Quotes of the Week - Rebekah Brooks, Rupert Murdoch, Jeremy Clarkson
Rebekah Brooks finally resigns from News International, Rupert Murdoch apologises and Jeremy Clarkson offends the people of Salford.
"I have believed that the right and responsible action has been to lead us through the heat of the crisis. However my desire to remain on the bridge has made me a focal point of the debate. This is now detracting attention from all our honest endeavours to fix the problems of the past. Therefore I have given Rupert and James Murdoch my resignation. While it has been a subject of discussion, this time my resignation has been accepted."
News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks finally bows to calls that she should resign.
"This is too little too late... This will be cold comfort to the hundreds of journalists who have lost their jobs at the News of the World.”
Michelle Stanistreet, general secretary of the National Union of Journalists, says Brooks' resignation will give little satisfaction to those journalists who are now on the dole.
"I like Rebekah Brooks. She's a good person, and i'm sad that she's gone. And I don't give a flying fuck what Twitter thinks."
Giles Coren, the food critic and TV presenter, takes to Twitter to sound a rare and sweary note of support for Rebekah Brooks.
We are sorry for the serious wrongdoing that occurred. We are deeply sorry for the hurt suffered by the individual affected. We regret not acting faster to sort things out. I realise that simply apologising is not enough. Rupert Murdoch issues a public apology over phone-hacking and News International's handling of the scandal.“I don’t think anybody wants a government-regulated press.”
Barry McIlheney, the chief executive of magazine trade association the PPA, insists the journalism business must retain self-regulation despite the tabloid scandal.
"[It is] the stupidest media decision since someone said 'hey, guys, I can listen to Prince William's voicemails'."
Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson attacks the BBC's move to Salford, a city he described as a "a small suburb with a Starbucks and a canal with ducks".
"These comments make Clarkson look like a slightly more sophisticated version of Alf Garnett".
Salford Council leader John Merry hits back.
"The costs of relocation are substantial but they are partially offset by the fact that property rents around Salford are lower than in west London. With a relatively low downside, it's surely worth giving Salford a try? The nation can afford to be a little adventurous. Or should we timidly assume the status quo is as good as it gets?"
The BBC's new MediaCityUK base in Salford finds an advocate in the form of Today show host Evan Davis, who talked up the relocation after presenting his show from up north this week.
“This programme was fundamentally flawed, clumsy, ill informed and unbalanced,” he said. “I am demanding from Mark Thompson the opportunity of putting our industry’s side of the story as a matter of priority to try and correct the damage this programme has done to a sector than supports 280,000 jobs.”
Chris Roxburgh, a director of door drop marketing firm Link Direct, slams a BBC Panorama special on junk mail which he claims unfairly tarred his industry.