Forum Views ()
Forum Replies ()
Read more with google mobile :
Last phone-hack paper published, Murdoch heads to UK
|
Edition:
U.S.
Article
Comments (0)
Slideshow
Video
Follow Reuters
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
YouTube
Read
Hollywood royalty meets real British royalty
|
2:26am EDT
Over 1,400 arrested, tear gas fired in Malaysia protest
|
09 Jul 2011
U.S. debt talks scaled back over tax rift
12:04am EDT
Quake jolts northeast Japan, no reports of damage
09 Jul 2011
Iran says fires missiles to Indian Ocean for first time
09 Jul 2011
Discussed
101
Jury resumes deliberations in Casey Anthony murder trial
88
Asia pollution blamed for halt in warming: study
62
China warns U.S. officials not to meet Dalai Lama
Watched
Royal humor ahead of Polo match
Sat, Jul 9 2011
Royal Couple arrive at Polo match
Sat, Jul 9 2011
California welcome for Wills and Kate
Fri, Jul 8 2011
Last phone-hack paper published, Murdoch heads to UK
Tweet
Share this
Email
Print
Related News
Murdoch says current News Corp. management stands
Sat, Jul 9 2011
Church of England threatens to pull News Corp investment
Sat, Jul 9 2011
Tears, cheers and anger at News of the World farewell
Sat, Jul 9 2011
Hacking was "standard practice" at Murdoch paper: police
Sat, Jul 9 2011
Analysis & Opinion
What damage could Rebekah Brooks do to News Corp?
Deals wrap: Doubts grow over BSkyB bid
Related Topics
Entertainment »
Fashion »
Related Video
The end of the News of the World
Sat, Jul 9 2011
Former aide to UK PM arrested
Ex-Cameron aide released on bail
1 / 16
News of the World employee Francine Packer brings tea and coffee to reporters waiting outside News International headquartes in London July 9, 2011.
Credit: Reuters/Luke MacGregor
By Mike Collett-White
LONDON |
Sat Jul 9, 2011 9:53pm EDT
LONDON (Reuters) - The final edition of the newspaper engulfed in a phone-hacking scandal was published on Sunday as Rupert Murdoch headed to London to try to save the bigger prize of his takeover of the British broadcaster BSkyB.
Best known for its lurid headlines exposing the misdemeanors of the rich, royal and famous, the last "News of the World" said simply "Thank You & Goodbye" over a montage of some of its most celebrated splashes over the past 168 years.
"This is not where we wanted to be and it's not where we deserve to be, but as a final tribute to 7.5 million readers, this is for you and for the staff, thank you," editor Colin Myler told the media scrum outside its east London offices.
The scandal has raised questions about relations between politicians, including Prime Minister David Cameron -- who hired a former editor of the paper as his spin doctor -- and media barons such as News Corp chairman and chief executive Murdoch, 80.
It has also brought to light accusations that journalists working for Murdoch and others illegally paid police for information.
Cameron's opponents have scented an opportunity in their efforts to block Murdoch's $14 billion bid for the 61 percent of the profitable pay-TV operator BSkyB that News Corp, the world's largest news conglomerate, does not already own.
Previously, those looking at whether Murdoch should get the go-ahead have focused on whether it would give him too much power over Britain's media. News Corp also owns two dailies and one other Sunday paper.
But allegations that senior editors were involved in illegally accessing thousands of voicemail messages and paying police for information to get scoops have now prompted the regulator Ofcom to say it will consider whether News Corp directors are "fit and proper" persons to run BSkyB.
Accusations that the eavesdropping stretched to missing children, relatives of those killed in the 2005 attacks on London's transport network and families of soldiers killed in action have triggered a huge public outcry.
The government has received more than 135,000 public complaints against the deal.
"This is the most serious political crisis in a generation (for the Murdochs) but as a business crisis it is immense and immensely more significant for the Murdochs than the political crisis is," said Claire Enders of Enders Analysis.
"LET DOWN"
Murdoch, who made the News of the World his first British newspaper acquisition in 1969, told Reuters he expected to leave for London on Saturday afternoon or Sunday and was not planning any management changes as a result of the crisis.
"We've been let down by people that we trusted, with the result the paper let down its readers," the News Corp chief executive said as he left a media conference in Idaho. He earlier said closing the paper was a "collective decision."
News Corp, whose shares fell more than 5 percent in New York last week, declined to comment on Murdoch's agenda.
Neither Cameron's office nor the Department for Culture, Media and Sport plan to speak to him during the visit, spokespeople said. Police declined to comment on whether they would try to speak to him.
Cameron indicated a new assertiveness toward the Murdoch empire by withholding overt endorsement of News Corp's bid for BSkyB on Friday.
The prime minister's close links with those at the heart of the scandal mean he too has been damaged by it but analysts say that, with probably nearly four years until a parliamentary election, he is unlikely to be sunk by it.
Cameron, a friend of former News of the World editor Rebekah Brooks, joined calls for her to step down as chief executive of News Corp's News International arm at a news conference on Friday where he admitted politicians had been in thrall to media for years, and ordered a public inquiry.
British police on Friday arrested Andy Coulson, the former spokesman for Cameron who had resigned as News of the World editor in 2007 after one of his reporters and a private investigator were convicted of hacking the phones of aides to the royal family. Coulson has also said he knew nothing about the phone hacking.
Brooks indicated in comments to News of the World staff on Friday that more revelations may emerge, a day after telling them the paper had become "toxic" and would be shut.
"HACKING WAS STANDARD PRACTICE"
A senior police officer told the Sunday Telegraph that voicemail hacking had been "standard practice" at the News of the World and that its executives had failed to cooperate fully with police during an investigation in 2005-06. [nL6E7I909Q]
He said the new investigation had been prompted by "material that was completely available to them in 2005-06."
"It makes their assurances in 2005-06 look very shaky."
The paper said Brooks would be questioned by police in the coming days, citing a senior News International source. Police declined to comment.
The Sunday Times said at least nine journalists and three police officers were facing jail in connection with the hacking scandal and quoted senior police officers as saying it was likely there would be further arrests soon.
Murdoch said on Saturday that Brooks, who was editor of the News of the World at a time when many of the alleged hacking incidents were taking place, had his "total" support. She denies knowing of the practice during her watch.
"I'm not throwing innocent people under the bus," Murdoch said.
Asked if he planned any management changes, for example in the responsibilities of his son and heir apparent James, he said "No." "Nothing's changed," he told reporters.
Some 200 people at the News of the World are losing their jobs.
The Guardian said on Saturday police were investigating evidence that a News International executive may have deleted millions of emails from an internal archive in an attempt to hamper investigations.
The News International spokeswoman said the allegation was "rubbish," adding: "We are cooperating actively with police and have not destroyed evidence."
Cameron fleshed out on Sunday how inquiries into the scandal, announced on Friday, would work.
The first, a judge-led inquiry to be held in public, will cover phone hacking and criminal activity and look at the way the police investigated allegations against the News of the World, and the relationship between newspapers and the police.
The second inquiry will be asked to recommend a new framework for press regulation.
Reporters, editors and production staff walked out of the News of the World's offices in east London for the last time en masse on Saturday night and lined up before the world's cameras waiting to capture a piece of media history. [nL3E7I9099]
"The world's greatest newspaper 1843-2011" ran a strapline. The paper ran a 48-page pull-out featuring some of its most memorable front pages. The only adverts were for charities.
(Additional reporting by Olesya Dmitracova, Jodie Ginsberg, Christina Fincher, Sarah McBride, Sudip Kar-Gupta; Writing by Alison Williams; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Janet Lawrence)
Entertainment
Fashion
Related Quotes and News
Company
Price
Related News
Tweet this
Link this
Share this
Digg this
Email
Reprints
We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/
Comments (0)
Be the first to comment on reuters.com.
Add yours using the box above.
Social Stream (What's this?)
© Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters
Editorial Editions:
Africa
Arabic
Argentina
Brazil
Canada
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Mexico
Russia
Spain
United Kingdom
United States
Reuters
Contact Us
Advertise With Us
Help
Journalism Handbook
Archive
Site Index
Video Index
Reader Feedback
Mobile
Newsletters
RSS
Podcasts
Widgets
Your View
Analyst Research
Thomson Reuters
Copyright
Disclaimer
Privacy
Professional Products
Professional Products Support
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Careers
Online Products
Acquisitions Monthly
Buyouts
Venture Capital Journal
International Financing Review
Project Finance International
PEhub.com
PE Week
FindLaw
Super Lawyers Attorney Rating Service
Reuters on Facebook
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.
Other News on Sunday, 10 July 2011 Pakistan army says New York Times report is a direct attack
|
Relatives boycott Yemen shooting trial: lawyer
|
Hercog wins Bastad title; Djokovic can't spark Serbia vs. Sweden in Davis Cup
Rights groups urge Senegal not to send Habre to Chad
|
Tour de France: Costa holds on for lumpy Stage 8 win; Hushovd retains yellow jersey
Derek Dynamite! Yanks star Jeter blasts homer for career hit No. 3,000
Matt Joyce solo homer gives Rays 1-0 lead over Yanks
McDowell among leaders as rains reduce Scottish Open to 54-hole event
Pakistan army says New York Times report is a direct attack
|
Colombia rebels vehicle bombs kill 3, wound 77
|
Quake jolts northeast Japan, no reports of damage
|
Mark Webber on British GP pole
Israel FM says Turkey shut door on rapprochement
|
Military chief visits China, says to maintain Asia presence
|
Will Power on pole at Toronto
Kyle Busch wins inaugural Kentucky Cup race
Fire kills 16 in Ukrainian retirement home
|
Bautista at it again: Jays slugger belts two homers in win over Tribe
Judge sets meeting for NFL as labor negotiations slowly progress
Jay Haas takes lead at First Tee Open with 65 at Pebble Beach
Steve Stricker keeps going lower, leads John Deere
Japan stuns Germany, France edges England on shootout
Legendary Andre Aggasi enters Tennis Hall of Fame
Women's U.S. Open confusion: two Miyazatos, unrelated, are 1-2 after rain delays
Last phone-hack paper published, Murdoch heads to UK
|
Pakistan urges U.S. to share intelligence on Zawahri
|
Gaddafi forces shell rebels south of Libyan capital
|
Paul Williams wins controversial decision; Ramos nabs title on Hail Mary knockout
Five killed in clash in south Yemen: report
|
Brandon Rios knocks out Urbano Antillon in three-round firefight
A-Rod may consider knee surgery; Yanks third baseman has torn meniscus
Hines Ward issues apology for DIU arrest; Steelers receiver not impaired while driving
Red Sox slugger David Ortiz apologizes for dust up with Orioles
Tamika Catchings leads Fever past Mystics, Indiana nabs sixth straight win
Gay slurs put Jackson, Beckham on the defensive
Nearly 100 missing after boat sinks in Russia's Volga
|
Blast in outskirts of Nigerian capital Abuja
|
Syria summons U.S. and French envoys over Hama visit
|
Egyptian frustrations with army, government mount
|
At least 26 killed in north India rail accident
|
Merkel signals ambitions to run for third term in 2013
|
Last edition of News of the World sells fast in London
|
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights