Draft:Succession of Rupert Murdoch
| In the Matter of the Doe 1 Trust | |
|---|---|
| Court | Nevada Second Judicial District Court |
| Citation | PR23-00813[1] |
The succession of Rupert Murdoch describes a court case relating to which of the offspring of Australian-born American media magnate Rupert Murdoch (born 1931) will gain power and influence over his business interests, in particular News Corp and Fox Corporation. Since Murdoch's retirement and as of September 2024[update] headed by his eldest son Lachlan Murdoch. The issue of succession began in December 2023, when Rupert Murdoch applied to change the terms of his "irrevocable" family trust to ensure that Lachlan would have full control over News Corp, a mass media and publishing company that manages hundreds of assets, rather than his three siblings Prudence MacLeod, Elisabeth Murdoch, and James Murdoch, have equal voting rights.
Background
[edit]News Corp
[edit]
In 1952, Murdoch inherited The News, a tabloid newspaper based in Adelaide, South Australia, after the death of his father Keith. In the years following, he acquired several newspapers in the United Kingdom and the United States, including News of the World, The Sun, the New York Post, and founded Sky News and Fox News. News Corporation, Murdoch's company, later acquired HarperCollins and Dow Jones & Company, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal. In 2013, amid several scandals—including the News International phone hacking scandal, News Corporation divested its entertainments assets into 21st Century Fox and its publishing assets into News Corp. The Walt Disney Company acquired 21st Century Fox in March 2019. Murdoch's eldest son Lachlan was appointed the chief executive of Fox Corporation following the acquisition and appointed the chairman of Fox Corporation and News Corp in September 2023. Murdoch's assets are primarily derived from Fox Corporation, which retained nearly thirty affiliate television stations after Disney's acquisition and operates several Fox News affiliates.[2]
Murdoch family
[edit]Murdoch has six children, including four with Patricia Booker and Anna Maria Torv. Prudence, who is the only child from Murdoch's first marriage, was described by Michael Wolff in Vanity Fair as disinterested in Murdoch's business operations, though she was employed as a journalist at News of the World. Elisabeth, Murdoch's eldest child with Torv, was the chairwoman of television production firm Shine Group until it was acquired by 21st Century Fox in 2015.[3] Lachlan, Murdoch's elder son, is the chairman of Fox Corporation and News Corp and the chief executive of Fox Corporation.[2] James was a board member of News Corp until he resigned in 2020 over "disagreements over certain editorial content," including coverage by the company's assets of the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season and the January 6 United States Capitol attack. James's political views concerned his father, who believed he would enlist Elisabeth and Prudence to ensure editorial neutrality.[4] According to The Wall Street Journal, Murdoch postulated that James could sell Fox News, and former host Tucker Carlson expressed concerns. In October 2022, Murdoch proposed combining News Corp and Fox Corporation, a merger that would have solidified Lachlan's position. Murdoch's efforts were privately criticized by Elisabeth and Prudence; at a dinner for Elisabeth's husband Keith Tyson, Robert De Niro encouraged her to go against her father, though she later appeared with Rupert at Super Bowl LVII.[5]
The Murdoch family trust, written after Murdoch's divorce from Torv in 1999, defers management of News Corp to Murdoch's children upon his death and is largely irrevocable, but contains a provision that allows good faith and beneficial changes. The trust gives Chloe and Grace, Murdoch's two youngest children with Wendi Deng Murdoch, equal share of the equity without voting rights.[4] The Murdoch trust controls the largest share—but not a majority—of voting rights in News Corp despite low equity.[6] In December 2023, Murdoch altered the terms of the irrevocable trust in an effort to appoint Lachlan as the sole proprietor, arguing that the conservative bias of News Corp's media assets could be retained, ensuring its commercial value. Murdoch met with Elisabeth and Prudence after filing his petition, who disapproved of his efforts.[4] Murdoch moved the trust to Nevada, a decision that would favor Lachlan for the state's probate law.[7] Representatives for Murdoch's children attempted to adjourn a meeting in Reno approving the changes, but failed.[4]
Murdoch's health concerns
[edit]According to Vanity Fair, Murdoch has suffered several medical emergencies that were largely unreported, including "a broken back, seizures, two bouts of pneumonia, atrial fibrillation, and a torn Achilles tendon." In July 2022, Murdoch collapsed in Oxfordshire from COVID-19-related complications. He was treated at Cromwell Hospital and required the assistance of Lachlan to move.[8]
Legal proceedings
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Pre-trial motions
[edit]In June 2024, Nevada Second Judicial District Court probate commissioner Edmund Gorman Jr. ruled that Murdoch could amend the trust if he could argue that "he is acting in good faith and for the sole benefit of his heirs," according to The New York Times.[4] Alex Falconi, a software engineer who founded the organization Our Nevada Judges, petitioned Gorman to televise the trial.[9] Six news organizations—the Associated Press, CNN, NPR, The New York Times, Reuters, and The Washington Post—filed a petition to unseal court proceedings and documents.[10] The petitions were rejected on September 12.[11]
Trial
[edit]James, Elisabeth, and Prudence are represented by Gary A. Bornstein of Cravath, Swaine & Moore, while Rupert and Lachlan are represented by private wealth litigator Adam Streisand of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton.[4] The trial began on September 16, 2024.[12]
In popular culture
[edit]The television series Succession concerns the succession of a fictional media empire known as Waystar Royco. Aspects of Succession were adapted from the Murdoch family.[13] Screenwriter Jesse Armstrong intended to write a documentary on Murdoch, but abandoned the project in 2011.[14]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Gold, Hadas (September 12, 2024). "Why the Murdoch family is secretly battling over succession in an obscure Nevada court". CNN. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ a b Edward Moreno, J. (September 21, 2023). "How Rupert Murdoch Built His Media Empire". The New York Times. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ Wolff, Michael (October 31, 2008). "The Secrets of His Succession". Vanity Fair. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f Rutenberg, Jim; Mahler, Jonathan (July 24, 2024). "The Secret Battle for the Future of the Murdoch Empire". The New York Times. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ Toonkel, Jessica; Sharma, Amol; Frangos, Alex; Sayre, Katherine; Hagey, Keach (September 11, 2024). "The Family Rift Driving Rupert Murdoch to Redo His 'Irrevocable' Trust". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ Miller, Joe; Nicolaou, Anna (September 13, 2024). "The Murdoch succession saga reaches its 'end game'". Financial Times. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
- ^ Rutenberg, Jim (September 13, 2024). "Future of Murdoch Empire Comes Down to a Court in Nevada". The New York Times. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
- ^ Sherman, Gabriel (April 12, 2023). "Inside Rupert Murdoch's Succession Drama". Vanity Fair. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ Warrington, James (September 6, 2024). "Murdoch family fights attempt to have Succession-style legal battle televised". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ Arkin, Daniel (September 7, 2024). "The fight for the future of the Murdoch media empire is about to begin". NBC News. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ Arkin, Daniel (September 13, 2024). "Murdoch family succession battle will remain confidential, judge rules". NBC News. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
- ^ Chmielewski, Dawn (September 12, 2024). "Murdoch succession battle to play out in Nevada courtroom". Reuters. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ Hartmann, Margaret (September 21, 2023). "How the Rupert Murdoch Family Drama Inspired Succession". New York. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ Armstrong, Jesse (May 27, 2023). "Jesse Armstrong on the roots of Succession: 'Would it have landed the same way without the mad bum-rush of Trump's presidency?'". The Guardian. Retrieved September 15, 2024.
Further reading
[edit]- Mahler, Jonathan; Rutenberg, Jim (April 3, 2019). "How Rupert Murdoch's Empire of Influence Remade the World". The New York Times Magazine. Retrieved September 12, 2024.