In what will be seen by many as another piece of phone hacking fallout, James Murdoch has left the News Corporation English newspaper business and moved to New York.  In a statement released today by parent group News Corporation, it was announced that James Murdoch has relinquished his position as Executive Chairman at News International.

His father, Rupert Murdoch, said in the statement:

“We are all grateful for James’ leadership at News International and across Europe and Asia, where he has made lasting contributions to the group’s strategy in paid digital content and its efforts to improve and enhance governance programs.

 He has demonstrated leadership and continues to create great value at Star TV, Sky Deutschland, Sky Italia, and BSkyB. Now that he has moved to New York, James will continue to assume a variety of essential corporate leadership mandates, with particular focus on important pay-TV businesses and broader international operations.”

His decision to step down in the wake of his involvement in the investigations surrounding the phone hacking scandal comes shortly after the release of the Sun on Sunday. James Murdoch will remain as Deputy Chief Operating Officer of News Corporation.

The full statement is available here.

Laura Sandwell is a law graduate with a background in publishing