Posted on 07/26/2024 6:07:49 AM PDT by george76
Court documents show Murdoch wants to give more voting rights to his conservative son, and CEO of Fox, Lachlan.
Murdoch went to court last year in a bid to increase Lachlan’s voting power at the expense of his three other children, James, Elisabeth, and Prudence, who have grown uncomfortable with the media empire’s rightward shift, the New York Times reported.
The billionaire, alongside Lachlan, is arguing a “lack of consensus” will disrupt Fox’s and News Corp.’s strategic direction, according to court documents reviewed by the publication.
Murdoch’s three other children, who are said to have been blindsided by the move, have reportedly hired their own legal team to contest their father’s plans.
Under a Nevada probate, where the battle is playing out, Lachlan will gain more control of the empire if he and his father can indeed prove the dramatic shift to voting rights is in the best interests of his organization.
A trial is expected to begin in September.
Representatives for Murdoch didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Succession battle..
Lachlan is chairman of Murdoch’s News Corp., which operates titles such as The Times, The Sun, and the Wall Street Journal. He is also CEO of the Fox Corporation.
Lachlan was asked to head up Murdoch’s new Fox brand after he sold 21st Century Fox to Disney for $71.3 billion in 2019.
Lachlan’s appointment to the role, which occurred during Donald Trump’s presidency, was a formal handover of power to Murdoch’s most conservative son.
It appeared to end a tense succession battle that also saw James and Elisabeth vying for the top job. The pair are reported to have become increasingly uncomfortable with Fox’s shift further to the right during Trump’s reign.
However, because Murdoch’s four children have an equal say in how the company is run, the Australian billionaire is now trying to push out his other children.
Each of Murdoch’s kids will get a single vote when Murdoch dies, the legacy, in part, of a divorce settlement between Murdoch and his second wife, Anna Murdoch Mann, who is the mother of James, Elisabeth, and Lachlan.
Speaking in 2006, Murdoch said: “If I go under a bus tomorrow, it will be the four of them who will have to decide which of the ones should lead them.”
James and Elisabeth have moved on to their own projects as Lachlan ascended the News Corp. empire. James manages an investment fund and Elisabeth a film studio.
However, they appear to have no intention of giving up their voice in determining how their father and Lachlan run the organization.
The New York Times reports that the battle has left Murdoch estranged from three of his kids. While Lachlan attended Murdoch’s wedding in June to his fifth wife, Elena Zhukova, his other children stayed away.
...
Speaking at the Republican National Convention, Donald Trump’s son, Donald Jr., said the GOP no longer had to “bend the knee” to Murdoch.
Trump’s appointment of J.D. Vance as his running mate for the presidential election in November was regarded as a win for Donald Jr. in a tussle with Murdoch.
Fox News was a pivotal platform for Trump amid his surprise run to the Oval Office, but he has had a tense personal relationship with Murdoch.
While gaining new powers to cater to his polarized right-leaning audience could be the answer to his woes, Murdoch will first have to play out an ugly public battle with most of his children.
This is good, right?
He needs to just sell FOX and the problem is solved.
They have damaged the brand. I don’t watch any more. It may be impossible to regain the trust. Is that scumbag Paul Ryan still on the board?
“rightward shift”?
Did he really actually name one of his kids “Prudence”??
He needs to just sell FOX and the problem is solved.
********
I’m sure Soros would make him a good offer.
This sounds like a good thing.
I also note that his conservative child is a man.
It is always common for weak men and women to be liberal.
Tucker
Since when was Lachlan “conservative”? Maybe a little more strategic, but not conservative.
“It is always common for weak men and women to be liberal.”
Put that on a T-Shirt
All good things come to an end.
This is the problem. While among the cable news networks Fox still leads, anymore Fox is only slightly less obvious about its Uniparty support. Even if Rupert Murdoch is successful, this picture from the 2024 RNC sums up the issue with Fox:
Photo Emerges of Rupert Murdoch Sulking Alongside Lindsey Graham During Vance’s RNC Speech
Sulking at the same guy whose nomination made Karl Rove apoplectic.
Consider the source.
Marginal. Rupert is on the Right but he’s with the RINO Establishment. Just look who he has on Fox’s board.
Fox has lost a massive amount of influence with Right leaning voters compared to where it was before it supported the Steal and then fired Tucker Carlson who was by a mile the biggest draw they had.
Now independent media...including Fox alums like Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, etc are becoming more and more influential and are displacing Fox for the Right leaning half of America.
Good start, but now Push out the ex speaker too Ryan! Replace all the tds newspeople, and fox might once again dominate-
If he sends Eddie Munster packing I'll know he's broken the code.
Anybody ever watch “Succession” on HBO? Sounds a lot like it.
Get rid of Paul Ryan while you’re at it Rupert.
BTW, my immediate response was for Rupert to get rid of Paul Ryan while he is in the process of taking back the control of his media empire, from his stupid liberal children.
If he is successful for regaining control, fires Paul Ryan, and makes his news empire a real platform for conservative voices, then I might consider returning to Fox, if I am still on this blue ball.
The GOPe is our responsibility to eliminate their control, which we are in the process of doing. 🙂👍
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