Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Maintains Support for Murdochs

LOS ANGELES: News Corp. investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal continues to back Rupert Murdoch and son James, asserting in an interview with CNN’s Piers Morgan Tonight that he is "not worried" about the future of the company but that it does need better control.

The billionaire Saudi prince—the second largest investor in News Corp. after Murdoch himself—told Morgan that he is confident in the company’s future and its management: "I do interact a lot with News Corp., and I see a lot of depths at the management level at all levels."

Alwaleed admitted that News of the World "went out of control" but said that the lesson learned is that the Murdochs, the management and board of directors there "have to have more stringent rules and regulations." He said that he believes "this is in motion already."

The investor had previously issued a statement of support for the Murdochs the day after their Parliamentary testimony. He told Morgan last night that he continues to back the father and son because he knows them to be of "high integrity, honesty and honor."

"At the end of the day we have to let the investigation take its procedure and we have to see where this ends," Alwaleed said. "Let’s not anticipate what the investigation might come up with."