Summary

  • Rupert Murdoch, 92, is stepping down as chairman of News Corp - the parent company of the Sun and the Times - and Fox Corporation

  • The media mogul's eldest son Lachlan, 52, will become chairman of both companies

  • "Our companies are in robust health, as am I," Murdoch said in a note to employees

  • He built one of the world's most influential media empires over a 70-year career

  • After inheriting a half-share of local newspapers in the Australian city of Adelaide in the 1950s, Murdoch ended up owning some of the most influential newspapers and TV stations in the world

  • Fox News earlier this year paid nearly $800m to settle a defamation case with Dominion Voting Systems over false claims around the 2020 election

Live Reporting

Edited by Alex Therrien

  1. Successor Lachlan praises father's legacy

    Lachlan Murdoch, co-chairman and chief executive officer of Fox Corp., attends the annual Allen and Co. Sun Valley media conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, U.S., July 11, 2019.Reuters

    Lachlan pictured in 2019

    Lachlan Murdoch, Rupert Murdoch's eldest son who is taking over as chairman of both companies, praised his father's "remarkable 70-year career".

    “We thank him for his vision, his pioneering spirit, his steadfast determination, and the enduring legacy he leaves to the companies he founded and countless people he has impacted," he said in a statement.

    "We are grateful that he will serve as chairman emeritus and know he will continue to provide valued counsel to both companies.”

    Lachlan Murdoch returned to the family business in 2014 after an abrupt departure nearly a decade earlier which had left Rupert Murdoch's other son, James Murdoch, in pole position for succession.

  2. Murdoch: Time right for me to take different roles

    More now from Murdoch's statement.

    The 92-year-old said he would be taking up the position as chairman emeritus of Fox Corporation and News Corp.

    "For my entire professional life, I have been engaged daily with news and ideas, and that will not change,” he said.

    “But the time is right for me to take on different roles, knowing that we have truly talented teams and a passionate, principled leader in Lachlan who will become sole chairman of both companies.”

    In the letter he thanks “truck drivers distributing our papers, the cleaners who toil when we have left the office, the assistants who support us or the skilled operators behind the cameras or the computer code”, thanking them for their “day-after-day dedication”.

    “Our companies are in robust health, as am I,” he said.

  3. Rupert Murdoch steps down as chairman of Fox and News Corp
    Breaking

    Alex Therrien
    Live reporter

    Rupert MurdochPA

    Rupert Murdoch has stepped down from his role as chairman of Fox Corporation and executive chairman of News Corp, the companies have announced.

    In the role, he was in charge of some of the best known news brands in the United Kingdom, United States and Australia.

    The official transition will take place in November, with his son Lachlan taking control of both organisations.

    In a statement today, the 92-year-old media mogul said he was in good health and was "truly proud of what we have achieved collectively through the decades".

    Murdoch began his career in newspapers aged 22 when he inherited a half share in two Adelaide papers. He went on to become the most powerful media mogul in the world.

    Stay with us for the latest reaction and analysis to this massive business news.