The headline of the final edition of the News of the World, which is rolling off the presses for the last time in 168 years, reads: "Thank you and goodbye".
Editor Colin Myler led his journalists out of the building for the final time to rapturous applause and cheering and paid tribute to his "professional" team and the paper's readers.
The moving scenes were played out at the red top's headquarters in Wapping as News Corporation boss Rupert Murdoch prepared to fly to the UK to deal personally with the swiftly unfolding crisis.
Meanwhile, embattled News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks remained defiant in the face of mounting criticism - telling MPs she had "no knowledge whatsoever" of hacking when she edited the Sunday paper.
And amid mounting pressure on David Cameron, Downing Street responded to Labour calls for a judge to be appointed to lead a public inquiry insisting it was acting "as rapidly as possible and legally permissible".
In a personal email to his journalists - seen by the Press Association - editor Colin Myler rallied staff together as they prepared to bid farewell to the tabloid. "It's not where we want to be and it's not where we deserve to be," he wrote. "But I know we will produce a paper to be proud of."
News of the World chief sub editor Alan Edwards defended his colleagues - all of whom had turned up for work. "What we really want to do is do a professional job as we always do and get the final edition of our paper out," he said. "We are like a family up there and there's very much that feel that we're all pulling together."
The words of solidarity came as police were poised to make more arrests in the phone hacking inquiry. In the last two days, three people have been quizzed by police.
A 63-year-old man arrested in Surrey in connection with alleged corrupt payments made to police officers has been bailed to return to a London police station in October. Officers would not confirm reports that he is a private investigator.
On Friday, former News of the World editor Andy Coulson was questioned for nine hours over suspected corruption and the scandal which forced the paper's closure. Ex-royal editor Clive Goodman, 53, has also spoken to police over claims officers were bribed following a dawn swoop on his Surrey home.
Enlarge Photo
The front cover of the final edition of the News of the World newspaper (News In …
Loraine
What a complete mess. Why sake journalists for hacking when you expect them to deliver the goods and the highest selling newspaper in the UK is providing those goods. To bring the people what they want these sort of tactics have to be deployed. The public clamoured for phone messages about Diana and her 'lover'. A big thing is being made out of something that has been going on forever and not just by journalists. No-one died as a result of the hacking, no abuse took place, no-one was at risk physically, no real harm has been done except loss of privacy so why are we treating it like a murder trial?
JOHN
No stone unturned.....lets not forget that these newspapers until a few years ago supported the LABOUR government, thats the period that these allegasions come from,along with the brown envelopes, go for the throat Cameron and lets see just how these stupid labourites come out of it.After all they gave them the leash to do it.
R
Sad .... that a British newspaper with over 150 years history is destroyed because of an Australian's greed.
JOHN
the notw has appologised and shut down
labour has not appologised and still wants to harm you
Lewis Willetts
As they say "Thanks for the memories"
Josephanthony.
Hmm.
So long, and thanks for all the pish!
MARK
Good riddance to bad rubbish
Malcolm
What has not been examined (except perhaps than by Mr. Murdoch) is what happens if the NoW was not closed. It may be that when all the claims for compensation are accrued that it would not be solvent! I am unsure (but I will bet Mr. Murdoch will have it all worked out) as to whether being part of News International would extend its funding to cover all the compensation claims and law suit cost.
For Mr. Murdoch to say they had been let down is something that was within their gift to avoid and he can't shove responsibility off just like that.
Steve
he will just start the paper up with new name and same greedy corrupt two faced sneaky so called journalists,he should be banned from printing in U.K. hes a low life self centred @#$% ole
GRIMBLE
A sad day for the paper
Ross
Phone hacking, that’s down near the bottom of the morality ladder with such things as “sleeping with a ginger”, idnit?
delazzuro
corrupt yosalls
Nytram
I would not trust murdock to run a ICE Cube factory on the SUN
DES
what i want to know is why are the Met doing the "invesigation"? Surely an indpendent force with no ties to London or the paper should be brought in. That way we might stand a chance of the right people being prosecuted, instead of protected.
Also suprised the former notw journo who was jailed has said nothing publicly....Brooks was apparently a hands on editor, i.e always in the news room, so how can she not know what was going on? Why hasn't she been charged with bribing the police, she has admitted they were paid by the News of the World, thats bribery, and she should be charged....
milt
He looks like he is melting!!
MICHAEL C
Well, if it's true, perhaps they got paid in 'coppers'.
ROBIN
I wouldn't be surprised if Murdog doesn't turn up, if he ends up neck deep in the brown smelly stuff he wouldn't be allowed to leave the country again. No, he won't have the bottle to come here, the scumbag will tackle this from afar.
ROBIN
I wouldn't be surprised if Murdog doesn't turn up, if he ends up neck deep in the brown smelly stuff he wouldn't be allowed to leave the country again. No, he won't have the bottle to come here, the scumbag will tackle this from afar.
stephen
Slippery Ginger Tom.!
basguy
Let's hope this is just the beginning of the fall of the house of Murdoch and his awful media empire.
nogs
shame for the current crop of innocent journalists
30 years ago it might have been a decent paper murdoch buggers up everything he touches good ridence to bad rubbish
cameron was soi wrong to appoint colson, he admits responsibility so he should resign, otherwise he is not taking responsibility
Sharon
Well im going to miss New of the world.
GERALD N
Hypocrisy and cant are two words that spring to mind, when issues like this *storm-in-a-handset* bubble to the surface, albeit in the rattling death-throes of this now insufferably-overpopulated, drowning, suffocating, last-gasping erstwhile empire. It occurs to me that. instead of denigrating one of our most famous and much-loved English institutions - namely The News of the World, along with some of the cream of the Fourth Estate, who it seems to me have not done any one of us a scrap of real harm in the course of carrying out their divers and necessarily covert researching activities - we would do better to investigate the bribery and corruption, and other divers and dubious activities, which it would seem have now become part-and-parcel of this once *squeaky-clean* Green-And-Pleasant-Land. As to those who would pontificate and *Tut-Tut* over this recent judgement - a finding which it seems to me to be decidedly out-of-character for a trail-blazing island which once boasted its demonstrably hard-won freedoms, most of which now seem to have been eroded on the altar of this ridiculous Geo-Socio Communistic *political correctness* to that of a Police State, in a poverty-stricken Banana Republic - my advice is *let he who without sin, cast the first stone*...because, if it hasn't already occurred to you, there is the thought that journalists - shamed, disbarred or otherwise - are still capable, in the many of the other ways open to them, of monitoring the hmmmm activities of, and blowing-the-whistle on, anyone (and I do mean *anyone*)...and that even goes for their holier-that-thou critics, *unfrocked*, black-coated or otherwise... because, notwithstanding Judgement in a Court of Law, I wouldn't have thought that Orwell's *Big Brother* had carte blanch with impunity to exercise a priority-option on *news* judgement, as well; the latter which is always open to any crusading investigative reporter worth his salt, albeit one with a nose for a rattling-good *castle-tumbling* story, and on either side of the Bar, eh what ? Hic ! Indeed, if you were to ask me, I would be inclined to say, and quite confidently, at that: Watch this space, because if I've learned anything in this life, it is this: *Never, ever, cross a Newspaper Man, because - from the ill-fated Sea-Green Incorruptible, French Revolutionary butcher-advocate Robespierre, to the equally hell-destined *Peter-the-Painter*, who dispensed the same kind of summary Geo Socio justice in Stalin's murderous show-trials, 150 years later - nobody is fire-proof !
bigcheeseuk
Robert to save the day! He better take over and tell Cameron what to do next!
Paul
iI suspect there will be some sort of cover up, kicked in to the long grass...
This country really has gone to pot, the rich will worm there way out and the poor will end up paying in the end...Where did it all go so wrong?
"millions of emails from an internal archive at News International may have been destroyed in what could be seen as a bid to obstruct Scotland Yard's inquiry".......
Why was the equipment not impounded when this mess went global a few days ago?????
Most probably because the emails that have been allowed to be deleted contain information relating to the hundreds of corrupt police officers involved!! This behaviour is nothing short of disgusting, but who are we to complain...... we are the idiots who put these money grubbing cretins in power!
"Murdock flying in" or should that read, "Murdock flying out"? If he was doing this dirt in the UK he was doing it in the USA too, and things will get pretty nasty over there when the sleeping giant finally wakes and realises what has been going on. Paid cops and hacked victim families..... bad enough but there is much more dirt coming, I am sure, especially when Rebeka does a deal with the investigation cops.... she must know some important things about Murdock for him to be giving such protection -- when she coughs, he'll be in the slammer -- son-Murdock too, I guess.
Far safer for Murdock to be over here where he has better air cover from Cameron et al, and less threat of punishment from softie UK.z
MARK No stone left unturned.....sure
Ralph Forget a Judge, put the working man/woman on the panel and see what the real outcome would be. Then once found guilty by this panel let them go in front of a Judge and Jury of working people who have the power to impose sentence. I bet it would not be a slap on the wrist like a planted Judge would give (one of Camerons or Murdock mates) it would be a real sentence with no chance of parole until 9/10 of the sentence is carried out. But alas we all know this wont happen and it will be another fix just like Blair had on the Iraq enquirey. Money looks after Money and the people will just have to like it as we dont have the balls to stand up and fight to change it.
dumbperson
Should be enquiry in to the 2010 UK General Election
and what funny business did Coulson as Communication Director get up to-- as now we know he had a Phone Hacking reputation
how about the microphone incident with the woman from Rochdalle that costs Labour dearly? a reward for any info ? happy to offer ?
MARK
No stone left unturned.....sure...
Ralph
Forget a Judge, put the working man/woman on the panel and see what the real outcome would be. Then once found guilty by this panel let them go in front of a Judge and Jury of working people who have the power to impose sentence. I bet it would not be a slap on the wrist like a planted Judge would give (one of Camerons or Murdock mates) it would be a real sentence with no chance of parole until 9/10 of the sentence is carried out. But alas we all know this wont happen and it will be another fix just like Blair had on the Iraq enquirey. Money looks after Money and the people will just have to like it as we dont have the balls to stand up and fight to change it.
THE NEVER ENDING END
''MELTDOWN OF NEWS CORP''.
''MELTDOWN OF THE LABOUR PARTY''
WHAT A GREAT WEEK THIS IS? MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM LOVELY
tigercommander
old people lyin in there own mess ,unable to heat and eat the utility companies rippin off the public ,and whats the news about ,,,phone hackin hardly new news ,and ofc the goverment want an enquiry ,when as a nation are we goin to do something about the things that realy matter, like corrupt judges [i.e] the yuman rights idiots, who protect criminals but wont back an old lady who,s incontinent and wants her dignity back,the goverment talk big about everything ,but do little that actually matters .phone hackin who cares.
ROGER
Seize all News international assets,Freeze all financial accounts and stop the printing of their newspapers.This is what the government would do to so called terrorist organisations but will they do it to a media organisation who have intruded into people's lives illegally while apparently paying police officers to keep outof the way/give them the information?
I also think the police service of England and Wales should be investigated down to the very very tiniest detail..They can no longer be trusted.Its not something new.The murmurs of police corruption have been going on for years
john
corrupt politicians,corrupt police,corrupt management ,but the public will never get to know the full story
gary
DON'T BUY THIS PAPER TOMORROW.
peter
Mickey, I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you. Cameron is big pals with these moral bankrupts.
Gi
The n.o.t.w got caught, but there all at it, corrupt to the core,there are several good books available about press corruption that prove beyond doubt there is no such thing as a free press,you only have to look at any paper to observe the ammount of government propaganda and lies perpetuated by these devils disiples, they are illusion weavers creating false belife systems for the public to blindly follow,And it doesnt stop with the tabloides ,this dumbing down of the people is a cancer that has infected every part of the media and humanity, the best thing everyone can do to escape this evil is refuse to buy papers, refuse to watch tv, dont use the banking systems, never trust the government or anybody who works and surrports these immoral systems, set yourself free and get a life,
motherhen
its about right emails and any other documents will have simply dissapeared
the paper and the goverment will eradicate any information before the public enquiry
gets under way.and its not just down to the paper its the goverment and its den of thieves as well thats involved in corruption and dodgy dealings.,they try to tell us that dizzy dave the rave
didnt know about the under hand tactics used by coulson.yea right.course he didnt.
probaly gave him tax payers money to give the corrupt coppers.
Cherie
Police commisioners get the sack if they dont do as their told by the government,
scientists get the sack if they dont toe the party line by the government
Reporters get the sack if they dont print the crap via editors via government
THEY ALL GET THE SACK FOR TELLING THE TRUTH!!!!
MURKY MURDOCH WILL STAY IN PLACE, COS GUESS WAT HE OWNS THE GOVERNMENT!!! AN HIM ARRIVING HERE IS A SHOW OF POWER MAKE NO MISTAKE!!!!
COS IT SURE AINT COFFEE AND CRUMPETS IS IT???
JASUS WHAT A DREADFULL WORLD WE ARE IN !!!
LISTEN UP GUYS HE ONLY HAS POWER IF YOU GIVE IT TO HIM BEEEEE BRAVE!!!!!!!!!
EVERYONE IN THE GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO WHISTLE BLOW COME ON GUYS!!!!!!!
IF THE GUARDIAN HAS THE BALLSSSSSS THANK GOD !!!!!!!!! SO DO YOU LOT!!!!!!!!!!!
ROBERT
Cf says he's bored with the whole NotW saga. That's precisely why Murdoch controls us as if we were sheep and our leaders little more than shepherds to be raised or diminished at his behest. Suppose Cf would rather be watching football. Wonder whether he knows why he can't afford a ticket to see Chelsea or get the results of all the leagues read every Saturday afternoon on BBC 1 the way they used to be. Wake up Cf, you're mindless sense of boredom holds us all in thrall.
Peter
millions of e mails have been deleted .so what they can all be retrieved its not very difficult to do for those in the knowThis horror of a human being clled Murdoch needs stopping NOW
motherhen
murdog.lol is only coming here to hide his corrupt activities.and make sure
he doesnt get dragged in to the sleeze.he will be at number 10 behind closed doors
with dave the rave and the rest of the monkeys,getting thier excuses in order.
while they are at it they will probaly be getting it on with brookes and
shafting it ,for some thing to do....and all will come out in time,
and they will blame spiderman.and the daily bugle will close.
JOHN
Horrible little man hope he gets arrested. Glad it is the end of the rubbish New of the World sunday paper.
TONY B
Gerald, extraordinarily wordy but I think most will not understand.
Parrot
I wonder if the reason Rebekah Brooks has kept her job is because she has dirt on those above her in News International.....
This latest saga reminds me of the expenses scandal, so we are now seeing only the thin end of the wedge. For ever since I can remeber in my 60+ years, ALL sectors of society have fiddled expenses, and we took it for granted that this would happen. In the same way I suspect that ALL media breaks the law to find the lurid scoops the public have a thirst to read. It is likely this is just taken for granted as an acceptab le practice in this industry, so many journalists right now will be having sleepless nights. At the top of this form of corruption stands Murdoch, who no doubt will escape justice. He is basically a foreign unelected leader of this country, who is able to influence the electorate into voting for whoever he wishes at the time. His arrival into his little "country" is as a former writer here says, a probable attempt to cover his own tracks. Pray to God that this will at least stop his BskyB takeover!
STUART
If there is "Suspicion" of important evidence on News International's Computer then
why hasn't this been put beyond
the reach of those who would benefit from it being destroyed?
Wait, I know what's happened. Murdoch got in touch with Cameron and told him to delay the serious crime squad going in to give him time to dispose of the incriminating evidence of course!
David B
As the head of the company and ulimateley responsible for its actions he should be arresed on arrival
Bet that it dont happen.
Nigel
All big business is corrupt,banks, papers, electric,gas, petrol, supermarkets,everything.
They all stink
Angelo\
Lets give him a good welcome. Dont buy any of his papers this Sunday.
Perhaps he will pull out of the UK completely. Job Done !
Gari
Murdock flying in - good I hope Immigration give him hell
and the police arrest him as soon as he enters the UK,
a few nights in the cells would do him good before he is deported
as an undesirable person, of course we would be sending him to where
we used to send our criminals!!!!!!!
johnp I think the only reason Murdock is flying in is so he can talk to
others without the risk of his phone being tapped (legally).
This was how Bin Laden did his communications, by word of mouth.
He is coming here to tell certain people what he wants done and how.
Maybe he is worried that Robeka is going to spill and needs to re-negotiate her payment terms. Maybe he needs to agree similar with Coulson and others so they do not land him in the brown+smelly.
Can't understand why else he would need to travel over to UK unless it is to strengthen his position. ie deal with a few politicians or maybe exec-cops -- ones that Sonny is not able to handle himself.
She looks like Crusty the Clown with that hair do.
But what sort of jobs does he provide?
I learnt to read using the News of the World in the 1940s,
but stopped reading it when I passed the reading
age it was set at, about six years old I think.
RICHARD
why does not the Met arrest murdoch senior at heathrow and
invite him to assist them with their enquiries
- that would make a good headline
Gheng\
How about using the last edition to name everyone involved,,,
Steveb333
Sorry, I thought the photo was a 'This is him before and after'
ablx
Good Riddance.The News of the World was a horrible rag which based much
of its success in sticking its prurient nose into peoples private lives,
usually exposing sexual foibles with great relish.
How many lives were ruined by these seedy journos over the years I wonder?
How many families destroyed? They always claimed to be acting
in the public interest,but rarely were. That the public were interested was not
the same thing.
traveller\
Arrest Murdoch on arrival in Britain. He must take ultimate responsibility.
He probably knew what was going on but turned a blind eye.
Metal Mickey
'No stone left unturned' quoth our illustrious leader.
Now where have I heard that before, and could there just possibly be any truth in it this time Mr C. I await with my breath held!
stephen
I'm a little confused as to how this is only the NOTW's fault and not the police or the government. For how many years has this phone hacking been going on for and how much money has changed hands between the NOTW and the police force, not only the Met but regional forces as well for information and contact numbers. Is this going to be investigated by a third party and not the police, Who polices the police force? I think this is more worrying than the NOTW as this is our police force that is supposed to be protecting the public and our identity, not selling it for a tidy profit. It is sickening!z
Peter Presumably Rebecca will be arrested and charged -
she can hardly claim she didn't know
Kevin
new enquiries = whitewash part 2
PAUL
What it will be really interesting to find out is why something that the police originally hardly touched and when asked to look at again said there was nothng to look at, has blown into the biggest ever media/police scandal.
Who knows how far this scandal will reverberate. Only yesterday a local paper revealed that since May 2008 ninety members of the West Midlands Police force have been disciplined, with seven prosecuted and sacked, for accessing confidential information for their own purposes.
Whilst this suggests the force does something about transgressions it begs the question what kind of people are employed to keep the rest of us on the straight and narrow.
Perhaps all forces need looking at.
clarkent
The hog like, beers swilling, , charactors with dubious morals portrayed in " Spitting Image" all those years ago was spot on.
L As soon as he lands, he should be arrested and made to pay all the tax he has dodged. That would help clear a large part of the national deficit
Madcow
Be sure your sins will find you out, what goes around comes around etc. What a devious, mean cruel, spiteful, uncaring world we live in, 'good' folk are surely in a minority, classed as 'old-fashioned' get kicked into touch, while the 'bad guys' ride high, on the crest of the wave, in the end though, the wave crashes onto the shore, and breaks up, hurrahhhhhhhhhhh. -_- Just got to wait for a while to see it happen......
What about the police officers involed in corrupt payments? How high up does corruption goes in the police force?Replies (4)
