RUPERT MURDOCH has incurred the wrath of the Church of England, as the institution became the latest to voice its disapproval over News Corporation’s bid to take full control of British Sky Broadcasting.

The church said it had sent a submission to Britain’s media regulator Ofcom, arguing that News Corp should not be permitted to buy the remaining shares in BSkyB on the grounds that the deal would threaten media plurality.

In June, News Corp announced an offer for the 61 per cent of BSkyB that it did not already own, valuing the UK satellite broadcaster at more than £12 billion (€14.1 billion).

The Rt Rev Nigel McCulloch, Bishop of Manchester – who also sat on the House of Lords select committee on communications between 2007 and 2010 – said if the bid was allowed, News Corp would “dominate both the television and newspaper landscape”, with Sky News potentially becoming subject to “subtle editorial influence” from its parent company.

The church joins a throng of other opponents to the deal, including media owners from Guardian Media Group to the Daily Mail General Trust, Channel 4, Mark Thompson, director-general of the BBC, and BT.

“We see a healthy media, which would include a wide plurality of media, as being one of the key building blocks of a healthy society,” said a church spokesman. “We are the established church: we have a mission to the nation.

“On broad society issues like this, it is totally appropriate for us to make our voice heard on what we think is an important issue.”

However, Terry Sanderson, president of the National Secular Society, sounded his disapproval over the submission. “It’s extraordinary that the church should think it appropriate to try to influence a perfectly legal and above board business deal,” he said.

A spokesman for News Corp said the level of plurality had risen in the UK due to the diverse sources of media now available. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2010