After David Weprin pulled out of a debate last night, a local paper ran the headline--“Weprin to Middle Village, Maspeth, Glendale & Ridgewood — DROP DEAD.”

Weprin read law books aloud to his Hofstra law school classmate David Paterson when both were students there to help the partially-blind future governor navigate his way through school.

Bloomberg is set to testify in the upcoming Haggerty trial.

Hurricane Irene stuck the city with a $7-$13 billion bill.

The storm was the biggest deployment of New York National Guard troops since 9/11.

People who lived and worked as far north as Canal Street on 9/11 will be eligible to receive compensantion for illnesses brought on by the attacks, under expanded guidelines announced by the federal government yesterday.

The Times praises Scott Stringer's report on the way that the City Council distributes member item money, and encourages reform.

Queens Councilman Ruben Wills has been stonewalling the Manhattan D.A.

A Fifth Avenue panhandler is allowed to panhandle on, a judge has ruled.

Tom DiNapoli's office has rejected a $27 million contract with News Corporation to build a data system for tracking student performance due to the phone-hacking scandal.

News Corp's foray into the education business is under the purview of Joel Klein.

A rookie Bronx judge keeps letting offenders go free.

The Post approves of how Bloomberg handled the hurricane.

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 12: Rupert Murdoch, the chief executive officer of News Corp., is driven from his apartment on July 12, 2011 in London, England. Allegations emerged yesterday that private investigators working for The Sun and The Sunday Times newspapers, owned by Mr Murdoch's company, targeted former Prime Minister Gordon Brown to obtain bank details and his son's medical records. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

No one in News Corp.’s New York headquarters knew quite what to do when the pie landed on Rupert Murdoch.

“The newsroom stopped,” said one person inside the Wall Street Journal offices at the time, where the hearing was being broadcast on the televisions in the bullpen.

Outside, two NYPD cars were parked directly opposite of the building’s main entrance on Avenue of the Americas, while a CNN reporter filmed a report with Mr. Murdoch’s flagship building in the background. Inside, Mr. Murdoch’s operations tried to carry on: Fox News ran the London hearing live, and the Journal reporters—upon recovering—prepared a front-page story for the next morning.

But the pie-stained moment—which included Mr. Murdoch’s wife, Wendi Deng, slapping the assailant, and his son, James, complaining to the police—was, in many ways, tailor-made for Mr. Murdoch’s favorite local outlet, the tabloid he had twice bought and most closely resembles the embodiment of his life’s work: Turning dry dispassionate reports of government bodies into dramatic, personal narratives of powerful men and business elites behaving badly. And yet, if any Murdoch news outlet had something resembling an emotional desire to protect the 80-year-old Australian on what he called the “most humble” day of his life, it was the New York Post, the money-losing property that has long felt like a physical extension of its doting owner. The Post ran the story on page 35.

“He cried when he lost the Post the first time,” said Marc Kalech, who was managing editor of the paper when Mr. Murdoch bought the paper for a second time, in 1993. Mr. Murdoch had first purchased it in 1977, but was forced to relinquish it in 1988, when he bought a television station in the same market, which, at the time, was prohibited by federal rules.

“He would call the Post every day,” said Mr. Kalech, who started as a copy boy at the Post in 1966 and recalled how Mr. Murdoch turned the tabloid into an extension of himself. “The Post was his baby. It was his voice. He loved the Post. I can’t tell you how many times I was alone on a Saturday putting together the Sunday paper and he’d call from his yacht in the South Pacific.”

Sometimes, the message was delivered in person.

Jared Paul Stern, who had been under contract to write for Page Six, remembered his boss’s unmistakable influence didn’t need to be spelled out in a memo to staff.

“The Clintons were a very rich target. Anything you could get on them, embarrassing or otherwise, would be welcomed with open arms,” Mr. Stern recalled. Then, one day, Mr. Clinton “showed up in the news room with Rupert. He had gotten friendly with Rupert. After that, we couldn’t touch them. They would kill anything we got on the Clintons. The most we could muster is a blind item.”

One reporter was told by his editor that “Rupert ordered” a look into the connections between then-governor David Paterson and the lobbying activities of his father, Basil Paterson, according to a Post insider. It was, in fairness, a sound story to investigate, but there was an implied understanding that the reporter should turn up something, since his editor felt the need to mention where the idea came from.

Mr. Murdoch’s influence was so unambiguous and obvious, that often times, his preference was simply assumed.

One former reporter said his own editor requested a week’s worth of stories about the New York City public schools because “Rupert was going to be in town.” It was coveted real estate in the paper, and the reporter reluctantly obliged.

For Mr. Murdoch, the value of the paper has always been its ability to rattle the echo chamber. It helped thrust Ed Koch into Gracie Mansion (and mistakenly drafted him to run for governor), mercilessly mocked Governor Paterson until he dropped his bid for a full term as governor, and literally sent the clowns into Albany when a sloppily executed coup in the State Senate brought state government to halt.

None of which has translated into financial success. Unlike the News of the World, which Mr. Murdoch was quick to shutter despite boasting the largest circulation in England, the Post has never made money under Mr. Murdoch.

While the Journal enjoys a sleek office and comfortable furniture, Post staffers said they haven’t seen new computers in ages, and some important positions have lately gone unfilled. The paper’s well-respected politics editor, Gregg Birnbaum departed abruptly for Politico in December, after clashing with Editor-in-Chief Col Allan, and has yet to be replaced.

All of which has led to questions about how long a paper can survive on Mr. Murdoch’s affinity alone. Mr. Murdoch’s son, James, reportedly pushed the company to shutter News of the World, and he has yet to evince his father’s old-school affection for the printed product.

“I’ve always felt that when Rupert is gone and the bean counters look at the company, the parts that lose millions of dollars a year are unlikely to fare well,” said one person who agreed to be identified only as “a person employed at a News Corp. tabloid in New York City.”

The difficult part might be finding a buyer for a money-losing operation that has yet to adapt to the web.

“It has to be bought by somebody who is willing to absorb those kind of losses,” said John Catsimatidis, who estimated the annual shortfall at somewhere in the neighborhood of $20 million dollars. Mr. Catsimatidis would seem to be just the kind of person interested in owning the Post—what with his deep pockets and longstanding interest in pushing New York politics to the right. But Mr. Catsimatidis said he hadn’t thought about it, and anyway, he prefers to read his news online. “The problem with newspapers is you’re reading yesterday’s news,” he said.

apaybarah@observer.com

Campaign finance reports released today reveal that News Corp. donated to New York's highest ranking Democratic office holders as well, sending $2,000 to Governor Andrew Cuomo and $1,000 to Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

The donations were revealed on a day when Cuomo and Schneiderman unveiled massive campaign finance hauls--over $9 million for Cuomo, and close to $ 1 million for the A.G.--and on a day when two top executives stepped down in the face of  growing scrutiny of the company in the wake of a phone-hacking scandal

Both donations are fairly small in the context of the $10 million the two Democrats raised, but there will likely be calls to return the money regardless.

News Corp. also gave $4,000 to Cuomo in 2010, from an address in Minnesota.

More News Corp donations can be seen below.
2011CorporatePoliticalContributions-1

Christine Quinn and John Liu, on either side of the mayor's podium. (photo credit: azi paybarah / observer)

2012: Little-known Obama donors in NYC include  Abake Assongba of Brooklyn, Robert Donovan of Jackson Heights. [Ben Smith / Twitter]

NY-9: Turner speaks. [Errol Louis / NY1]

Fracking: An audio explanation. [This American Life]

Pension Reform: Cuomo may be stockpiling for a fight. [David King / Gotham Gazette]

Hitting Liu: Deputy Mayor Steel hits Liu for underperforming; 20% for NYC compared to 30% for S&P. [David Seifman / NY Post]

Hitting Liu: Steel doubts Liu report on pension costs going down. "I find this logic unconvincing." [Erin Einhorn / Daily News]

Media: News Corp donated $115,000 to campaigns. [Julie Smyth / Forbes]

In an interview, King said that he was moved to act due to the casualties his district suffered in the attacks and the coming 10th anniversary.

"It's pretty basic," he said. "I had over 150 people in my district killed on September 11. There have been reports of hacking into the phones of victims and victims' families. That would be terrible in any situation, but with the 10th anniversary coming up, I'm asking the FBI to begin an investigation."

Most of the outrage directed towards News Corp. has been from Democrats, and many on the right have viewed the media company as a necessary corrective against media bias. King said that he was undeterred.

"There is no evidence that Rupert Murdoch is involved," he said. "I have a good relationship with Rupert Murdoch. I just want this fully investigated, find out who did this, who authorized it, how it happened. I don't care who it was. It could be somebody in my family, my best friend, I don't care who it is. Part of my reality is living among many people who lost their friends and family members."

Full letter below:

Dear Director Mueller:

I am writing to urge that the FBI immediately commence an investigation of News Corporation pertaining to recent media reports alleging that journalists working at the
News of the World, a News Corp. subsidiary, attempted to obtain phone records of victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11th through bribery and unauthorized wiretapping.  I make this request not only as the Chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security, but as a Member of Congress who represents a district that lost more than 150 constituents in those terrorist attacks.  It is my duty to discern every fact behind these allegations.

According the recent reports, journalists working for the News of the World solicited a New York police officer to gain access to the content of private phone records of 9/11 victims from the days leading to the attacks.  It is revolting to imagine that members of the media would seek to compromise the integrity of a public official for financial gain in the pursuit of yellow journalism.  The 9/11 families have suffered egregiously, but unfortunately they remain vulnerable against such unjustifiable parasitic strains.  We can spare no effort or expense in continuing our support for them.

If these allegations are proven true, the conduct would merit felony charges for attempting to violate various Federal statutes related to corruption of public officials and prohibitions against wiretapping.  Any person found guilty of this purported conduct should receive the harshest sanctions available under law.

I look forward to receiving your response on this request, as well as any updates related to your investigations as they become available.  Thank you for your consideration of this urgent matter.

Sincerely,

PETER T. KING

Chairman

Rep. Joe Crowley defends having his family live in Virginia while he represents parts of the Bronx and Queens. (photo credit: azi paybarah / observer)

After the New York Post reported today that Queens Congressman Joe Crowley makes his home in a D.C. suburb, Crowley went on the offensive this morning, questioning the paper's credibility in light of the tabloid scandal roiling English politics.

"I'm happy with my own personal life," he said. "And by the way, it's the New York Post. And we know what's happening in England. I'm not surprised it's happening here as well."

The Post is, of course, owned by Rupert Murdoch's massive media conglomerate News Corp., which announced yesterday it would shutter News of the World, after reports the tabloid had tapped the phones of a missing 13-year-old girl, along the families of deceased soldiers and members of the royal family.

It's certainly not a new phenomenon for the Post's targets to question the paper's credibility, but it does show the extent to which the scandal could undermine other outposts in Murdoch's far-flung empire.