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Rebekah Brooks after addressing the Leveson inquiry. AP Photo/Sang Tan/PA

7 things we learned from the Leveson inquiry this week

From Rupert Murdoch’s TV favourites to David Cameron’s text message lessons…

THE LEVESON INQUIRY into media ethics continues to hear evidence from a range of witnesses including newspaper owners, editors, journalists, celebrities and police officers.

This week, Leveson heard revelations from former News International executive Rebekah Brooks regarding Rupert Murdoch’s admiration for X Factor and the Prime Minister’s texting habits.

Here’s some of what we learned from Leveson this week:

1. LOL

Brooks told the inquiry that during text conversations with David Cameron, the politician would sometimes sign off ‘LOL’ in the mistaken belief it stood for ‘lots of love’. He stopped when she told him that it actually stood for ‘laugh out loud’.

2. Advice

Pressure has increased on culture secretary Jeremy Hunt after Brooks revealed that he had sought advice from News Corp over how he and Downing Street should respond to the unfolding phone hacking scandal. (Hunt is due to give evidence at Leveson himself later this month.)

3. Cystic Fibrosis

Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown issued a strongly-worded statement in response to Brooks’ assertions that he and his wife were content to allow the Sun to publish details of their young son’s diagnosis with cystic fibrosis. Brown and his wife said there is no satisfactory explanation to how the paper got access to the private medical records.

4. Amanda Knox

Editor of the Mail Online Martin Clarke said that human error, “over-zealousness” and a mistranslation of the Italian verdict were behind the site’s brief publication of the wrong verdict in the murder conviction appeal of Amanda Knox.

5. Diary

Former News of the World editor Andy Coulson dismissed rumours he had kept a diary while working as a press advisor to Prime Minister David Cameron.

6. Shares

Coulson did, however, admit he had failed to declare a £40,000 News Corp shareholding while he was working for Downing Street. The shares were held while the British government was considering Rupert Murdoch’s BSkyB takeover bid.

7. X Factor

Brooks told the inquiry that she and Murdoch had different views on many topics, though they agreed on core issues. One of those differences centred on newspaper content: she said Murdoch felt that the Sun was running too much celebrity gossip, “though he liked the X Factor”.

LOL! ROFL! Rebekah Brooks teaches Cameron textspeak >

Blackmail and night-vision pics: George Michael shares his NotW experiences >

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    Mute Colm Flaherty
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    May 12th 2012, 5:17 PM

    Fact is, newspapers acted as if they were beyond reproach, beyond the law. This seeks to address that. Very relevant & interesting. You might be yawning, the rest of us aren’t.

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    Mute Tony Stack
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    May 12th 2012, 4:45 PM

    Nobody cares about this, its for journos mostly .

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    Mute Alan Dempsey
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    May 12th 2012, 4:51 PM

    Yawn!!!!

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    Mute Frank2521
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    May 12th 2012, 5:47 PM

    The journalists can say and do as they please – look at the woman who did the damage in RTE !! Is she still allowed to practice? The rest of the journalists support for her is incredible – their silence displays the integrity of the profession. Vincent Brown is very quiet when it comes to one of his own!

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    Mute martin dorgan
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    May 12th 2012, 9:29 PM

    Amazing no fallout in Ireland for the antics of parent newspapers in Uk

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    Mute Anthony Mannion
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    May 13th 2012, 2:39 AM

    you couldn’t be more wrong may effect you more than you think

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    Mute Ed
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    May 13th 2012, 12:34 AM

    There is a cabal of power and this is giving an insight to it, it. It unfortunate that heads don’t seem to be rolling , then again it may be a whitewash, but it is real power play behind the scenes drama

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    Mute the tweeper
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    May 13th 2012, 3:04 AM

    God, I think, I actually think I would you know.

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