Trump stumbled on Epstein, and Rupert Murdoch has pounced

If you want to understand the delicate balancing acts Donald Trump and Rupert Murdoch are executing as they battle for the soul of the Republican Party, look no further than the president’s posts on Truth Social the day he declared war on the media mogul and The Wall Street Journal.

On Saturday, July 19, Trump announced his $US10 billion defamation suit over the WSJ article detailing a lewd birthday card he allegedly sent to Jeffrey Epstein years before Epstein’s sex-trafficking convictions.

This isn’t the first time Donald Trump and Rupert Murdoch have faced off for control of the Republican Party.Credit: Fairfax Media

“We have just filed a powerhouse lawsuit against everyone involved,” Trump said of the “false, malicious, defamatory”, article. This included WSJ parent News Corp – publisher of The Australian – and Murdoch himself.

But just hours earlier, Trump appealed to his millions of followers on Truth Social to watch presenter Sean Hannity on one of his favoured news networks, Fox News: “He really gets it!” Trump told his followers. Fox is, of course, controlled by the same Murdoch family trust that controls News Corp.

The Epstein issue has been an open sore for Trump. His MAGA base has been in a frenzy for years over claims that the financier operated a sex-trafficking ring for the world’s elites which they despise so much. This month, Trump backed away from promises to release all the Epstein files, and he is still dealing with the fallout. The WSJ story was the last thing he needed.

News Corp insiders, who are not commenting on the record as the legal battle plays out, were happily praising their “superstar” WSJ editor Emma Tucker for the story, but Trump has made it clear – online and in court documents – that he appealed to Murdoch before the story was published.

The problem for Rupert is that pandering to his Fox audience means pandering to Trump, and he has never been a fan of Trump’s political aspirations.

That sends a clear message about who Trump thinks was orchestrating events. And so does the shot-across-the-bows comment from News Corp insiders that the Epstein issue is “not working well in the polls for Trump”; Murdoch and his personal interests, as ever, are at the centre of this battle.

But this is a tricky theatre of war where neither side can afford to lose the massive Fox audience of loyal Republican voters.

Trump needs these viewers to help him stay in power – aided by the fawning Fox talent who are so attuned to his cause that many have been recruited to senior roles at the White House, including Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Murdoch also needs these viewers if he wants to remain such a rich and powerful political force in the US.

It means Murdoch has had to draw careful battle lines between his own media fiefdoms.

News Corp offered the full-throated defence of the WSJ story: “We have full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of our reporting, and will vigorously defend against any lawsuit,” it said.

The WSJ doubled down, reporting that Attorney-General Pam Bondi informed Trump in May that his name appeared multiple times in the government’s files on Epstein.

The message from inside News Corp is Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch are determined not to cave in to Trump and will go to court if necessary.

The Washington Post quoted Rupert telling associates: “I’m 94 years old, and I will not be intimidated.”

Meanwhile at Fox, the lawsuit and allegations have warranted a tepid mention at best.

Australian columnist Miranda Divine, now at News Corp’s Republican mouthpiece, the New York Post, described the WSJ reports as a “nothingburger”.

And if this delicate dance can be maintained, it will be lucrative for Murdoch.

Both News Corp and Fox shares hit record highs in February, just weeks after Trump’s inauguration.

And there was no hiding Trump’s role in the success of Fox News – the most profitable Fox Corp business – when Lachlan presented its most recent quarterly results in May.

“Nowhere is Fox’s leadership more evident than Fox News,” he told analysts and investors. Ratings were up 30 per cent for the network in April, and it clinched top spot on prime-time ratings last week over mainstream networks such as CBS and ABC.

This is a feat unheard of for a cable news network. “The momentum that we’re seeing within Fox News, obviously driven first by really sort of record-setting audience and share, that’s flown through nicely to the revenue line,” Lachlan said.

The problem for Rupert is that pandering to his Fox audience means pandering to Trump, and he has never been a fan of Trump’s political aspirations.

Murdoch publicly supported other candidates during the 2016 campaign before embracing Trump when his candidacy became inevitable.

Rupert Murdoch, pictured with son Lachlan, says that at 94 years old, he won’t be intimidated by Trump.Credit: Getty Images

He has tolerated Trump’s White House, and maintained close ties, but quickly tried to move the Republican base on to fresh leadership after the 2020 election loss.

Murdoch said at the time: “We want to make Trump a non-person.”

That manoeuvre ended badly when Fox’s acceptance of the result led to viewers defecting in droves to channels more loyal to Trump’s claims that the election was stolen.

It promised to be a financial disaster and Fox scrambled back into favour with an about-face supporting the stolen election theory. It is still counting the cost.

In 2023, Fox paid Dominion Voting Systems $US787 million to settle claims the network promoted lies about the 2020 presidential election.

It still faces a multibillion-dollar lawsuit from another voting systems provider, Smartmatic, which will go to court next year if Fox does not make an offer to settle.

For Murdoch, the Epstein scandal serves as another opportunity to test Trump’s hold on the Republican Party, and it should not prove as costly as the $US10 billion Trump headline suggests.

A quick look at the details of his case reveals problems, starting with the fact that it appears to fall over at the first hurdle of failing to notify the WSJ of the lawsuit at least five days before filing it.

But that is the least of Trump’s issues.

“The complaint is full of sound and fury but lacks legal merit,” Leonard M. Niehoff, a University of Michigan law professor who specialises in media law, told The Washington Post.

“It shouldn’t intimidate a news organisation with good lawyers. The Wall Street Journal has those.”

The high hurdles for Trump include having to meet the “actual malice” standard which means proving the WSJ knew the information they published was false.

Ironically, this is what Fox was accused of doing in promoting Trump’s stolen election claim in 2020.

That legal battle taught Murdoch a lesson on the damage that can be done by the legal discovery process, which produced embarrassing and costly revelations – including the contempt both Murdoch and Fox held for Trump’s stolen election claims and the man himself.

A text surfaced from Tucker Carlson – a Fox network star at that time – referring to Trump saying, “I hate him passionately.”

If Trump continues to pursue this case, the legal discovery process on his relationship with Epstein could further inflame his support base.

A clear opportunity to fatally damage Trump’s political standing with the Epstein scandal could be the avenue Murdoch is looking to exploit.

And if it doesn’t damage Trump? Both men are ruthlessly transactional and have made up before.

“We don’t want to antagonise Trump further,” Murdoch said in a memo uncovered by the Dominion case.

Murdoch explained in a later deposition relating to that matter: “He had a very large following, and they were probably mostly viewers of Fox, so it would have been stupid.”

And we know Trump’s proven ability to chicken out and distract.

As he posted to Truth Social followers this week, survival comes first.

“Winning is important, but survival is even more important. If you don’t survive, you don’t get to fight the next battle.”

Wise words for both sides as his latest battle with Murdoch gathers a head of steam.

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