News Corp (NYSE: NWS). chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch was emphatic just now when asked by analyst Jessica Reif Cohen about the possibility of bidding for Yahoo: “We are definitely not going to make a bid for Yahoo.” Rumors of News Corp. as a Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) rival have been swirling since the offer was announced Friday morning. This should put an end to it ... but probably won’t.

Update: Murdoch said last year’s reports of “talks” with Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) were exaggerated, that there were “references” in social meetings and that was with “the previous chairman”—i.e. Terry Semel. No comment on the possible impact of a Microsoft-Yahoo combo. 

AOL?: Would News Corp. be interested in acquiring AOL?  “That’s an even easier question. No.”