Australian media mogul Rupert Murdoch has stepped down as CEO of 21st Century Fox, with son James Murdoch now taking over the $70 billion empire, according to reports.
At age 84, and over 35 years since Murdoch founded News Corporation—which, in 2013, would split to form 21st Century Fox and News Corp—Murdoch will still remain Executive Chairman of 21st Century Fox, with 42-year-old James Murdoch taking the reins of the company’s day-to-day. Fox News will continue to “report directly” to Rupert Murdoch, according to the ABC.
Murdoch has yet to comment on the news on Twitter today; the news broke, however, on Murdoch-fed heartland Fox News overnight.
Rupert Murdoch is currently worth an estimated $14 billion; his career began after inheriting News Limited following the death of his father Keith Murdoch. Murdoch’s initial portfolio mostly consisted of now-defunct Adelaide paper The News, a success which led Murdoch on to one of the most profitable media conglomerate careers of all time. 21st Century Fox’s list of assets include 20th Century Fox, Fox News, National Geographic channels, Shine, Fox Sports Networks, various Sky channels across Europe and in the UK, and Hulu, among others.
News Corp, also led by Murdoch, has a slew of print-based assets, with dozens of daily newspapers—including The Wall Street Journal—HarperCollins, and the Dow Jones. In 2013, Murdoch bought a $70 million, 5% stake in Vice magazine – irrevocably lowering the street cred of Montreal’s most successful publication forevermore.
But most importantly, earlier this year, Murdoch was subjected to the beautiful wrath of Aziz Ansari, where he unashamedly called him a loser, on Twitter. Never forget.
The handing down of 21st Century Fox from Rupert Murdoch to James Murdoch is reported to take place this year or early 2016.
Bye Felicia.
