After 168 years in circulation, The News Of The World will release its final edition on Sunday, amid the allegations that the paper has unethically hacked into files and phones of people related to the death of Princess Dianna, the families of 7/7 bombing victims and others.
News International chair James Murdoch made the official announcement this morning to his staff and to the world, saying:
“The News of the World is in the business of holding others to account. But it failed when it came to itself … In 2006, the police focused their investigations on two men. Both went to jail. But the News of the World and News International failed to get to the bottom of repeated wrongdoing that occurred without conscience or legitimate purpose. Wrongdoers turned a good newsroom bad and this was not fully understood or adequately pursued. As a result, the News of the World and News International wrongly maintained that these issues were confined to one reporter. We now have voluntarily given evidence to the police that I believe will prove that this was untrue and those who acted wrongly will have to face the consequences. This was not the only fault. The paper made statements to Parliament without being in the full possession of the facts. This was wrong. The company paid out-of-court settlements approved by me. I now know that I did not have a complete picture when I did so. This was wrong and is a matter of serious regret.”
At least he’s owning up to their faults (somewhat.)
Sunday’s issue will be void of advertisers, opting to instead offer ad space to charities and good causes that could use the publicity.