An online petition by former Australian PM Kevin Rudd calling for an inquiry into Rupert Murdoch’s media dominance has got a record number of signatures.
More than 500, 000 Australians have signed the petition to parliament since it launched three weeks ago.
News Corp Australia controls 70% of local newspaper circulation. Murdoch has not commented on the petition.
The petition will likely be presented to parliament, but it is not obligated to act on it.
Rudd, a Labour prime minister from 2007-2010 and again in 2013, has been a frequent critic of Murdoch and his newspapers, which advocated against his re-election.
He praised the level of public response on Wednesday, saying he was “grateful and overwhelmed”.
“Half a million Australians have spoken. They’ve smashed the records to make their voice heard: Australia needs a #MurdochRoyalCommission to protect the lifeblood of our democracy,” he tweeted.
Like Murdoch, News Corp has not responded to the public petition and have ignored it in their news coverage.
Signing for the petition closed on 4 November with 501, 766 signatures registered on the Australian parliament site. The petition was so popular in its first few days that it overwhelmed the parliament’s website.
