Another voice: The book no newspaper editor will want you to read

There are so many axes being ground in Tom Watson and Martin Hickman’s fascinating and explosive new book, Dial M for Murdoch: News Corporation and the Corruption of Britain, that it should be handled with asbestos gloves and read behind protective goggles.

The health warning that should be given before reading is that two of the most persistent and relentless pursuers of News International and all things Murdoch are Tom Watson and Chris Bryant, who, after contributing to the downfall of Tony Blair, became the targets of appalling intrusions into their personal lives, sometimes by illegal methods.

If they hadn’t been so persistent, I doubt we would have the Leveson Inquiry and a serious debate about the feral nature of the British tabloids. But both men are members of the shadow Cabinet and both want to hurt Murdoch and Cameron. So read this book with a degree of caution.

However, it would be unwise to dismiss it as just a malicious payback.