News International plan to sponsor Academy causes concern... at the Guardian.

And that's because they don't have any money to sponsor one of their own.

Here's a really well-informed and completely impartial account by the Observer/Guardian on how this plan by Murdoch represents a bold grab for our children's souls. Teaching material will include the Sun, the News of the World, the Times, and, for an international perspective, students will spend all of Wednesday afternoon watching FOX News.

Well, not really. But here are some choice quotes from the article:

"The plan will alarm Murdoch's critics who claim the tycoon's media empire, which spans broadcasting, publishing and internet interests around the world, already wields formidable influence over the UK's political system and society." Unlike theirs :-(

"Concerns about Murdoch's dominance resurfaced at the last general election when all four of his UK newspapers came out in favour of the Tories, an event that represented a considerable blow to Labour's hopes of clinging to power." Just like the Guardian coming in behind the Lib Dems then...

There's no evidence in the piece of course, because all of this is just simply common knowledge, and therefore it's beyond doubt. Just in case you were skeptical, however, here are some incontrovertible quotes from some impartial commentators:

"Some people will say they are not telling people what they should think through their newspaper but teaching our children what to think in our schools." Tom Watson, Labour MP.

Paul Farrelly, another Labour MP, said: "It would be of considerable concern if the sort of bias we see in the Murdoch press was fed through to our children through the school system."

The best quote came from Denis MacShane, who said "The notion that Rupert Murdoch's values should infect our children is a real horror story. It shows the extent to which the Conservative party is becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of News International."

Wow. "A wholly owned subsidiary." That's not an exaggeration, is it. Now, I know that the Guardian and the Observer don't like Murdoch but this is going a bit far. I mean they're trying to invest in education, which is a worthy thing to do, and Murdoch has a track record of sponsoring schools in deprived areas in the US. So it's probably about time that people at these papers - who pride themselves on their intellectual approach to life - remembered that Murdoch is just a media mogul, not actually the devil reincarnate, and that not everything he does is evil.