Control of the Murdoch family trust has pitted Rupert Murdoch, center, and his elder son, Lachlan, left, against James, right, and other children.
An “irrevocable” trust? Rupert Murdoch is showing yet again that real life can be more fascinating than fiction. News that the 93-year-old mogul is secretly waging war against three of his children — by seeking to change the terms of the irrevocable trust that oversees the family’s business empire — has gripped media watchers around the world.
The battle, which is taking place in a Nevada probate court and was first reported by The Times’s Jim Rutenberg and Jonathan Mahler, isn’t just a tale of familial strife. It’s about control of a global media business with extraordinary political power, one that’s still trying to preserve its influence in America and elsewhere.
The context: When Murdoch dies, control of the family’s companies, including the broadcaster Fox and the newspaper publisher News Corp, will be shared among his four eldest children via the trust. Under the arrangement, Prudence, Lachlan, James, and Elisabeth will each get an equal say in how the businesses are run.
But as The Times’s Edmund Lee pointed out in DealBook last year, Murdoch himself remains in charge of the trust until his death — despite ostensibly retiring in September and becoming chairman emeritus of Fox and News Corp — ensuring he still holds the reins over the companies.
But Murdoch now wants Lachlan to have majority control when he dies. A sealed court document obtained by The Times notes Murdoch’s concern that a “lack of consensus” among the children “would impact the strategic direction at both companies, including a potential reorientation of editorial policy and content.” (None of the children’s economic stakes would be affected.)
