Rupert Murdoch faced scathing criticism from Al Gore after News Corp pulled the plug on Current TV in Italy for having hired left wing Keith Olbermann.

Current TV was given the unexpected news 3 weeks ago that Sky Italia would no longer carry the liberal TV station, in what appeared to be a 'political decision'.

Olbermann, a former MSNBC frontman, and often times controversial show host, signed on to Current TV earlier this year. Programming is expected to start in June, but not now, in Italy.

News Corp’s decision to ‘punish’ Current TV was apparently made from its NY Headquarters, citing Keith Olbermann as the primary reason for banning the channel.

Al Gore scathed Rupert Murdoch’s ‘ideological agenda’ in a Guardian exclusive :

"News Corporation is an international conglomerate with an ideological agenda. It seeks political power in every nation they operate. They wield that power to shut down voices that disagree with the agenda of Rupert Murdoch”

In relation to News Corp’s buyout of BskyB in the UK, Gore went further to say:

"I know that News Corp is close to reaching an agreement to buy BSkyB. Now I may not be a party to that debate, but if anybody believes that [News Corp] will remain hands off if there are diverse opinions that do not agree with its ideological agenda then they are fools. This is proof positive of their abuse of power."

Do you think News Corp should reinstate Current TV in Italy?