For him 92 years oldafter seven decades at the peak of its glory media empires on both sides of the Atlantic and Pacificthe time came for his “abdication”. Rupert Murdochchanged to “president emeritus” of Change And News Company and is ready to hand over the helm to his eldest son Lachlan at a very turbulent time.

“All my professional life, I’ve been consumed with daily news and ideas, and that’s not going to change,” he said. Murdoch In his farewell letter addressed to the staff Wall Street Journalits most prestigious title. “I leave my company in good health, as myself”he explained at the time of his “retirement”, after the recent American crisis Fox News (twelve years after the eavesdropping scandal that forced Britain’s withdrawal).

His departure occurred on the eve of its publication Fall: the end of Fox News and the Murdoch dynastyby Michael Wolff Donald Trump biographer with Fire and Fury. Channel equivalent to Murdoch It actually suffered a setback this year after losing a defamation trial with the company Dominion, which was accused of manipulating votes against Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

Fox News was forced to stop compensation of 738 million eurosand its most popular host, the ultraconservative Tucker Carlson, had to leave through the back door after declaring himself “God’s messenger”. Another company accused by Fox News of participating in election fraud, Smartmatic Voting Systems, is now suing 2.5 billion euros also for defamation. The company’s attorney, J. Erik Connolly, alleged Rupert Murdoch about “acting like a mob boss,” in a court hearing held this week.

The final fate of Rupert Murdochwhose support was crucial to the rise of figures such as the conservatives Margaret Thatcher or labor Tony Blair in the UK, is therefore closely linked to its involvement in the last two presidential elections in the United States. Another crushing book, A Web of Lies: The Epic Story of Fox News, Donald Trump, and the Battle for Democracy in Americasigned by Brian Stelter, threatened to be the final nail in a devalued but profitable media empire.

with festimated wealth between 16,000 and 20,000 million eurosRupert Murdoch not only controls the Fox Corporation, that is Wall Street Journal (via Dow Jones) and New York Postbut also Time, Sun and the UK channel TalkTV, publisher HaperCollins and The Australian, the Sun HeraldHe Daily Telegraph and Sky News in his native Australia (Melbourne, 1931).

“The time has come to take on a new role”acknowledged Murdoch on relinquishing the helm and announcing that he would continue to oversee the ship from afar as “president emeritus.”

Farewell as well as a letter of introduction to his eldest son, 52 years old, as a “passionate and principled leader”able to project his media empire into the future. Lachlan Murdoch He took the baton quickly and congratulated his father “on his extraordinary 70-year career.”

The prodigal son highlights his father’s “vision, pioneering spirit and determination,” as well as highlighting “the lasting legacy he leaves on the company he founded and the many people he influenced.”

He has clearly ignored his “missteps,” from countless legal disputes to accusations of monopolistic practices.from the manipulation of its media for political purposes to the police and parliamentary investigations that forced it to shut down World Newsbecause of the illegal wiretapping scandal.

Murdoch’s “retirement”. has had a triple impact in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdomwhere he established his operational base for decades and where he managed to consolidate his empire by leveraging his political influence.

His busy personal life has made him cannon fodder for his own tabloids in the past year. In June 2022 he married Jerry Hall, Mick Jagger’s new ex-wife, divorced after six years. Previously, he was married to PAtricia Booker, Anna Maria Torv and Wendi Deng. That same year, Murdoch announced his engagement – ​​broken off after two weeks – to his fifth wife, Ann Lesley Smithdue to differences in personal and “religious” opinions.