Murdoch resigns from News Corp. subsidiary boards

News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch / AP

Updated 6:12 PM ET

(AP) LONDON - Media mogul Rupert Murdoch has resigned as a director of a number of News Corp. subsidiary boards in Britain and the United States, a spokeswoman confirmed Saturday.

Murdoch stepped down this past week as a director of NI Group, Times Newspaper Holdings and News Corp. Investments in the U.K., said Daisy Dunlop, spokeswoman for News Corp.'s British arm, News International. The companies oversee Britain's newspapers The Sun, The Times, and The Sunday Times.

It was not immediately clear which of News Corp.'s U.S. boards Murdoch had left. Britain's Telegraph newspaper, which first reported the news late Saturday, said those details had not yet been disclosed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

News International sought to play down the significance of the resignations, saying in a statement that "this is nothing more than a corporate housecleaning exercise prior to the company split."

That was a reference to News Corp.'s announcement June 28 that it would separate its publishing business from its much more profitable media and entertainment business — forming two distinct, publicly traded companies. Under those proposed changes, Murdoch, 81, will chair both of the companies, although he would continue as chief executive of the media and entertainment company only.

Saturday's announcement suggests that Murdoch may be distancing himself from his British newspaper interests, which have been shaken to the core by a widespread phone hacking scandal.

The scandal erupted anew last year when it emerged that Murdoch's now-defunct News of the World tabloid had systematically hacked voicemails of politicians and celebrities. The revelations have rocked Britain's establishment and triggered three parallel police investigations that have resulted in more than 40 arrests.

Illegal eavesdropping allegations at the News of the World led to the resignation of Rebekah Brooks, then-CEO of News International, who has been accused of perverting justice in the scandal.

[TJphoto]

The most prestigious award in television journalism is the Edward R. Murrow Award. Fox News has never even been nominated. Go figure.

Just because your voice reaches halfway around the world doesn't mean you are wiser than when it reached only to the end of the bar".
Edward R. Murrow

[hypnotoad72]

But FOX is such a fair and balanced organization! Murdoch is surely of top quality and integrity! Why should the libruls be going after such a decent man?

/sarcasm

http://intershame.com/on/Fox_News

http://foxnewsporn.com/

And quality stories! Like:

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/08/17/college-students-in-favor-wealth-distribution-are-asked-to-support-grade/

Written while overlooking real issues like:

http://hubpages.com/hub/HowH1BVisaFRAUDiskillingAmerica
http://www.mydd.com/story/2007/2/7/184312/5388

And politicians that get taxpayer money in return for offshoring jobs...

Yet FOX hones in only on a wedge issue (asking students to give others "A"s), ironically not noticing how wealth redistribution (companies demanding people who spent tens of thousands to get educated to train their own replacements, amongst other directly parallel issues.)

Murdoch is a weasel. He probably condoned Nixon's wiretapping too.

[omnibus66]

Does this mean that Fake News might become a real news channel?

[fiberglass3]

Waiting for that to happen is like leaving the runway lights on for Amelia Earhart.

[norcalruss]

I doubt it omni. Better chance that Bill "the Gasbag" O'Reilly would become less arrogant, less of a know-it-all, and actually have a show that is either fair or balanced.

[John_Swift]

If he really wants to avoid responsibility, he should take a page from the Romney playbook and retroactively retire to a date before the whole phone hacking scandal took place.

[lasvegasteacher]

This is not enough, Rupert Murdoch needs to be removed from all influence in the world of news.

[marychgo]

I only WISH that would be enough to solve the problem. Sadly, Rupert's manipulative, dumbing-down approach to "infotainment" seems to have poisoned the well, even at companies he doesn't control....

[hypnotoad72]

marychgo -

Agreed.

[jgnv]

"News International sought to play down the significance of the resignations, saying in a statement that "this is nothing more than a corporate housecleaning exercise prior to the company split."

This should have been the lead sentence to this article. The "housecleaning exercise" will ultimately be the demise of this entire conglomerate which is long overdue.

[jonnyooh]

Poor little Merdie-Wierdie! Why can't they leave that poor, shrunken wad of dog meat alone so he can continue his hobby of turning America's moron population into Republican voting zombies?

[stuwerb]

Good news / bad news: Now he'll have more time on his hands to manipulate upcoming elections in major industrial democracies.

[Jaylah54200]

He was probably hoping that his resignation would go "under the radar" due to the mass coverage of the Aurora Massacre.

Looks like it worked.