News Corp board cuts Murdoch's bonus

News Corp boss Rupert Murdoch, whose media empire has been hit by the phone hacking scandal which forced him shut the News of the World, received $30 million (£19 million) in pay and bonuses from the company last year, when the scam broke.

However both Murdoch and his son James took a cut in bonuses along with two other top executives. Murdoch's remuneration was down $3.3m on the previous year, after his cash bonus and stock awards were reduced by 16 per cent and 59 per cent to $8.1 million and $3.51 million respectively, according to data filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Deputy chairman Chase Carey also saw a cut in total remuneration along with James Murdoch, News Corp's deputy chief operating officer.

News Corp's remuneration committee said it had cut their bonuses because they had to "share responsibility" for the impact of the scandal. The company last month reported a $1.6 billion fourth-quarter loss, including $224 million in costs related to phone hacking.

The committee balanced this against the group's solid performance - the shares rose 26 per cent over the year as its cable operation offset the problems at the newpapers arm - and "management's "significant efforts" to address the scandal.

James Murdoch, who resigned as BSkyB chairman in an attempt to distance the broadcaster from the hacking scandal, saw his remuneration fall from $17.9m to $16.8m in the year to the end of June.