Rupert Murdoch arrives at Wapping to take charge of the Crisis
And they also appear to show that phone hacking went wider than the activities of a single rogue reporter, which News of the World claimed at the time.
Labour leader Ed Miliband urged him to abandon the bid and also to sack News International (NI) chief Rebekah Brooks, an ex-News of the World editor.
The last edition of the paper said simply "Thank You & Goodbye" over a montage of some of its most celebrated front pages 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," Colin Myler, the editor, told the media scrum outside its east London offices.
Despite the controversy, Murdoch has given a vote of confidence to the chief executive of News International, the British arm of his media empire News Corp, which owned the troubled newspaper.
Asked at a conference in Idaho, US, on Saturday whether Rebekah Brooks, had his support, Murdoch said his support for her was "total".
"I'm not throwing innocent people under the bus," he said. "We've been let down by people that we trusted, with the result the paper let down its readers."
The scandal has cast a shadow over Murdoch's planned takeover of the British broadcaster BSkyB.
In an editorial published on its website, the News of the World said it had "lost its way".
"Phones were hacked, and for that this newspaper is truly sorry. There is no justification for this appalling wrong-doing," the editorial said.
"No justification for the pain caused to victims, nor for the deep stain it has left on a great history."
Ex-editor arrested
On Friday, police arrested Andy Coulson, a former editor of News of the World, who went on to become media advisor to David Cameron, the British prime minister.
He was later released on bail until October. Asked if he was being made a scapegoat for the scandal, he said: "I can't say any more at this stage. There's a lot I'd like to say, but I can't."
Coulson resigned from the paper in 2007 after one of his reporters and a private investigator were convicted of hacking into the phones of aides to the royal family.
After years of allegations about hacking the voicemail of celebrities and politicians in search of stories, the scandal reached a tipping point earlier this week when it was alleged that in 2002 the paper had listened to the voicemail of Milly Dowler, a missing schoolgirl who was later found murdered, and even deleted some of her messages to make way for more.
That claim, and allegations that a growing list of victims included Britain's war dead and the families of those killed in the 2005 London transport bombings, outraged readers and caused many brands to pull advertising from the title.
Media dominance
Murdoch, who began News International in the 1960s, is bidding buy to takeover British satellite broadcaster BSkyB, and analysts say that deal could be jeopardised if British regulators impose tougher rules in response to new concerns around News Corp's dominance in British media.
Cameron's opponents on the left want to block the $22bn bid on the grounds it would give Murdoch too much political clout.
 |
| Brooks denies knowledge of phone hacking while she edited the New of the World [GALLO/GETTYS] |
In a sign of how the scandal could escalate further, The Guardian newspaper reported on its website that police were investigating evidence an executive at News International may have deleted millions of emails from an internal archive in an apparent attempt to obstruct investigations.
A spokesperson for News International said the allegation was "rubbish". She said: "We are co-operating actively with police and have not destroyed evidence."
In his remarks on Friday, Cameron said he took "full responsibility" for his decision to appoint Coulson, who quit the prime minister's team in January when police reopened inquiries.
"Murder victims, terrorist victims, families who have lost loved ones in war ... That these people could have had their phones hacked into in order to generate stories for a newspaper is simply disgusting," he said.
Public inquiry
Cameron said only a new system of media regulation and a full public inquiry into what went wrong over a decade atNews of the World and beyond would meet public demand.
"This scandal is not just about some journalists on one newspaper," Cameron said.
"It's not even just about the press. It's also about the police. And, yes, it's also about how politics works and politicians too."
Cameron also criticised Brooks,who was Coulson's predecessor as editor and is now a confidante of Murdoch. She should have resigned, he said, after closing down the newspaper at a cost of 200 jobs.
The British PM said politicians of all parties had been in thrall to press barons for decades. He indicated a new assertiveness towards the Murdoch empire by withholding overt endorsement of News Corp's bid for BSkyB.
The police also face tough questions over why an initial investigation into phone hacking was closed after the convictions of one of the paper's journalists and a private investigator in 2007. Detectives are also now looking into payments, in the tens of thousands of pounds, by journalists to police.
'Toxic' brand
Journalists putting together the final edition of the News of the World had an emotional, sometimes angry, meeting with Brooks, who told them, according to a staffer who was present, that the title had become "toxic".
There was "seething anger" and "pure hatred" directed towards her, one reporter said: "We think they're closing down a whole newspaper Just to protect one woman's job."
Speaking to Al Jazeera, the lawyer representing Milly Dowler's family, Mark Lewis, said the press had failed in their duty: "It’s not about that [retribution], it’s about the truth. And that’s what the News of the World and other newspapers were meant to be – beacons of truth.
"They were meant to the fourth estate, holding as a check to the third estate. This is a watershed moment for the press … that they have entered into the corruption that they were seeking to expose of others."
On Thursday, James Murdoch announced the paper would be closing down in the wake of the latest revelations and in its final editorial the paper said: "Quite simply, we lost our way".
Mrs Brooks has been under pressure over staying in her role while journalists on the paper have lost their jobs.
Meanwhile, Mr Miliband said he would force a Commons vote to delay News Corporation's proposed takeover of the whole of BSkyB, until the investigation into the NoW was completed.
Mr Miliband denied he had "declared war on Rupert Murdoch" but also called on him to abandon the BSkyB bid.
Campaigners, including actor Hugh Grant, have claimed the closure of the paper was a cynical move designed to protect the BSkyB takeover.
Mr Miliband said the takeover should be referred to the Competition Commission rather than "relying on assurances from News International".
He said he did not want to force a vote in the Commons but Prime Minister David Cameron had left him no option.
'Disgusting revelations'"He has got to understand that when the public have seen the disgusting revelations that we have seen this week, the idea that this organisation, which engaged in these terrible practices, should be allowed to take over BSkyB, to get that 100% stake, without the criminal investigation having been completed and on the basis of assurances from that self-same organisation - frankly that just won't wash with the public," he told BBC1's Andrew Marr programme.
The print run was doubled for the final edition with many extra readers expected to buy it as a souvenirThe Labour leader also denied there were similarities between former NoW editor Andy Coulson, who went on to work for the Conservatives, and his own director of strategy Tom Baldwin.
Mr Coulson resigned as the prime minister's spokesman in January, saying ongoing hacking claims were distracting him from his job. He denies knowledge of phone hacking during his NoW editorship from 2003-07.
Earlier Andrew Marr asked Mr Miliband about allegations which had been made by Michael Ashcroft, a former deputy Conservative chairman and major donor, that Mr Baldwin, a former journalist at The Times, had recruited a private investigator to hack into Mr Ashcroft's bank account.
Mr Miliband said the claims were not true, Mr Baldwin had denied it and it did not bear comparison with Mr Coulson's situation.
Energy Secretary Chris Huhne, a Liberal Democrat, did not rule out voting for the motion in the Commons but said he would have to study the wording.
Meanwhile, Scotland Yard Assistant Commissioner John Yates has expressed "extreme regret" for not reopening the phone hacking investigation two years ago.
'Emotional' final dayIn an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, he said he regretted the way he had handled it after reviewing the initial police investigation which led to the conviction of private investigator Glenn Mulcaire in 2007.
Mr Yates said he did not re-examine the 11,000 pages of material recovered from Mulcaire's home but spent eight hours considering the matter, and consulted the Crown Prosecution Service, but decided there was no likelihood of further convictions.
He admitted the Metropolitan Police's reputation had been tarnished by the scandal, but said he had no intention of resigning.
Around 200 people will lose their jobs with the closure of the NoWDuring a short speech to more than 200 staff outside the paper's offices late on Saturday night editor, Colin Myler held up the 8,674th and final edition, saying: "This is not where we want to be and not where we deserve to be."
The NoW doubled Sunday's print run to five million, with money from the sales being donated to four charities.
The National Federation of Retail Newsagents said sales figures from its members suggested an average increase in sales at midday of more than 30% compared with the total sales from last Sunday.
The family of Milly Dowler, whose phone was allegedly hacked after her abduction in 2002, are set to meet all three main political party leaders this week.
Home Office Minister Damian Green said their views on how the media should now be regulated will be carefully listened to.
Milly's relatives will meet Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg on Monday to discuss the independent inquiries related to the phone hacking scandal before meeting Mr Miliband and Mr Cameron later in the week.
In a letter to MPs released on Saturday, Mrs Brooks denied all knowledge of alleged hacking of Milly's phone or any other case while she was editor.
