Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch is to retire as chairman of his Fox and News Corp businesses.
The Australian businessman is set to be replaced in the role at both companies by his son Lachlan Murdoch.
The change of leadership will take place following the companies’ annual meeting in mid-November.
Lachlan Murdoch said: “On behalf of the Fox and News Corp boards of directors, leadership teams, and all the shareholders who have benefited from his hard work, I congratulate my father on his remarkable 70-year career.
“We thank him for his vision, his pioneering spirit, his steadfast determination, and the enduring legacy he leaves to the companies he founded and countless people he has impacted.
“We are grateful that he will serve as chairman emeritus and know he will continue to provide valued counsel to both companies.”
In a letter to colleagues, Rupert Murdoch, 92, said “the time is right for me to take on different roles” - adding that he and his companies were in “robust health”.
“I am writing to let you all know that I have decided to transition to the role of Chairman Emeritus at Fox and News,” Mr Murdoch wrote. “For my entire professional life, I have been engaged daily with news and ideas, and that will not change.
“But the time is right for me to take on different roles, knowing that we have truly talented teams and a passionate, principled leader in Lachlan who will become sole Chairman of both companies.
“Neither excessive pride nor false humility are admirable qualities. But I am truly proud of what we have achieved collectively through the decades, and I owe much to my colleagues, whose contributions to our success have sometimes been unseen outside the company but are deeply appreciated by me.
“Whether the truck drivers distributing our papers, the cleaners who toil when we have left the office, the assistants who support us or the skilled operators behind the cameras or the computer code, we would be less successful and have less positive impact on society without your day-after-day dedication.
“Our companies are in robust health, as am I. Our opportunities far exceed our commercial challenges. We have every reason to be optimistic about the coming years - I certainly am, and plan to be here to participate in them.”
Since inheriting an Australian news publishing company in 1952, Mr Murdoch has built up one of the most recognised and influential media companies in the world.
News Corp owns an array of leading titles around the world such as The Wall Street Journal, The Sun and The Times, and book publisher HarperCollins.
He is also founder of Fox Corporation, which includes the conservative US channel Fox News, and has an estimated wealth of about $18billion (£14.5bn).
He has been married four times, most recently to Jerry Hall between 2016 and last year, and has six children.
Ironically, the announcement comes days ahead of the publication of Michael Wolff’s new book, The Fall: The End of Fox News and the Murdoch Dynasty, which speculates what will happen to the network when the patriarch is gone.
Rupert Murdoch has been a bold, brilliant, visionary leader whose audacity & tenacity built a magnificently successful global media empire. It’s been a privilege to work for him on and off for the past 30 years, and an ongoing masterclass in journalism & business. Thanks Boss! 👏 pic.twitter.com/pBtuv8KogL
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) September 21, 2023
Following the announcement, Piers Morgan praised Mr Murdoch as a “bold, brilliant, visionary leader whose audacity and tenacity built a magnificently-successful global media empire”.
The journalist and broadcaster was editor of Mr Murdoch’s now defunct newspaper News Of The World. He has his own show on TalkTV which is owned by the media mogul’s company News UK.
Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, Mr Morgan said it had been a “privilege to work for him on and off for the past 30 years”.
