In the media platform, a name that is known across the length and breadth of the world is Rupert Murdoch, the Australian American business tycoon. He has dominated the media for a long time now and today, along with his family, has evolved to become a prominent media proprietor. Rupert Murdoch’s conflicting personality traits have made him the man he is. He is the force behind the monumental success of New Corporation, the world’s second largest media company and its subsequent successors the News Corp and 21st Century Fox. His name is not just associated with the fact that he is a big shot in the media world. He is an innovator in the true sense of the term who seeks to find opportunities in areas which are mostly ignored by others. His determination and stirring leadership qualities drives him towards achieving the impossible.
Early Life and Education
Keith Rupert Murdoch was born on March 11, 1931, in Melbourne, Australia. His father was Sir Keith Murdoch and mother Elisabeth Joy Greene. His father was a well-known war correspondent and Australian journalist, the owner of a radio station and some local and regional newspapers. Rupert Murdoch has three other siblings; Anne Kantor, Janet Calvert-Jones and Helen Handbury. He went on to attend Geeling Grammar School. It was a prominent Australian boarding school. Rupert Murdoch grew up in an environment surrounded by newspapers. In his own words, “I was brought up in a publishing home, a newspaper man’s home, and was excited by that, I suppose. I saw that life at close range, and after the age of ten or twelve never really considered any other.” His first experience as a co-editor and editor was for his schools’ official journal “The Corian” and student journal “If Revived” respectively. He worked as a part timer at Melbourne Herald and was simultaneously being trained by his father so that he could become a successful heir to the family business. He next entered Worcester College at Oxford University in England, where he studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics. He was in charge of the Oxford Student Publications Limited which was the publishing house of Cherwell. As a student Rupert Murdoch was full of life, had many friends, flirted with girls, indulged in drinking, gambling; in short he was full of energy and enthusiasm. His fun-filled life came to an abrupt end when his father suddenly died in the year 1952. Rupert Murdoch got his degree in MA and also completed an apprenticeship in sub-editing under Lord Beaverbrook with the Daily Express. It was his first practical experience in the actual world of journalism.
Returns to Australia
Rupert Murdoch returned to Australia in the year 1954 and took over his father’s inheritance Adelaide’s Sunday Mail and The News. He eventually engaged himself in finding possible ways to make the papers a huge success. The distribution of the News shot up after he included flashy headlines and records of scandals, crimes and sex. The next few years were devoted to the buying of several other newspapers in Australia and their subsequent expansion. He bought the Perth-based newspaper Sunday Times, which was already going through a troubled time and restored it successfully. He then went on to purchase Sydney’s afternoon daily, which was also going through a difficult time and revamped it into a best-selling afternoon paper of Sydney. Rupert Murdoch developed his own pattern and trend by including several interesting sections and headlines. In the year 1965, Rupert Murdoch, who was already riding high in his ventures, launched Australian, the first national daily newspaper in Australia. This established his status and image. His next foray was outside Australia. Rupert then 37 years old landed in London and within no time he went on to acquire The News of the World, then a vastly popular daily tabloid. Within a year, he bought a struggling daily tabloid; the Sun. Rupert Murdoch did a remarkable makeover with the paper by using the same strategies of including interesting reports on sports, crime and sex along with flashy headlines. After his expedition in London, he entered the United States. He made his first acquisition here in 1973 through his purchase of the San Antonio Express-News. Given his passionate and ambitious nature, Murdoch went on to expand his empire in the United States by launching the Star, a national tabloid in 1974. In 1976, he acquired the New York Post. After three years he established News Corporation, or what is also referred to as News Corp. It acted as a parent company to all his media properties. The 1980’s and the 1990’s saw Rupert Murdoch purchasing more and more tabloids. While he bought the Village Voice, Chicago Sun-Times and New York magazines from the United States, he also purchased the Sunday Times of London and Times from England.
Television, Entertainment and Sports
Rupert Murdoch’s mission did not start and end with buying tabloids and revamping them. He went on to expand his empire within the television and entertainment industry too. America’s major television network FOX, Inc was his mastermind. After purchasing 20th century FOX Film Corporation and various independent television stations he merged them to form FOX, Inc. He established STAR TV, a Hong Kong television broadcasting company. His purchases included several renowned British and American academic and literary publishing companies which he amalgamated into HarperCollins in the year 1990. He also invested in sports. He became the co-owner of the Los Angeles Lakers NBA franchise and the Staples Center, the Los Angeles Kings NHL franchise and FOX Sports Radio and FOXSports.com Later Endeavors Rupert Murdoch continued to expand his empire New Corp. He brought into his control Intermix Media in 2005. In the year 2007, he made news with his purchase of Dow Jones and Company, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal.
Phone Hacking Controversy
Early 21st century saw Rupert Murdoch’s immense influence spreading across both the media and politics. But in July 2011 he got involved in a scandal. New Corporation was subjected to intense scrutiny for its involvement in unethical and illegal behavior that centered on the hacking of mails and mobile phones of celebrities, British soldiers killed in Afghanistan War and various murder victims. The scandal grew and spread despite the newspaper being closed. He claimed on several occasions that he was unaware of such a hacking. His son who was also involved in the controversy was asked to leave several key positions in the company. A critical report was released by a parliamentary panel in May 2012 which claimed that Rupert “is not a fit person to exercise the stewardship of a major international company”. Both Rupert Murdoch and News Corporation were under the scrutiny of the FBI officials in the United States.
Post Scandal
Despite the uproar involving the scandal, News Corp managed to retain a good share of its media. He decided to reconstruct his empire in 2013 and with this motive went on to divide his business into two companies; 21st Century FOX Inc. and News Corp. This segregated the entertainment industry and the publishing industry. In his words; “Both companies will be uniquely positioned to execute on their respective strategic objectives and to lead their industries forward.”
Personal Life
Rupert Murdoch’s first wife was Patricia Booker, who worked as a flight attendant and shop assistant. The couple got married in the year 1956 and in 1958 they had their first and only child Prudence. The couple divorced in 1967. In the same year Rupert Murdoch got married to Anna Maria Torv, a Scottish born journalist who was then working for The Daily Telegraph. Together they had three children Elisabeth Murdoch (1968), Lachlan Murdoch (1971) and James Murdoch (1972). The second marriage ended in 1999 with Anna Murdoch receiving US$1.2 billion in assets as settlement. Seventeen days after his second divorce, Rupert Murdoch married Wendi Deng, a Chinese born. Rupert Murdoch was then 68 years old while Wendi Deng was a 30 year old Yale School of Management graduate. They had two daughters together Grace (2001) and Chole (2003). Murdoch has filed for a divorce from Deng.
Recognition:
Murdoch’s name was listed under the 2013 list of the richest Americans. He was named the 33<rd richest person in the US while the 91st in the world. His net worth was then US$13. 4 billion. He was conferred the 33rd most powerful person in the world by Forbes magazine in 2014. Apart from this, Murdoch has been portrayed appeared in television shows, books, films and music.
The Murdoch Family
The Murdoch family is well-known throughout Australia, United States and the United Kingdom. The five generations of the family have descended from the Reverend James Murdoch and Helen, two Scottish emigrants to Australia. The couple had 14 children. One of them was Rev. Patrick Murdoch, who later married Annie Brown. Patrick Murdoch and Annie Brown had six children, of which Keith Arthur Murdoch gained much prominence as a journalist and newspaper executive. Keith Arthur Murdoch married Elisabeth Joy Greene and together they had four children. One of them is Keith Rupert Murdoch, who is today widely known as Rupert Murdoch. Rupert Murdoch married three times and has six children and 13 grandchildren.
| Name | Keith Rupert Murdoch |
|---|---|
| Born | March 11, 1931, (age 84) Melbourne, Australia |
| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | United States (Naturalized 1985) |
| Alma Mater | Worcester College, Oxford |
| Parents | Keith Murdoch (1885–1952)Elisabeth Joy (1909–2012) |
| Net Worth | US$13.4 billion (June 2015) |
| Board Member | News Corp21st Century Fox |
| Religion | Christian |
| Awards | Companion of the Order of Australia (1984) |
| Occupation | Chairman and CEO of News Corporation (1979–2013) |
| Executive Chairman of News Corp (2013–present) | |
| Chairman and CEO of 21st Century Fox (2013–2015) | |
| Executive Co-chairman of 21st Century Fox (2015–present) | |
| Spouse(S) | Patricia Booker(1956–1967, 1 child) |
| Anna Murdoch Mann (1967–1999, 3 children) | |
| Wendi Deng (1999–2013, 2 children) | |
| Children | Prudence (b. 1958) |
| Elisabeth (b. 1968) | |
| Lachlan (b. 1971) | |
| James (b. 1972) | |
| Grace (b. 2001) | |
| Chloe (b. 2003) |