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News Corp UK & Ireland Limited (trading as News UK, formerly News International and NI Group) is a British newspaper publisher, and a wholly owned
subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company or daughter company is a company owned or controlled by another company, which is called the parent company or holding company. Two or more subsidiaries that either belong to the same parent company or having a ...
of the American mass media
conglomerate Conglomerate or conglomeration may refer to: * Conglomerate (company) * Conglomerate (geology) * Conglomerate (mathematics) In popular culture: * The Conglomerate (American group), a production crew and musical group founded by Busta Rhymes ** ...
News Corp. It is the current publisher of ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ( ...
'', '' The Sunday Times'', and '' The Sun'' newspapers; its former publications include the '' Today'', '' News of the World'', and '' The London Paper'' newspapers. Until June 2002, it was called News International plc.The Times Online Style Guide
– see entry for News International for change from plc to Ltd
On 31 May 2011, the company name was changed from News International Limited to NI Group Limited, and on 26 June 2013 to News UK.


History

Between 1987 and 1995, News International owned, through its subsidiary News (UK) Ltd, '' Today'', the first UK national newspaper to be printed in colour. All of News International's newspapers (with the exception of '' The London Paper'', launched in 2006) were founded by other owners, in some cases hundreds of years ago. In October 2005, News International sold TSL Education, publisher of ''
Times Higher Education ''Times Higher Education'' (''THE''), formerly ''The Times Higher Education Supplement'' (''The Thes''), is a British magazine reporting specifically on news and issues related to higher education. Ownership TPG Capital acquired TSL Education ...
'', '' Times Educational Supplement'', and other education titles, for £235m ($415m). ''
The Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication ...
'', previously part of TSL Education, was retained by News International as part of the deal. Darwin Ltd, which had taken over the company, continued to produce the same product.


Phone hacking allegations

In July 2009, ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...
'', a newspaper owned by
Guardian Media Group Guardian Media Group plc (GMG) is a British-based mass media company owning various media operations including ''The Guardian'' and ''The Observer''. The group is wholly owned by the Scott Trust Limited, which exists to secure the financial and e ...
, reported that News Group Newspapers paid in excess of £1m to settle legal cases that threatened to reveal News Group journalists' use on repeated occasions of illegal methods in the pursuit of stories. It has been alleged that News Group staff were accused of engaging in phone hacking, including Clive Goodman, illegally accessed voicemail for the mobile phones of thousands of public figures, including politicians and celebrities. Goodman was jailed in 2007 for tapping the mobile phones of three members of the royal staff; this is an offence under the
Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 ( c.23) (RIP or RIPA) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, regulating the powers of public bodies to carry out surveillance and investigation, and covering the interception of com ...
. It was stated by News International at the time that Goodman had acted without its knowledge, and that no other News International journalists made use of such methods. The evidence uncovered by ''The Guardian'' showed that many more figures were in fact the subject of phone-taps, including Nigella Lawson, Lenny Henry, Gwyneth Paltrow, John Prescott,
Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as ...
, and Tessa Jowell. In 2008, the ''News of the World'' paid in excess of £400,000 in damages to Gordon Taylor, the chief executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, who was suing the newspaper for its involvement in the illegal interception of messages to his mobile phone. According to ''The Guardian'', this payment, made in exchange for Taylor's silence, "prevented the public from knowing anything about the hundreds of pages of evidence which had been disclosed in Taylor's case". In contrast to News International's earlier denials of knowledge, ''The Guardian'' cites suppressed evidence revealing that ''News of the World''s editorial staff were involved with
private investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...
s who engaged in illegal phone-hacking, and that both reporters and executives were commissioning purchases of confidential information; this is illegal unless it is shown to be in the public interest. Apparently these activities were well known within the ''News of the World'', being "openly paid for by the accounts department with invoices which itemised illegal acts". The paperwork was alleged to show the above occurred during the tenure of
Andy Coulson Andrew Edward Coulson (born 21 January 1968) is an English journalist and political strategist. Coulson was the editor of the ''News of the World'' from 2003 until his resignation in 2007, following the conviction of one of the newspaper's repo ...
, who was chief press advisor to David Cameron, leader of the UK's
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
, until his resignation on 21 January 2011. On 4 July, ''The Guardian'' reported that a private investigator at the ''News of the World'' had hacked into the phone of murdered teenager
Milly Dowler Milly is a feminine given name, sometimes used as a short form (hypocorism) of Mildred, Amelia, Emily, etc. It may refer to: People * Milly Alcock (born 2000), Australian actress * Milly Babalanda (born 1970), Ugandan politician * Milly Ber ...
, causing both her parents and police investigating her murder to wrongly believe she was still alive. This occurred during the period that Rebekah Brooks (''
née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
'' Wade) was editor. On 7 July, British newspaper ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...
'' alleged that the families of dead British service personnel were targeted by private investigators working for the ''News of the World''. This led to The Royal British Legion severing ties with the paper until such allegations are proved false. On the same day, James Murdoch announced the ''News of the World'' would be shut down after the publication of one more edition on 10 July 2011, due to the allegations. The newspaper had already been faced with the withdrawal of a number of sponsors which had advertised their products and services in the newspaper, not to mention the inevitable fall in sales that the newspaper would have faced had it remained in circulation. On 15 July, Rebekah Brooks resigned as chief executive of News International. She commented thus on her departure:


Rebekah Brooks £10m payout

''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...
'' newspaper, citing official company accounts, claims Brooks received a £10.8m payoff for leaving News International.


Brooks reappointed as CEO

In September 2015, Brooks was reappointed as CEO of the company, now named News UK.


Operations

The company's major titles are published by subsidiary companies, Times Newspapers Ltd and News Group Newspapers. Until 2010, these newspapers were written at a large site in Wapping in east London, near
Tower Hill Tower Hill is the area surrounding the Tower of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is infamous for the public execution of high status prisoners from the late 14th to the mid 18th century. The execution site on the higher gro ...
, which earned the nickname " Fortress Wapping" after a fierce dispute with the union to which the workforce had previously belonged. The printing of the papers is now undertaken at plants in Waltham Cross, Knowsley, and
Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland. Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotl ...
(the latter said by
Rupert Murdoch Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
, on the plant's opening in 2007, to be "the largest and fastest print press in the world"). The News Building, where all of News UK's London operations are based, was opened on 16 September 2014 by the Mayor of London,
Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as ...
.


Times Newspapers Ltd

Times Newspapers Limited publishes the
compact Compact as used in politics may refer broadly to a pact or treaty; in more specific cases it may refer to: * Interstate compact * Blood compact, an ancient ritual of the Philippines * Compact government, a type of colonial rule utilized in Britis ...
daily newspaper ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ( ...
'' and the broadsheet '' The Sunday Times''. Times Newspapers was formed in 1967 when the Thomson Corporation purchased ''The Times'' from the Astor family and merged it with ''The Sunday Times'', which it had owned since 1959. The company was purchased by Rupert Murdoch's News International in February 1981. The acquisition followed an intense 21 days of negotiations with the print unions, conducted by John Collier and Bill O'Neill. ''
The Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication ...
'', '' Times Educational Supplement'' and '' Times Higher Education Supplement'' were also part of the group; the latter two publications have since been sold. An American edition of ''The Times'' was launched in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
,
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
and some other East Coast U.S. cities in 2006. Rupert Murdoch has stated that the law and the independent board prevent him from exercising editorial control. However, an article in ''
The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. It is owned by Frederick Barclay, who also owns ''Th ...
'' following the resignation of James Harding stated that the trust has "never played much of a role in the 30 years Murdoch has owned the paper", and suggested that Murdoch had pressurised Harding to resign.


News Group Newspapers Ltd

News Group Newspapers Ltd publishes the tabloid newspaper '' The Sun''. The '' News of the World'' was another tabloid newspaper owned by the company; however, its closure was announced on 7 July 2011, following new evidence about a
phone hacking scandal The News International phone hacking scandal was a controversy involving the now-defunct ''News of the World'' and other British newspapers owned by Rupert Murdoch. Employees of the newspaper were accused of engaging in phone hacking, police b ...
at the newspaper. The final issue was released on 10 July 2011. The ''News of the World'' was purchased by Murdoch in January 1969. ''The Sun'' was acquired in October 1969 from
International Publishing Corporation TI Media (formerly International Publishing Company, IPC Magazines Ltd, IPC Media and Time Inc. UK) was a consumer magazine and digital publisher in the United Kingdom, with a portfolio selling over 350 million copies each year. Most of its tit ...
. Murdoch states that he acts as a "traditional proprietor"; exercising editorial control on major issues, such as which political party to back in a general election or policy on Europe.


NI Free Newspapers Limited

'' The London Paper'' was the first newspaper to be launched by News International rather than bought. It was an evening freesheet distributed at bus and rail stations in London. It was published five days a week from September 2006 to September 2009, when it closed down, faced with competition from other free papers.


Wireless Group Limited

In 2016, News UK acquired
Wireless Group Wireless Group Limited is a radio and digital broadcasting network with headquarters in Belfast, Northern Ireland and with radio operations in the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom. It currently operates five stations in Ireland an ...
Limited, the operator of a number of radio stations across the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
and Ireland.


TalkTV

In December 2020,
Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...
granted a licence to News UK & Ireland Limited to operate a new television channel on satellite and cable (not to be confused with Andrew Neil's GB News, which is a separate news channel launched in June 2021). News UK TV was then overseen by David Rhodes, who was previously a
Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is o ...
executive and president of
CBS News CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio service CBS. CBS News television programs include the '' CBS Evening News'', '' CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs '' CBS News Sunday Morning'', '' 60 Minutes'', and '' 4 ...
. Unlike GB News, News UK TV is not expected to take up a slot on
Freeview Freeview may refer to: *Freeview (Australia), the marketing name for the digital terrestrial television platform in Australia *Freeview (New Zealand), a digital satellite and digital terrestrial television platform in New Zealand *Freeview (UK), a ...
with its nightly programming (expected to be a few hours a night, according to Andrew Neil on
BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC's ...
's '' The Media Show'', 12 March 2021) being streamed via a number of platforms. In April 2021, News UK CEO Rebekah Brooks announced that plans for the new service had been much reduced, as a British equivalent of Fox was considered unviable, and programming would only be available via streaming. David Rhodes is to return to the United States in June. In September 2021, a few days after Neil resigned as chairman of rival GB News, it was reported that the News UK's channel would now be called TalkTV (after the radio stations TalkRadio and talkSport) and that Piers Morgan would be a presenter on the new service. In addition, News UK have decided that TalkTV would be available on FreeSat, Freeview,
Sky UK Sky UK Limited is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television and broadband Internet services, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of ...
and Virgin Media (if slots can be acquired by the company) and that the channel would feature current affairs documentaries, programmes about sport and entertainment features.


Other

* News International (Advertisements) Limited * News International Associated Services Limited * News International Distribution Limited * News Ireland * News Printers (Knowsley) Limited * News Printers (Scotland) Limited * News International Pension Trustees Limited * News International Supply Company Limited * News International Television Investment Company Limited * News International Television Limited * NI Syndication Limited * The Fifth – Influencer Marketing Agency


See also

*
Metropolitan police role in phone hacking scandal Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a typ ...
* News Corp Australia * News International phone hacking scandal * Phone hacking scandal reference lists * List of companies based in London


References


External links


News UK
{{Authority control British companies established in 1981 Publishing companies established in 1981 Newspaper companies of the United Kingdom News Corporation subsidiaries