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Sun features editor sacked by News Corp clean-up team

By Andrew Pugh

The Sun’s features editor Matt Nixson has been sacked on the recommendation of the News Corp phone-hacking clean-up committee.

Before joining The Sun last year Nixson was a former news editor at the News of the World, reporting to Ian Edmonson, the former assistant editor arrested over phone-hacking allegations earlier this year.

Nixson became news editor at the NoW in May 2006, taking over from James Weatherup, who was also arrested by the Met over phone hacking allegations in April.

When he was made news editor managing editor Stuart Kuttner described Nixson as an “inordinately resourceful” and “tenacious” journalist.

Before joining the NoW in January 2005, Nixson worked as a reporter on The Mail on Sunday.

News International said his dismissal concerned his time at the News of the World and was not related to The Sun.

According to reports, Nixson was escorted from News International’s headquarters in Wapping at 6.30pm yesterday and his computer was seized.

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The internal investigation was carried out by News International’s Management and Standard’s Committee (MSC), chaired by Lord Grabiner QC.

The MSC is tasked with cleaning up the company in the wake of the phone-hacking scandal and introducing new compliance, ethics and governance procedures.

News International said in a statement: “News Corporation‘s Management and Standards Committee can confirm that News International today (Thursday, 21 July) terminated the contract of a member of staff in relation to his previous work at the News of the World.

‘The MSC is authorised to co-operate fully with all relevant investigations and inquiries in the News of the World phone hacking case, police payments and all other related issues across News International, as well as conducting its own enquiries where appropriate.”.

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