whether the holder of a broadcasting licence was “fit and proper” but that those powers did not relate to the proposed acquisition. “It’s a quite separate matter,” he said. “We are absolutely not going to consider, or do anything, on those matters.”
Ofcom will, however, closely monitor the investigation into alleged unlawful activities. The “fit and proper” test could be activated if criminal charges are laid, even if the takeover ensues.
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An online petition calling for the deal to be blocked claims to have gathered 106,000 signatures in two days.