Rebekah Brooks has resigned from News International in the wake of the phone hacking scandal. She released a carefully-worded letter to the staff.
At News International we pride ourselves on setting the news agenda for the right reasons. Today we are leading the news for the wrong ones.
The reputation of the company we love so much, as well as the press freedoms we value so highly, are all at risk.
As Chief Executive of the company, I feel a deep sense of responsibility for the people we have hurt and I want to reiterate how sorry I am for what we now know to have taken place.
I have believed that the right and responsible action has been to lead us through the heat of the crisis. However my desire to remain on the bridge has made me a focal point of the debate.
This is now detracting attention from all our honest endeavours to fix the problems of the past.
Therefore I have given Rupert and James Murdoch my resignation. While it has been a subject of discussion, this time my resignation has been accepted.
Rupert's wisdom, kindness and incisive advice has guided me throughout my career and James is an inspirational leader who has shown me great loyalty and friendship.
I would like to thank them both for their support.
I have worked here for 22 years and I know it to be part of the finest media company in the world.
News International is full of talented, professional and honourable people. I am proud to have been part of the team and lucky to know so many brilliant journalists and media executives.
I leave with the happiest of memories and an abundance of friends.
As you can imagine recent times have been tough. I now need to concentrate on correcting the distortions and rebutting the allegations about my record as a journalist, an editor and executive.
My resignation makes it possible for me to have the freedom and the time to give my full cooperation to all the current and future inquiries, the police investigations and the CMS appearance.
I am so grateful for all the messages of support. I have nothing but overwhelming respect for you and our millions of readers.
I wish every one of you all the best.
Rebekah
The wording of the letter suggests she had tried to resign already and had her resignation refused. The part about having time to correct the record seems to be CYA language in light of the downward spiral News International has been on over the past couple of weeks.
Take rumors for what they're worth here, but it appears that at least one member of the Murdoch family was quite unhappy about Ms. Brooks. Elisabeth Murdoch is reported to be furious over the scandal.
The 42-year-old is said to have privately “railed” against the News International chief executive and former editor of the News of the World.
Miss Murdoch, who is set to be given a seat on the board of her father’s News Corp empire, told friends that Mrs Brooks had “f----- the company”.
Meanwhile, if one were to watch only Fox News, they would have no clue anything untoward was happening elsewhere, because it's "the subject [they're] not talking about today."
