Colin Myler, the former editor of the News of the World, has been made the editor-in-chief of The New York Daily News.
The 59-year-old lost his job as the editor of the NotW along with hundreds of other staff last year when Rupert Murdoch decided to shut the tabloid at the height of the phone hacking scandal.
Myler will take charge of the American tabloid on 10 January, replacing current editor Kevin Convey.
The New York Daily News is the main rival in the city to the Murdoch-owned New York Post - of which Myler was executive editor of from 2001 to 2007.
He told the Guardian that his new role would "be fun" and acknowledged there was "a touch of irony about it".
Staff were informed of the news by Convey in an internal memo. "I am immensely proud and honoured to be leading one of America's great newspapers into a new era," he said.
The paper's president and chief executive Bill Holiber added: "Colin Myler will lead our print and digital platforms into the next generation of newspaper publishing."
In the memo, chairman and publisher Mort Zuckerman thanked outgoing editor-in-chief Mr Convey, and said: "The New York Daily News is a great institution of American journalism which will only get better under the leadership of Colin."
Myler replaced Andy Coulson at the News of the World in 2007 following Coulson's resignation in the wake of the jailing of former royal editor Clive Goodman and private investigator Glenn Mulcaire.
Last year, Myler and the News of the World's former legal manager Tom Crone told MPs investigating the phone hacking scandal that Rupert Murdoch's son James knew about an email which proved knowledge of the practice was more widespread at the paper than News International had claimed.
Murdoch denied the accusation.