DESPITE HACKING SCANDAL, NEWS CORP’S NET SURGES 47 PERCENT

associated with the British telephone hacking scandal that brought down its most profitable newspaper, The News of the World, but the company nevertheless reported a 47-percent surge in net income in its third quarter to $937 million versus $639 million for the same period a year ago. “Once again, News Corporation showed strong operational momentum in the quarter, driven by significant growth at our Cable Network Programming and Filmed Entertainment segments,” Chairman/CEO Rupert Murdoch said in a statement. The company’s 20th Century Fox unit showed solid results from both theatrical releases and home entertainment, with operating income up nearly 10 percent from the comparable quarter last year.