The New York Times Executive Editor Howell Raines, dogged in recent weeks by a plagiarism scandal by a young reporter, and Managing Editor Gerald Boyd resigned yesterday, the newspaper said.

The two editors were severely criticised after it was revealed that former reporter Jayson Blair had plagiarised and fabricated numerous stories in his four-year Times career. Since the scandal broke, Rick Bragg, a Pulitzer Prize winner, resigned from the Times amid

accusations of dishonest reporting.

Raines and Boyd were blamed for overlooking Blair's errors and warnings about the quality of his work by other editors. They were also accused of promoting the young black reporter despite his known shortcomings.

"Howell and Gerald have tendered their resignations, and I have accepted them with sadness based on what we believe is best for the Times," said Arthur Sulzberger Jr., publisher of The New York Times and chairman of The New York Times Co. said in a statement