‘I Am Not Incompetent’ - James Murdoch Defends Himself

paidcontent reporting:

James Murdoch’s very ability as an executive was effectively put on trial Thursday, as UK MPs investigating the phone “hacking” scandal queued up to undermine his corporate competence.

While they dealt sometimes untidy, sneery spears in his direction during his second testimony to the culture, media and sport committee, Murdoch sought to reply calmly, specifically and politely, promising follow-up answers to what he could not answer.
But the MPs’ remarks were savage indeed. They opened a frontline talking point - the extent to which C-level businesspeople should devolve managerial oversight or should have detailed awareness of their business.
Murdoch, who said his executives had not given him full information about phone “hacking” early enough, said that he “(relied) on executives responsible to go and do the things they needed to do on the assumption they would be questioned from time to time”.

Tom Watson MP
“Are you familiar with the term ‘Mafia?’,” prominent questioner Watson asked, going on to seek Murdoch’s familiarity with the Mafia’s “omertà” code of silence. It barely prompted a deviation from Murdoch’s line of businesslike responses, to call Watson’s questioning “offensive”.
“Mr Murdoch, you must be the first mafia boss in history that didn’t know he was running a criminal enterprise,” Watson replied. But Watson’s impassioned rhetoric risked spoiling what was otherwise his ongoing line of specific and forensic explorative questioning.
http://paidcontent.co.uk/article/419-i-am-not-incompetent-james-murdoch-defends-himself/