In the United Kingdom, Murdoch and his son James have apologised for the phone hacking, a scandal which has engulfed their media empire and rocked police and politicians to the core. The two men were summoned to Parliament following allegations that the paper routinely bribed police for information and hacked the phones of thousands of people including victims of crime and the members of the British Royal Palace. Murdoch told House of Commons that this was the most humble day of his life. Murdoch said he was appalled and ashamed to learn that the phone of 12-year-old girl Milly Dowler had been hacked by his now-closed News of the World, which was UK's largest selling tabloid. He told MPs he was not aware that hacking was more widespread than originally claimed and he had clearly been misled by some of his staff. Meanwhile, Rebekah Brooks, the former CEO of News International, claimed before the Parliamentary Committee hearing the phone hacking scandal that she never knowingly sanctioned payoff to any police officer. Brooks, who is out on bail, said she was aware that the News of the World used the services of private detectives. Britain's top police commander also faced tough questioning today from MPs investigating the phone-hacking and the alleged corruption involving the media empire.