The Storm and the Business of Being News

Filed in Other by on December 12, 2010

Altruism is not a high priority for News Limited. They are in the business of making money. The vessels may be diverse, ranging from newspapers and satellite television to sports teams and restaurants, but the charter remains the same: make money. That mantra comes from Rupert Murdoch at the top and spills down throughout the entire empire, the message reaching even the most isolated outposts.

This, of course, makes News Limited’s continued involvement in the Melbourne Storm particularly interesting. The Melbourne Storm are solely owned by News Limited and have been since their inception, a bastard child of the Super League war manufactured from the remnants of the Western Reds and the Hunter Mariners to give rugby league the semblance of a national presence. At no point in the club’s 12-year history has the Storm even looked like breaking even with recent estimates suggesting News Limited has torn up somewhere in the vicinity of $70 million on propping up a rugby league team in AFL heartland.

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