Lachlan Murdoch is once again “in pole position” to run his father’s media empire after he returned to Rupert Murdoch’s side as non-executive co-chairman of News Corp and 21st Century Fox.
The 42-year-old’s comeback, putting him in a senior role at the two family-controlled media groups – an empire that spans newspapers on both sides of the Atlantic, a movie studio and a cable news network – coincided with the promotion of his 41-year-old brother, James.
James’ elevation to be co-chief operating officer at 21st Century Fox comes two years after he was embroiled in the UK phone hacking scandal as the then head of News Corp’s UK newspaper business. His new position gives him a more central role at one of the US’s most global media companies.