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| Rebekah Brooks Found Not Guilty in Phone Hacking Case | Rebekah Brooks Found Not Guilty in Phone Hacking Case |
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| LONDON — In another dramatic turn in a case that has transfixed Britain, Rebekah Brooks, the former head of Rupert Murdoch’s newspaper holdings in Britain, was acquitted on Tuesday of phone hacking and other charges. Andy Coulson, a former tabloid editor and onetime head of communications for Prime Minister David Cameron, was found guilty on at least one count. | LONDON — In another dramatic turn in a case that has transfixed Britain, Rebekah Brooks, the former head of Rupert Murdoch’s newspaper holdings in Britain, was acquitted on Tuesday of phone hacking and other charges. Andy Coulson, a former tabloid editor and onetime head of communications for Prime Minister David Cameron, was found guilty on at least one count. |
| The verdicts came after a week of deliberations by the jury, and after lengthy hearings into a scandal at the Murdoch newspaper empire that shook the British police, news media and political elite, and forced Mr. Murdoch to shut down one of his leading Sunday tabloids, The News of the World. | The verdicts came after a week of deliberations by the jury, and after lengthy hearings into a scandal at the Murdoch newspaper empire that shook the British police, news media and political elite, and forced Mr. Murdoch to shut down one of his leading Sunday tabloids, The News of the World. |
| The verdict drew an apology from Mr. Cameron, who has been under fire from opponents who accused him of poor judgment in hiring Mr. Coulson. “I am extremely sorry that I employed him,” Mr. Cameron said. “It was the wrong decision, and I am very clear about that.” | The verdict drew an apology from Mr. Cameron, who has been under fire from opponents who accused him of poor judgment in hiring Mr. Coulson. “I am extremely sorry that I employed him,” Mr. Cameron said. “It was the wrong decision, and I am very clear about that.” |
| Ms. Brooks, 46, and Mr. Coulson, 46, were tried along with five other defendants on an array of charges, including phone hacking and perverting the course of justice. The seven-month trial was tense and at times tawdry, and gave a rare view of the inner workings of British tabloid journalism and of the systematic eavesdropping on the mobile phones of celebrities, sports figures, politicians, members of the royal family and ordinary people caught up in the news. One defendant said the intercepts were conducted “on an industrial scale.” | Ms. Brooks, 46, and Mr. Coulson, 46, were tried along with five other defendants on an array of charges, including phone hacking and perverting the course of justice. The seven-month trial was tense and at times tawdry, and gave a rare view of the inner workings of British tabloid journalism and of the systematic eavesdropping on the mobile phones of celebrities, sports figures, politicians, members of the royal family and ordinary people caught up in the news. One defendant said the intercepts were conducted “on an industrial scale.” |
| Mr. Coulson, who has denied the hacking charges, was the only one of the seven defendants who was found guilty on any count on Tuesday; he was convicted of conspiracy to intercept mobile phone calls and messages. British news media outlets reported that the jury was still considering some charges against him and one other defendant — Clive Goodman, 56, the former royal-news editor at The News of the World — related to accusations of paying police officers for access to royal telephone directories. | Mr. Coulson, who has denied the hacking charges, was the only one of the seven defendants who was found guilty on any count on Tuesday; he was convicted of conspiracy to intercept mobile phone calls and messages. British news media outlets reported that the jury was still considering some charges against him and one other defendant — Clive Goodman, 56, the former royal-news editor at The News of the World — related to accusations of paying police officers for access to royal telephone directories. |
| Ms. Brooks, who has always insisted on her innocence, was acquitted of phone hacking and three other charges, including seeking to obstruct justice. She was overcome by emotion when the verdict was read, reporters in the courtroom said, and was led away by a court official. Mr. Coulson clenched his jaw, then took a deep breath and stared straight ahead. | |
| The other people acquitted were Stuart Kuttner, 74, a retired managing editor; Ms. Brooks’s husband, the racehorse trainer Charlie Brooks, 52; Ms. Brooks’s former personal assistant, Cheryl Carter, 50; and Mark Hanna, 51, a former security director. | The other people acquitted were Stuart Kuttner, 74, a retired managing editor; Ms. Brooks’s husband, the racehorse trainer Charlie Brooks, 52; Ms. Brooks’s former personal assistant, Cheryl Carter, 50; and Mark Hanna, 51, a former security director. |
| The phone hacking scandal burst into the open in July 2011 with reports that the voice mail of an abducted teenager, Milly Dowler, had been intercepted by an investigator employed by The News of the World in 2002. At that time, Ms. Brooks was editor of the newspaper and Mr. Coulson was her deputy. | The phone hacking scandal burst into the open in July 2011 with reports that the voice mail of an abducted teenager, Milly Dowler, had been intercepted by an investigator employed by The News of the World in 2002. At that time, Ms. Brooks was editor of the newspaper and Mr. Coulson was her deputy. |
| During the trial, prosecutors presented phone data relating to widespread hacking during Mr. Coulson’s editorship of The News of the World from 2003 to 2006; he resigned in early 2007. There was far less specific evidence of hacking during Ms. Brooks’s editorship, from 2000 to 2003. | During the trial, prosecutors presented phone data relating to widespread hacking during Mr. Coulson’s editorship of The News of the World from 2003 to 2006; he resigned in early 2007. There was far less specific evidence of hacking during Ms. Brooks’s editorship, from 2000 to 2003. |
| Mr. Coulson denied that he had agreed to or had authorized phone hacking, but admitted that he had known it was done in one instance. Ms. Brooks said she was unaware of hacking at the paper during her tenure. | Mr. Coulson denied that he had agreed to or had authorized phone hacking, but admitted that he had known it was done in one instance. Ms. Brooks said she was unaware of hacking at the paper during her tenure. |
| Throughout the scandal and the trial, much attention focused on Ms. Brooks, who had been one of the most powerful figures in British tabloid journalism, at the intersection of politics and the press. She was an associate of many influential people, including Mr. Cameron and former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who sought the electoral endorsement of Mr. Murdoch’s newspapers, particularly of the mass-circulation tabloids. | Throughout the scandal and the trial, much attention focused on Ms. Brooks, who had been one of the most powerful figures in British tabloid journalism, at the intersection of politics and the press. She was an associate of many influential people, including Mr. Cameron and former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who sought the electoral endorsement of Mr. Murdoch’s newspapers, particularly of the mass-circulation tabloids. |
| But the role played by Mr. Coulson also had wide political significance because of his position as an adviser to Mr. Cameron, both in the opposition from 2007 to 2010 and after the Conservative Party took power in a coalition after the 2010 election. | But the role played by Mr. Coulson also had wide political significance because of his position as an adviser to Mr. Cameron, both in the opposition from 2007 to 2010 and after the Conservative Party took power in a coalition after the 2010 election. |
| “David Cameron has very serious questions to answer,” Ed Miliband, the leader of the Labour opposition, said after the verdict. | “David Cameron has very serious questions to answer,” Ed Miliband, the leader of the Labour opposition, said after the verdict. |
| “We now know that he brought a criminal into the heart of Downing Street,” Mr. Miliband said, referring to the address of the prime ministerial offices and residence. “This isn’t just a serious error of judgment, it taints David Cameron’s government, because we now know that he put his relationship with Rupert Murdoch ahead of doing the right thing.” | “We now know that he brought a criminal into the heart of Downing Street,” Mr. Miliband said, referring to the address of the prime ministerial offices and residence. “This isn’t just a serious error of judgment, it taints David Cameron’s government, because we now know that he put his relationship with Rupert Murdoch ahead of doing the right thing.” |
| Before the trial, Mr. Cameron said that if it turned out that Mr. Coulson knew about the phone hacking, then Mr. Coulson would have lied to the prime minister, among others. | Before the trial, Mr. Cameron said that if it turned out that Mr. Coulson knew about the phone hacking, then Mr. Coulson would have lied to the prime minister, among others. |
| “I have an old-fashioned view about innocent until proven guilty,” Mr. Cameron told Parliament in 2011. “But if it turns out I have been lied to, that would be the moment for a profound apology. In that event, I can tell you, I will not fall short.” | “I have an old-fashioned view about innocent until proven guilty,” Mr. Cameron told Parliament in 2011. “But if it turns out I have been lied to, that would be the moment for a profound apology. In that event, I can tell you, I will not fall short.” |
| On Tuesday Mr. Cameron said: “I take full responsibility for employing Andy Coulson. I did so on the basis of undertakings I was given by him about phone hacking, and those turned out not to be the case.” | On Tuesday Mr. Cameron said: “I take full responsibility for employing Andy Coulson. I did so on the basis of undertakings I was given by him about phone hacking, and those turned out not to be the case.” |
| “I always said that if they turned out to be wrong, I would make a full and frank apology, and I did that today,” Mr. Cameron said. | “I always said that if they turned out to be wrong, I would make a full and frank apology, and I did that today,” Mr. Cameron said. |
| The case has also raised an array of concerns about Mr. Murdoch’s influence over British public life through his newspapers, and it revealed details about the nature of the relationship between Mr. Coulson and Ms. Brooks. During the trial, she acknowledged that they had become intimate. | The case has also raised an array of concerns about Mr. Murdoch’s influence over British public life through his newspapers, and it revealed details about the nature of the relationship between Mr. Coulson and Ms. Brooks. During the trial, she acknowledged that they had become intimate. |
| “It’s probably very easy to blame work, but the hours were very long and hard and you got thrown together in an industry like that,” she said, recalling in particular moving into a hotel close to the office during the time of the Iraq invasion in 2003. “It was wrong, and it shouldn’t have happened, but things did.” | “It’s probably very easy to blame work, but the hours were very long and hard and you got thrown together in an industry like that,” she said, recalling in particular moving into a hotel close to the office during the time of the Iraq invasion in 2003. “It was wrong, and it shouldn’t have happened, but things did.” |
| Ms. Brooks and her husband left the Old Bailey courtroom on Tuesday in a taxi without offering comment on their acquittals. | Ms. Brooks and her husband left the Old Bailey courtroom on Tuesday in a taxi without offering comment on their acquittals. |
| Roy Greenslade, a professor of journalism at City University in London and a commentator on media issues, said many in Britain had expected her to be convicted. | Roy Greenslade, a professor of journalism at City University in London and a commentator on media issues, said many in Britain had expected her to be convicted. |
| “People will be outraged that the prosecution couldn’t make a good enough case,” he said. | “People will be outraged that the prosecution couldn’t make a good enough case,” he said. |
| Even so, some analysts said the trial had already changed British journalism and humbled a once mighty and swaggering yellow press, regardless of the outcome. The scandal prompted an array of parliamentary, police and public inquiries into the practices and culture of the British press even before the trial began. | Even so, some analysts said the trial had already changed British journalism and humbled a once mighty and swaggering yellow press, regardless of the outcome. The scandal prompted an array of parliamentary, police and public inquiries into the practices and culture of the British press even before the trial began. |
| “The tabloids have become rather less tabloidy, or at least they stay within the law,” said John Lloyd, co-founder of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford. | “The tabloids have become rather less tabloidy, or at least they stay within the law,” said John Lloyd, co-founder of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford. |
| Given the economics of the industry, these changes are unlikely to be reversed, Mr. Lloyd said. The tabloids “are losing power all the time,” he said. | Given the economics of the industry, these changes are unlikely to be reversed, Mr. Lloyd said. The tabloids “are losing power all the time,” he said. |
| “Much of what they do — sex scandals and celebrities — is now widely available on several online outlets,” he said. | “Much of what they do — sex scandals and celebrities — is now widely available on several online outlets,” he said. |
| In a statement, Mr. Murdoch’s News UK — the successor company to News International, which Ms. Brooks had led — said there had been many changes since the hacking scandal broke. | In a statement, Mr. Murdoch’s News UK — the successor company to News International, which Ms. Brooks had led — said there had been many changes since the hacking scandal broke. |
| “We said long ago, and repeat today, that wrongdoing occurred, and we apologized for it,” the company statement said. “We have been paying compensation to those affected and have cooperated with investigations. We made changes in the way we do business to help ensure wrongdoing like this does not occur again.” It went on to say that the company supported a new regulator in Britain, the Independent Press Standards Organization. | “We said long ago, and repeat today, that wrongdoing occurred, and we apologized for it,” the company statement said. “We have been paying compensation to those affected and have cooperated with investigations. We made changes in the way we do business to help ensure wrongdoing like this does not occur again.” It went on to say that the company supported a new regulator in Britain, the Independent Press Standards Organization. |
| In a separate internal email message, Mike Darcey, the current chief executive of News UK, urged staff members to “hold your head high.” | In a separate internal email message, Mike Darcey, the current chief executive of News UK, urged staff members to “hold your head high.” |
| “We should all be proud of what we do here, and the way we do it,” Mr. Darcey said. “Our journalism is world class, and is conducted under the strictest standards of ethics and governance.” | “We should all be proud of what we do here, and the way we do it,” Mr. Darcey said. “Our journalism is world class, and is conducted under the strictest standards of ethics and governance.” |