News Corp and Judith Regan settle lawsuit

By Paul Thomasch

NEW YORK (Reuters) - News Corp and Judith Regan said on Friday they had settled a $100 million lawsuit the publisher brought against her former employer, closing out a case with links to both O.J. Simpson and Rudy Giuliani.

Regan's lawsuit relates to her dismissal in late 2006 from News Corp and its publishing house, HarperCollins, but captured the public's attention for its intriguing accusations of smear campaigns and cover-ups.

In the settlement, neither party admitted any liability, News Corp said. Other terms were to be kept confidential, the company said.

One claim made by the lawsuit is that a senior executive at News Corp encouraged Regan to lie to government investigators about her relationship with Bernard Kerik, the former New York police commissioner.

It said the company feared damaging information about Kerik could come back to haunt his mentor, former New York Mayor Giuliani, who is now a Republican U.S. presidential candidate.

"This action arises from a deliberate smear campaign orchestrated by one of the world's largest media conglomerates for the sole purpose of destroying one woman's credibility and reputation," according to the lawsuit, filed in November.

"This smear campaign was necessary to advance News Corp's political agenda, which has long centered on protecting Rudy Giuliani's presidential ambitions," the lawsuit added.

Regan sparked an uproar with plans to publish a book by Simpson in which he gave a hypothetical account of killing his ex-wife and her friend. Public criticism of the planned book led News Corp Chairman Rupert Murdoch to personally pull the plug on the deal.