Hugh Grant Settles Lawsuit Claiming Murdoch’s Tabloid Hacked Phone, Broke Into Home
ForbesAPR 16 2024
Hugh Grant Settles Legal Disputes With The Sun
The Facts
British actor Hugh Grant has settled his lawsuit with the News Group Newspapers (NGN), the Rupert Murdoch-owned parent company of The Sun newspaper.
Grant's lawsuit surrounds allegations that the paper put tracking devices in his car, wiretapped his landline phone, and burglarized his home in 2011. He said that while nothing was stolen from his apartment, The Sun "detailed" its "interior" the next day.
Grant cited "civil litigation" as the reason he chose to settle, stating that, "if I proceed to trial and the court awards me damages that are even a penny less than the settlement offer, I would have to pay the legal costs of both sides."
The Spin
Narrative A
Hugh Grant would have much preferred to go to trial, but UK civil case law makes it impossible. The British media oligarchy has gotten away with this countless times, so the public hasn't gotten to see evidence of their unseemly practices brought before a court. Anyone who has their phone hacked or house burglarized should get justice.
Narrative B
The allegations surrounding alleged NGN privacy violations date as far back as 20 years ago, and ever since then, the company has apologized to and compensated genuine plaintiffs. Those days are over, however, and the company has cleaned its reporting of these practices.