Rupert Murdoch bares all on Twitter - perhaps too much

From the day Rupert Murdoch joined Twitter, the media mogul has been spreading alarm among his enemies and supporters in equal measure. One of his earliest posts on the social network, three years and three major elections on as many continents ago, Murdoch gloated that his "friends [are] frightened what I may really say". Another dripping tweet managed to insult an entire nation on an official day of rest: "Maybe Brits have too many holidays for broke country!"

Ever since, Murdoch's Twitter feed has developed from that spontaneous splurge of random outbursts into a phenomenon that nobody dreamed would ever exist: a public window into the private and politically sensitive thoughts of one of the most influential men on earth.

In the past few days alone, Murdoch has used his 140 characters to intervene in the early but already heated race for a Republican US presidential candidate, decry endemic corruption, tell the prime minister of Australia how to run his government, and implicitly call for the removal of the British monarchy .

For Murdoch's inner circle, such open political expression is a thing of wonder. Before the age of social media, he kept himself firmly in the background, careful not to expose his own public views while actively seeking to sway elections through the editorial endorsements in his many newspapers across the globe.

"He made clear to his editors which politicians deserved support and those that didn't," said a former News Corporation executive. "But unless it was time for an endorsement, those conversations remained private."

The former executive added: "Now with his Twitter feed, the world can see how he is thinking all the time. Which is unusual for Rupert, who liked to keep his own counsel. It has surprised many of us to see him go so public."