Nobel board slams turmoil

STOCKHOLM - The Nobel Foundation Board has sharply criticized the Swedish Academy, which chooses the Nobel Literature Prize winner each year, saying the group has damaged its own reputation and is threatening to tarnish the reputation of the Nobel Prize itself.

The comments came hours after the Swedish king said the resignation of three members from the Swedish Academy was "deeply unfortunate and risked seriously damaging" the body's "important activities".

After a Nobel board meeting on Wednesday, the foundation issued a statement noting that "trust in the Swedish Academy has been seriously damaged" and demanding that the group take specific actions to restore that trust.