Rupert Murdoch has outlined in a staff memo structural changes to “redress wrongdoing, co-operate with law enforcers and strengthen News Corporation’s compliance and ethics programme company-wide”.

He wrote that Gerson Zweifach, senior executive vice-president and group general counsel, News Corporation, is now the company’s Chief Compliance Officer and has assumed overall responsibility for the effort to create a more robust global compliance and ethics programme.

Lisa Fleischman, vice-president and associate general counsel, News Corporation, is the Deputy Chief Compliance Officer and will exercise day-to-day operational responsibility for the global compliance and ethics programme. Gerson and Lisa will report regularly to the board of directors and the audit committee regarding the content and operation of the compliance and ethics programme.

Murdoch added that all business units will be organised into five compliance groups: the LA Cable and Broadcast Group; the LA Film and TV Production Group; the Europe and Asia Group; the Australia Group; and the New York News and Information Group; each of which will be headed by a group chief compliance officer who will report directly to Gerson and will focus full-time on compliance issues.

An anti-corruption review has also been initiated to ensure the effectiveness of News Corp’s compliance and ethics programme in selected locations around the world.