October 21, 2006	Saturday	Ramazan 27, 1427

NEW YORK, Oct 20: Shareholders of News Corp., the global media conglomerate controlled by Rupert Murdoch, approved the extension of a “poison pill” anti-takeover measure by a vote of 57 per cent at the company's annual shareholder meeting on Friday.

The approval tightens Murdoch's control over the media company he founded and gives him greater leverage over media investor John Malone, the chairman of Liberty Media Corp., whose unexpected move to amass a stake in News Corp. two years ago prompted News Corp. to adopt the measure.

However, the relatively narrow margin of approval signalled wider shareholder discontent with News Corp.’s handling of the issue, which has raised the ire of some shareholder advocates.—AP