• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, November 23, 2011

James Murdoch, the son of News Corp. chief Rupert Murdoch, and a senior executive in the company, has resigned from the boards of two companies that publish News Corp's British newspapers. The resignation follows British government scrutiny over James Murdoch's role in the handling of a phone hacking scandal at the British papers, and the arrest of a former top executive, News International CEO Rebekah Brooks, in July.

News International, a subsidiary of News Corp., issued a statement Wednesday saying that Murdoch resigned from the boards of News Group Newspapers, which publishes The Sun, and Times Newspapers Ltd, which publishes The Times of London, in September.

James Murdoch remains chairman of News International and deputy COO of News Corp.