Niamh Harris – Over 500,000 Australians have signed a petition calling for an inquiry into Rupert Murdoch’s powerful, global media empire.

The petition to parliament was launched by former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd just over three weeks ago and closed this week on Wednesday.

CNN reports: It calls for a Royal Commission — Australia’s highest form of public inquiry — to “investigate threats to media diversity.” It also accused media businesses of encouraging “deliberately polarizing and politically manipulated news.”

While the petition raised several points of concern, including Google (GOOGL) and Facebook’s (FB) relationship with the news media, it singled out Murdoch’s News Corp (NWS) as a potential threat to free speech and public debate.” Continue reading →