Closing the News of the World may seem like the most radical step Rupert Murdoch could take to stop the telephone hacking row from engulfing his News Corporation empire.

But it may not be enough to insulate his son from the fall-out — and preserve him as his heir apparent.
James Murdoch, who became deputy chief operating officer of the media behemoth earlier this year, yesterday took a surprisingly personal approach to shutting down the tabloid.
Instead of issuing a News Corp decree, he put his own name to a statement that went further than ever before in admitting his own fault in the way the row has been handled. “The company paid out-of-court settlements approved by me,” he said. “I now know that I did not have a complete picture when I did so. This was wrong and is a matter of serious regret.”
The move will cost hundreds of journalists their jobs. But it was designed to draw a line under the row before it can do any more damage to the wider business, its bid for BSkyB and News Corp’s succession plans.
At first sight it seemed odd, having closed the newspaper at the centre of the scandal, to hang on to Rebekah Brooks, the chief executive of News International, who was editor of the News of the World when telephone hacking was allegedly rife. But her survival so far, despite repeated calls for her resignation, and the fact that Rupert Murdoch has given her his “full backing” may have less to do with News Corp’s loyalty and more with the larger strategic plan.