News Corp chief executive Rupert Murdoch and his son James today expressed their regret and shame over the phone-hacking scandal as they face questions from MPs in Britain.
However, Rupert Murdoch said he did not feel responsible for what had happened at the News of the World. Asked whom he blamed, he replied: "The people that I trusted to run it, and then maybe the people that they trusted."
The two Murdochs appeared before the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee. Addressing the MPs, Rupert Murdoch said: "This is the most humble day of my life."
Former News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks appeared in a separate hearing before the same committee and apologised over the "abhorrent" hacking allegations.
However, Ms Brooks insisted News International acted "quickly and decisively" in dealing with the phone hacking scandal at the News of the World once it had seen fresh evidence concerning actress Sienna Miller in December 2010.
The earlier Murdoch hearing was interrupted for some 10 minutes after Rupert Murdoch was pelted with a white substance by a man just before 5pm. The man in a check shirt moved towards Mr Murdoch and appeared to throw or squirt white material at him before he was detained by security and led away by police. Wendy Deng, Mr Murdoch’s wife, appeared to slap the protester.
Mr Murdoch’s wife, Wendi, and his son James jumped to his defence as the attack was launched as the final questions were being asked by MPs. The hearing was suspended as a man wearing a checked shirt with what appeared to be foam splashed across his face was detained by police.
MP Chris Bryant condemned the attack in which he said the media mogul had the plate pushed into his face.
Sitting alongside his son, the 80-year-old media mogul said that he was “more than prepared” to answer the questions of the Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee into the phone hacking scandal.
"First of all I would just like to say how sorry I am and how sorry we are to particularly the victims of the illegal voicemail interceptions and to their families," James Murdoch said.
"It is a matter of great regret, of mine, of my father's, and everyone at News Corporation. These actions do not live up to the standards that our company aspires to everywhere around the world and it is our determination to put things right, to make sure these things do not happen again and to be the company that I know we have always aspired to be.”
"I would just like to say one sentence. This is the most humble day of my life," his father said.
James Murdoch said he had no knowledge that executives, Ms [Rebekah] Brooks or Les Hinton were aware of phone-hacking activities.
"I have no knowledge and there is no evidence that I am aware of that Mrs Brooks or Mr Hinton or any of those executives had knowledge of that and their assertions, certainly Mrs Brooks' assertion to me, of her knowledge of those things has been clear," James Murdoch said.
"Nonetheless those resignations have been accepted on the basis that there is no evidence today that I have seen or that I have any knowledge of, that there was any impropriety by them," he said.
"It was in the due process of that civil trial and the civil litigation process that evidence really emerged for us, and we acted and the company acted as swiftly and transparently as possible."
Asked if he was mislead, his father replied: "Very".
"This is not an excuse. Maybe it's an explanation of my laxity. The News of the World is less than 1 per cent of our company. I employ 53,000 people around the world who are proud and great and ethical and distinguished people, professionals."
"I was absolutely shocked, appalled and ashamed when I heard about the Milly Dowler case only two weeks ago."
Rupert Murdoch told MPs all news organisations used private detectives in their investigations. However, the News Corp chief said he had seen no evidence pointing to hacking related to 9/11 victims.
"We have seen no evidence of that at all and as far as we know the FBI haven't either. I cannot believe that it happened to anyone in America." Asked if he would commission an investigation should the allegations turn out to be true in any way: "Absolutely."
Referring to the BSkyB bid, Rupert Murdoch said a "mood developed" that made it "really impractical to go ahead [with the bid]".
Asked if News International made any payments to News of the World journalist Clive Goodman and private investigator Glenn Mulcaire after their convictions: "I was very surprised to find the company had made certain contributions to legal fees around that and I was surprised, very surprised to find out that that had occurred. They were done, as I understand it, in accordance with legal counsel and strong advice."
"I do not know who signed the cheques."
Asked if News International would set up a new Sunday tabloid, James Murdoch answered: "There are no immediate plans for that . . . that is not the company's priority now. This is not the time to be worrying about that."
"It doesn't get away from our apologies or our blame for anything but this country does greatly benefit from having a competitive press and therefore having a very transparent society," Rupert Murdoch said. "That is sometimes very inconvenient to people but I think we are better and stronger for it."
Questioned if they would think more carefully about the wording of headlines in future, he said: "I think all our editors certainly will. I am not aware of any transgressions. It is a matter of taste." "We have in this country a wonderful variety of voices and they are naturally very competitive. I am sure there are headlines which can occasionally give offence but it's not intentional."
Asked if familiar with the legal term "willful blindness": "I've heard of the phrase before and we were not ever guilty of that," Rupert Murdoch said.
Rupert Murdoch was asked by Tory MP Louise Mensch whether he would resign. He replied: “No, because I feel that the people I trusted, I don’t know at what level, let me down and I think they behaved disgracefully, betrayed the company and me and it’s for them to pay. I think that frankly I’m the best person to clear this up.”
Mr Murdoch's News International British arm had long maintained that the practice of intercepting mobile phone voicemails to get stories was the work of a sole "rogue reporter" on the News of the World newspaper. That defence crumbled in the face of a steady drip-feed of claims by celebrities that they were targeted.
The floodgates opened two weeks ago when a lawyer for the family of a murdered teenage schoolgirl Milly Dowler claimed the paper had hacked her phone when she was missing, deleting messages and raising false hopes she could be still alive.
The ensuing outrage prompted News Corp to close the 168-year-old News of the World newspaper, drop a $12 billion plan to take full control of pay TV operator BSkyB, and saw the arrest of Ms Brooks, a Murdoch protégée.
Earlier today, outgoing Metropolitan police chief Paul Stephenson and his deputy, John Yates, who has also resigned, came before the Commons Home Affairs Committee.
Mr Cameron has faced questions over his judgment in appointing former Mr Coulson as his communications chief, while London police chief Mr Stephenson and anti-terrorism head Mr Yates stepped down within 24-hours of each other over their links to a former deputy editor of the newspaper.
Agencies