With charisma, a flair for the dramatic, and unabashed shamelessness, the men of right-wing America have shown us time and time again how their own chaos and magnetic mayhem can grant them a free pass. Their actions are so consistently ridiculous that one becomes desensitised to the core of their policies and politics.
A recent example: The Murdochs’ succession battle.
On 8 September, the two-year-long courtroom war ended, and the family’s eldest son, Lachlan Murdoch, triumphed. The right-wing, Trump-era conservative has become the sole successor to the grand media empire — News Corp, an umbrella for Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, and more. In terms of UK impact, The Sun, The Times, and the Sunday Times are all part of the bundle. In other words, the Murdoch successor will shape global media going forward.
The dramatic battle, popularised by the HBO show Succession, began two years ago in a courtroom in Nevada. whichrt and Lachlan attempted to break the irrevocable family trust, deciding whom, among the four children — Prudence, James, Elizabeth, and Lachlan — was to inherit the much-coveted throne of the Murdoch media empire.
“Project family harmony,” devised by Rupert and Lachlan, led to a two-year-long, deeply painful legal battle where family secrets were torn apart in the courtroom.
In the face of such drama, it is easy to forget the plight of Lachlan’s politics. More right-wing than Rupert himself, Lachlan heralds the new era of Trump-MAGA right. He is no media mogul who will slum it in the newsroom if it means the best angle to the story; instead, one can find Lachlan sunning himself in Hollywood at the Oscars.
The already politically manipulative News Corp has been heralded by James himself as a “threat to democracy.” It was hoped by many that James and his other, more politically moderate and contrition, siblings might get a stake in the empire.
Being drawn into the melodrama is excusable, whether the Murdoch succession battle reminds you of Jesse Armstrong’s writing, the biblical parable of the prodigal son (Lachlan left the company in a huff and a puff for ten years, only to be welcomed back with open arms on his return) or Shakespeare’s King Lear, it is easy to forget the effect this ruling is going to have for the consumers of everyday media.
“Rupert Murdoch” by Eva Rinaldi Celebrity Photographeris licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
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Rupert Murdoch and his Dynasty
With charisma, a flair for the dramatic, and unabashed shamelessness, the men of right-wing America have shown us time and time again how their own chaos and magnetic mayhem can grant them a free pass. Their actions are so consistently ridiculous that one becomes desensitised to the core of their policies and politics.
A recent example: The Murdochs’ succession battle.
On 8 September, the two-year-long courtroom war ended, and the family’s eldest son, Lachlan Murdoch, triumphed. The right-wing, Trump-era conservative has become the sole successor to the grand media empire — News Corp, an umbrella for Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, and more. In terms of UK impact, The Sun, The Times, and the Sunday Times are all part of the bundle. In other words, the Murdoch successor will shape global media going forward.
The dramatic battle, popularised by the HBO show Succession, began two years ago in a courtroom in Nevada. whichrt and Lachlan attempted to break the irrevocable family trust, deciding whom, among the four children — Prudence, James, Elizabeth, and Lachlan — was to inherit the much-coveted throne of the Murdoch media empire.
“Project family harmony,” devised by Rupert and Lachlan, led to a two-year-long, deeply painful legal battle where family secrets were torn apart in the courtroom.
In the face of such drama, it is easy to forget the plight of Lachlan’s politics. More right-wing than Rupert himself, Lachlan heralds the new era of Trump-MAGA right. He is no media mogul who will slum it in the newsroom if it means the best angle to the story; instead, one can find Lachlan sunning himself in Hollywood at the Oscars.
The already politically manipulative News Corp has been heralded by James himself as a “threat to democracy.” It was hoped by many that James and his other, more politically moderate and contrition, siblings might get a stake in the empire.
Being drawn into the melodrama is excusable, whether the Murdoch succession battle reminds you of Jesse Armstrong’s writing, the biblical parable of the prodigal son (Lachlan left the company in a huff and a puff for ten years, only to be welcomed back with open arms on his return) or Shakespeare’s King Lear, it is easy to forget the effect this ruling is going to have for the consumers of everyday media.
“Rupert Murdoch” by Eva Rinaldi Celebrity Photographeris licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
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