An important book about the Murdoch empire has been rejected by major British publishing houses.

Now, the authors are launching this crowdfunder to raise the money to publish it themselves.

Rogue: The Rise and Fall of Mazher 'Fake Sheikh' Mahmood is the shocking story of how the Murdoch empire protected its infamous reporter.

Written by two seasoned journalists — media commentator Roy Greenslade and TV producer Paddy French — the book presents powerful new evidence supporting Hacked Off’s campaign for an investigation into “the extent of unlawful or improper conduct” at Rupert Murdoch’s newspapers.

This was part of the planned second phase of the Leveson Inquiry focusing on “the extent to which any relevant police force investigated allegations relating to News International, and whether the police received corrupt payments or were otherwise complicit in misconduct.” It was cancelled by the Theresa May’s government in 2018.

A spokesperson for Hacked Off said: "Mazher Mahmood's stings caused irreparable damage to dozens of peoples' lives. He tarnished reputations and destroyed careers and livelihoods - not to expose wrongdoing and serve the public interest, but to generate the kinds of stories which would sell newspapers for News UK and line the pockets of its owner, Rupert Murdoch.

"Yet for years, News UK executives and the Metropolitan Police turned a blind eye to his dubious methods.

"This important book reveals the devastating extent of Mahmood's activities, the impacts they had on his victims, and underlines the case for the urgent public inquiry into press and police corruption known as 'Leveson Part Two.'"

The book reveals that 20 years before he was jailed for attempting to pervert the course of justice in the Tulisa Contostavlos cocaine trial, Mahmood had been caught lying on oath in a criminal case.

The defendants claimed that his source had intimidated them, a charge he denied. His testimony was then shot to pieces when Scotland Yard not only confirmed the defendants were correct but that Mahmood’s informant was also a police “supergrass”.

Significantly, Mahmood once said: “I’ve got bent police officers that are witnesses, that are informants”.

The book also reveals that senior figures in Rupert Murdoch’s New York headquarters and Scotland Yard ignored warnings that the Fake Sheikh was a serial perjurer.

Nick Davies, The Guardian reporter who broke the hacking story and is the star of the ITV series The Hack, has read a draft of the book.

He said: "Roy Greenslade was there before the rest of us, spotting the cynical dishonesty of Mazher Mahmood.

"Now he and Paddy French have gone further in pulling together the whole sordid story of this liar with a press card who was happy to ruin lives and who was handsomely rewarded by the ruthless corporation which made money out of him."

The authors are able to print a small number of copies themselves but, with your help, they can increase the print-run and pay for a full-scale launch next month (November).

You can read an extract of the book at the Press Gang website here

No raffles, sweepstakes, giveaways, or returns on investment are offered in exchange for any donations made to this GoFundMe.