Deal Reached to End Murdoch Succession Drama

After years of family tension and courtroom drama, Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan have struck a $3.3 billion deal with Lachlan's three eldest siblings, settling the fight over who will control the global media empire. The agreement, which follows months of negotiations, cements Lachlan's future at the helm of News Corp—while his siblings walk away with billion-dollar payouts, the Washington Post reports. The deal ensures that Fox News and other outlets in Murdoch's media empire, including the Wall Street Journal and the New York Post, will continue to lean conservative, reports the New York Times.

Under the previous trust arrangement, the four older siblings would have split control when Rupert Murdoch, 94, dies. But Rupert and Lachlan, who's currently the chief executive at Fox Corp, wanted to secure the company's future leadership firmly in Lachlan's hands. Monday's settlement means Prudence, Elisabeth, and James will exit as beneficiaries of any trust holding shares in Fox or News Corp. Instead, they'll split a $3.3 billion payout from the sale of millions of Class B shares, giving each a reported $1.1 billion windfall. Murdoch's younger daughters, Grace and Chloe, meanwhile, will be part of a newly established trust.

The trust will stay in place until 2050, but Lachlan now has the keys to the kingdom, with Rupert sitting as chairman emeritus. News Corp's board hailed the move, calling Lachlan's leadership "important to guiding the Company's strategy and success." Lachlan shares the views of his father, who has called his media empire "the protector of the conservative voice in the English-speaking world," the Times notes. The legal battle began after Rupert and Lachlan moved to change the terms of what had been considered an irrevocable family trust out of fears that Lachlan's less conservative siblings would take Fox News and other outlets in a different direction after Rupert's death.