NEW YORK – Rupert Murdoch acknowledged for the first time publicly that his son James is not the preferred choice to succeed him as News Corporation’s chief executive, at least in the near-term.
In the clearest indication yet that the phone hacking scandal enveloping News Corp’s UK operations has damaged the succession ambitions of James Murdoch, his father endorsed top lieutenant Chase Carey for the job.
“Chase is my partner and if anything happened to me I’m sure he’ll get it immediately – if I went under a bus,” the elder Murdoch said in response to a question about succession on the company’s quarterly earnings call.
Although News Corp has often said it has a succession plan in place, the company has never explicitly stated who would become chief executive should Rupert Murdoch step down.
In testimony before parliament last month, Mr Murdoch reiterated his long-held desire to see one of his children succeed him. Until recently, his youngest son James (38) had been viewed as the likely successor after he was promoted to deputy chief operating officer in March.
The younger Murdoch has been under pressure since the phone hacking scandal, which erupted last month at News Corp’s UK operations, forced the closure of its News of the World tabloid and the arrest of 12 ex-staffers. News Corp’s UK business ultimately reported to the younger Murdoch.
James Murdoch was due to submit a written statement to a British parliamentary committee by yesterday responding to accusations that he misrepresented statements in prior testimony.
But the younger Murdoch has not been completely exiled, however. His father added that he and Mr Carey had “full confidence” in James, leaving the door open for him to possibly become chief executive in the future.
Meanwhile, the elder Murdoch has no immediate plan to resign despite the phone hacking scandal raising questions about his leadership. “I hope the job won’t be open in the near future,” he joked.
He denied allegations the board was beholden to him rather than to shareholders and sought to drive home the notion that its independent directors were just that. News Corp’s board has been criticised recently for being crammed with family members, corporate insiders and long-time Murdoch associates. It is often held up as prime example of weak corporate governance by experts, especially since the phone hacking scandal – (Reuters)