[July 20, 2011] British Lawmakers Drill Murdoch On Illegal Hacking Tweet Jul 20, 2011 (The Moment/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX) -- RUPERT Murdoch sparred yesterday with a committee of lawmakers over the phone-hacking scandal that has rocked his global empire, reeling from tough questioning before recovering his composure and rebuffing his interrogators with flashes of his legendary toughness. The elder Murdoch banged his hands on the table and said the day was the most humble of his life, becoming flustered when committee members peppered with him questions and turning to his son James for some answers. He recovered later in a tense question-and-answer session with lawmakers, pushing back with firm denials of wrongdoing. Murdoch, 80, said he was "shocked, appalled and ashamed" at the hacking of the phone of a murdered schoolgirl by his now-shuttered News of the World tabloid. He said he had seen no evidence that victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attack and their relatives were targeted by any of his papers, adding he didn't believe the FBI had uncovered any evidence of that in a recently launched inquiry. Murdoch said he was not responsible for the hacking scandal, and his company was not guilty of willful blindness. He repeatedly batted away questions about operations at the News of the World by saying he wasn't really in touch with the tabloid or didn't know what was going on there. The value of the Murdochs' News Corp. added around $1.5 billion while they were being grilled, trading 3.8 per cent higher at $15.54. The stock has taken a battering over the past couple of weeks, shed- ding around 17 per cent of its value, or around $8 billion. Rupert Murdoch said he lost sight of News of the World because it is such a small part of his company and spoke to the editor of the paper only around once a month, talking more with the editor of the Sunday Times in Britain and the Wall St. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]