Fortune magazine has a profile of Ross Levinsohn, president of Fox Internet Media, who has made some significant purchases this year in order to bring News Corp. into the Internet age.

I was drawn to the article because, like most people, I’m wondering if Murdoch and News Corp. really understand the Internet, or if they’re just scrambling around spending cash without a clear strategy.

In reading this Q&A, I was pretty surprised, taken aback really, by two quotes from Levinsohn. Tell me if they seem really strange to you as well.

Earlier this year you were running one website, Foxsports.com. This summer you were put in charge of Rupert Murdoch’s web strategy. How does that feel?



I know this is going to sound like bullshit, but I really mean it. For me to be able to sit and listen to Rupert and Peter and Roger Ailes (CEO of the Fox News Channel), as well as Jim Gianopulos and Tom Rothman (co-chairmen of the Fox film studio), it’s like I’m going to school every day with these industry leaders. Not that I ever really learned anything at school.

It’s one thing to be humble. This is quite strange to see a company president proclaim in public that he never learned anything at school.

Then later on Levinsohn was asked:

How do you plan to make to make Fox Interactive Media work with the rest of News Corp.?



So that it doesn’t seem like we’re buying all these idiotic, disparate businesses, here’s the thing that sort of runs throughout what we’re doing: We’ve bought audience, youth and communities that play to the sweet spots of News Corp.’s strengths.

Huh? “idiotic, disparate businesses”? Did he really say that? What did he mean to say?

RUPERT’S WEB RULES Q&A: Murdoch’s Web Czar [fortune.com]

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