Rupert Murdoch isn’t going on trial in London on Monday, but the practices and influence of his media empire are.  Two of Murdoch’s former deputies will face criminal accusations involving phone hacking and obstructing justice.

On trial at the old Bailey is one of Murdoch’s favorites, Rebekah Brooks, the former CEO of Murdoch’s British newspaper arm.  The other is Andy Coulson, who went from News Of The World editor through the revolving door to become a top public relations aide to conservative Prime Minister David Cameron. 

The trial is the result of a 2011 hacking scandal that exposed the tentacles of News Corp. operations in the UK.  Prosecutors will attempt to prove that Brooks and Coulson conspired to intercept the mobile phones of celebrities and newsmakers, and to prove their involvement with illegal payments to public officials to make it happen.  Some observers expect more revelations about the cozy and tangled relationships with Britain’s political elite and law-enforcement officials and Murdoch’s media holdings.

The defendants deny guilt.

News Corp. has already paid out hundreds of millions of dollars to victims of the mobile spying and to defense attorneys.