The family of Rupert Murdoch has reached a deal on control of the 94-year-old mogul’s media empire after his death, ensuring no change in direction at Fox News, the most popular network for President Donald Trump and conservatives.
The deal creates a trust establishing control of the Fox Corp. for Lachlan Murdoch, Rupert’s chosen heir who has been running Fox in recent years, along with his younger sisters, Grace and Chloe.
Lachlan Murdoch’s three older siblings, Prudence MacLeod, Elisabeth Murdoch and James Murdoch, give up any claims to control of Fox in exchange for stock currently valued at $3.3 billion, according to The New York Times, which first reported news of the deal.
The new trust will be in place until 2050, according to terms of the deal.
It ends a drama that has been like a real-life version of HBO’s “Succession,” only with huge financial implications and an impact on U.S. politics. Fox and its conservative opinion dominates news ratings, at points this summer more popular than the general broadcast networks, and is the go-to network for Trump and his team to spread news
The court fight began when Rupert Murdoch and Lachlan sought to change terms of an established trust that gave the mogul’s four oldest children equal say in control of his media holdings after his death. Prudence, Elisabeth and James are known not to be as conservative as their father, and the arrangement led to worries that they could force Lachlan out and change Fox’s direction after the patriarch’s death.
The three siblings sued to block the changes and won an initial ruling in a Nevada probate court. The Nevada probate commissioner, Edmund J. Gordon Jr., said the attempt to seize control represented a “carefully crafted charade” designed to entrench Lachlan Murdoch’s control.
Yet with appeals dragging on and the outcome uncertain, representatives for Rupert Murdoch and his children met to hammer out a deal to end the family bitterness, and it was announced late Monday.
Lachlan’s three older siblings have six months to sell any personal holdings in Fox and have agreed to a long-term ban on acquiring shares of Fox and News Corp. or taking any actions involving the company, Fox said.
The bid to give Lachlan control of the trust was euphemistically named “Project Family Harmony” and called James Murdoch the “troublesome beneficiary,” according to sealed court papers obtained by the Times. The case grew to involve dozens of lawyers, including former Attorney General William Barr.