Dem
49
GOP
51
Reno, NV, likes to bill itself as "the biggest little city in the world." Next week it will be the most watched little city in the world. That will be because the 93-year old billionaire media magnate Rupert Murdoch wants to change the terms of an irrevocable trust he created years ago that gives four of his children equal voting rights in decisions affecting his media properties, especially Fox News and the Wall Street Journal. He now wants the most conservative of the four, Lachlan, to inherit the throne. The other three—James, Elisabeth, and Prudence—have different ideas.
Details are scarce since the case is under seal, but multiple media outlets are trying to convince the judge to unseal the case and hear it in open court since the public has so much at stake. This is not a routine probate court case where someone wants to disinherit one of his kids because he married a woman of the wrong religion.
James, Elisabeth, and Prudence are more politically moderate than both Dad and Lachlan. If the four children get equal voting shares, the three moderates could outvote Lachlan and install a more moderate person to run the media empire. One argument they could make to the judge is that staying the course means that the average Fox viewer, who is a 68-year old white man, will next year be a 69-year-old white man and then a 70-year-old white man. That is not what advertisers are looking for. Also, having to pay companies $787.5 million from time to time for defaming them is not good for business. In other words, having Lachlan run the company into the ground is not good for their financial interests.
There is also a legal issue here. The trust Murdoch created is an irrevocable trust. Irrevocable trusts can't be revoked. That's kind of what "irrevocable" means. In some limited circumstances they can be changed, if all the beneficiaries agree. In this case, they definitely don't agree. In June, the Nevada probate commissioner found that Murdoch could change the terms if he was acting for the "sole benefit of his heirs." Three of the heirs are now disputing that the change benefits them. In fact, they are arguing that it hurts them by allowing Lachlan to wreck the business in the long run.
If the three kids win, that could have a profound effect on Fox and also the Republican Party. They could make Fox less Trumpy and more Bushy, or something else that is still conservative but not culty. There is no indication how long the process will take to play out or when a decision is to be expected. In any event, any decision is certain to be appealed as high as possible. The case is technically about an inheritance dispute between a parent and his children. There aren't really any constitutional issues raised here, so the Supreme Court might not grant cert if anyone asks it. (V)