The NYT appointed the 55-year-old in August, saying his experience in global media made him the "ideal candidate".

 

Mr Thompson led the BBC from 2004-2012, overseeing the British corporation's TV, radio and online services.

 

He starts amid one of the worst crisis in the history of the BBC, which forced his successor George Entwistle to quit.

 

Mr Entwistle resigned on Saturday after a Newsnight programme report led to a former Tory treasurer¹ being wrongly accused of child abuse.

 

Mr Thompson himself faces questions over the BBC's earlier decision to shelve a Newsnight programme about sex abuse claims surrounding the late BBC presenter² Jimmy Savile. 

 

The programme was axed while Mr Thompson was still in charge.

 

New York Times columnist³ Joe Nocera has accused the incoming CEO of "appearing wilfully⁴ ignorant" about the the Savile scandal.

 

Mr Nocera also questioned whether Mr Thompson was the right man for the job.

 

 

Mr Thompson started his career as a production trainee⁵ at the BBC in 1979 before leaving in 2002 to become chief executive of Channel 4 television.

 

He later returned to the BBC as director general, finally leaving the corporation on 17 September.

 

"Mark is a gifted executive with strong credentials⁶ whose leadership at the BBC helped it to extend its trusted brand identity into new digital products and services," said NYT chairman Arthur Sulzberger in a statement in August.

 

For his part, Mr Thompson said it was a "privilege" to take on the role.

 

"I'm particularly excited to be coming to New York Times Company as it extends its influence digitally and globally," he said.

 

The company, which owns the New York Times, International Herald⁷ Tribune and the Boston Globe newspapers, posted revenues of $2.3bn (£1.47bn) in 2011.

 

The company has been without a chief executive since Janet Robinson stepped down in December 2011.

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