Media mogul Rupert Murdoch launched a new tabloid, the Sun on Sunday, in an attempt to draw a line under the phone hacking and corruption scandals that have plagued his British operations.
The first Sunday edition of its daily sister paper, the Sun, went on sale with a pledge to abide by ethical journalistic standards, while remaining "fearless." "You will be able to trust our journalists to abide by the values of decency as they gather news," said an editorial, stressing that the Sun had been in the past a "force for good."
The paper, which bears the same red masthead as the daily, went on sale for just 50 pence (0.8 dollars), threatening a new price war in the embattled newspaper market.
It replaces the News of the World (NotW) Sunday tabloid, which was closed down by Murdoch at the height of a scandal over the interception of mobile phone messages of hundreds of celebrities, politicians, soldiers, and victims of crime. It was the hacking of the phone of teenager Milly Dowler, who was abducted and killed a decade ago, which prompted a public outcry and eventually led to the closure of the Notw, after an existence of 168 years.