A former special adviser to Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has denied at the Leveson Inquiry that Mr Hunt was close to Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation.
Adam Smith resigned in April after it emerged he had had repeated contact with News Corp lobbyist Fred Michel.
Mr Michel told the inquiry that there was nothing inappropriate in his relations with Mr Smith.
But Mr Smith said Mr Hunt told the prime minister he supported News Corp's bid for BSkyB.
Mr Michel told the inquiry he did nothing "inappropriate" in contacting Mr Smith.
But he denied government claims that he had exaggerated the closeness of his relationship with Mr Smith.
Mr Smith stood down after saying his emails with Mr Michel over the firm's bid to take over BSkyB went too far.
Mr Hunt has denied News Corp had any influence with his office.
The culture secretary has resisted Labour calls to quit over claims his relationship with Rupert Murdoch's company was too close and will give his own account of events at the inquiry in future.
Mr Smith stepped down from his position on 25 April, saying the "content and extent" of his dealings with Mr Michel had not been authorised by the culture secretary. He is also due to give evidence to the inquiry into media standards later.
In his witness statement published by the inquiry, Mr Michel says he did not have "any direct conversation" with Mr Hunt relating to the BSkyB bid beyond his attendance at two formal meetings.
But the statement confirms the men had exchanged numerous text messages in a business and personal capacity, some of which Mr Michel said were "jokey".
Mr Michel told the inquiry references to conversations with "JH" in his emails with Mr Smith were "shorthand" for the culture department.
He added he had the "sort of impression that some of the feedback I was being given had been discussed with the secretary of state before I was given it".
Later, he said he believed Mr Smith was representing the culture secretary in the same way he was representing News Corp.
Mr Michel told the inquiry: "I was never of the opinion that it was inappropriate to at least try to put the arguments to or make representations to these officers."
The government has suggested the string of emails previously published by the inquiry showed Mr Michel had exaggerated the extent of his access to Mr Hunt's department.
But questioned by counsel to the inquiry, Robert Jay QC, Mr Michel denied he had "bigged up" the information Mr Smith gave him.
"I think my emails, as they were internal emails, were an accurate account of the conversations I have had," he said.
He added there "perhaps" would have been "exaggeration or spin" in emails during earlier dealings with the Department for Business when "morale was quite low because we had not much success".
News Corp unveiled its bid for BSkyB in June 2010 but abandoned it in July 2011 amid outrage over the phone-hacking scandal at its News of the World newspaper.
At the time of the correspondence between Mr Smith and Mr Michel, the culture secretary had been given a "quasi-judicial" role to decide whether the proposed BSkyB purchase should be referred to the Competition Commission for final approval.
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The inquiry heard Mr Michel made 191 telephone calls and sent 158 emails and 799 texts to Mr Hunt's team, 90% of which were were exchanges with Mr Smith.
Mr Jay said Mr Smith sent 257 text messages to Mr Michel between 28 November 2010 and 11 July 2011.
Mr Michel told the hearing his work on the BSkyB bid eventually took up about 80% of his time but he had also sought to promote the takeover with the Department for Business as well as with Labour and Liberal Democrat politicians.
Mr Michel's witness statement reveals in May 2010 both men "bumped into each other" at a London hospital where their wives were about to give birth and "shared a night of anxiety".
But after Mr Hunt was handed responsibility for the BSkyB bid in December 2010, the culture secretary said in a text message exchange that all business contact "now needs to be through official channels until decision made..."
On 3 March 3 2011, Mr Hunt told MPs he was minded to accept the BSkyB takeover after News Corp offered to spin off Sky News. In response to the lobbyist's text that he was "great at the Commons", Mr Hunt replied: "Merci. Large drink tonight!"
Mr Michel contacted Mr Hunt by text message later in March 2011 after his appearance on Andrew Marr's BBC programme to say he had been "very good". Mr Hunt replied: "Merci hopefully when consultation over we can have a coffee like the old days!"
When News Corp withdrew the BSkyB bid, Mr Hunt's response to a text from Mr Michel said "It has been the most challenging time for all of us... would be great to catch up when the dust has settled."
Mr Jay referred to an email in which Mr Michel called on the secretary of state, via Mr Smith, to "show some backbone" and dismiss Ofcom's calls for concessions.
Mr Michel told the inquiry: "It's my English - I might use words in a more melodramatic way than I intended."
Under earlier questioning, Mr Michel agreed that Mr Hunt was "keeping an open mind" about the bid but when asked whether he had been supportive of it, he replied: "I can't say."
But he denied he had been given a "running commentary" on the bid by Mr Smith.
Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary Sir Jeremy Heywood has defended the government's decision not ask Sir Alex Allen to investigate the conduct of Mr Hunt.
Giving evidence to the Commons Public Administration Committee, Sir Jeremy flatly denied that the matter was left to the Leveson Inquiry to "buy time" for the culture secretary.
The current phase of the inquiry is focusing on the relationship between the press and politicians.
Thursday's Leveson Inquiry hearing got under way with Lord Brooke, heritage secretary - the predecessor to the culture secretary post - under the Conservative government between 1992 and 1994 - giving evidence.
Lord Brooke said the press has not been subject to statutory regulation since 1695 and the "first time it happens it's going to be a very significant event".
He said ministers had recognised that the newly formed Press Complaints Commission attempts at self-regulation "had to improve".
But the government had chosen to oppose MP Clive Soley's 1992 bill to introduce an independent press authority.
It had intended to bring in changes following Sir David Calcutt's review of the press and there "was no sense at all in having other legislation," he said.
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