Move over Succession, Murdoch’s real-life drama is set to play out in court

Rupert Murdoch claims never to have watched Succession, despite allegedly putting a clause about the hit TV show in his divorce agreement with Jerry Hall.

The fictional saga about the internecine struggles of a powerful US media dynasty is loosely based on the billionaire media mogul. However, the real-life Murdoch appears to have lined up his own succession plans in a more orderly fashion: son Lachlan is already the head of Fox Corporation and ready to take the reins.

Rupert Murdoch could give evidence in the case as soon as this week.Credit: AP

Now, though, an existential threat has emerged in the form of a multibillion-dollar legal battle.

Fox is facing two defamation claims brought by the manufacturers of voting machines, which claim the network knowingly spread lies about the 2020 US presidential election being stolen from Donald Trump.

The case, scheduled to begin in the United States this week, poses the biggest challenge to Murdoch’s empire since the phone-hacking scandal — and threatens to cast a shadow over his legacy. Murdoch himself is expected to be called as a witness, taking the stand as soon as this week. It will be the first public grilling of the mogul since British MPs and the Leveson Inquiry questioned the billionaire more than a decade ago.

Reputational risk is high. Murdoch is already facing embarrassment: his fifth engagement collapsed after just two weeks, while an explosive Vanity Fair article last week revealed salacious details about his relationship with Jerry Hall and the state of the 92-year-old’s health.

“So far, nothing has really gone Rupert’s way,” says Alice Enders at Enders Analysis. “All this is embarrassing. It’s all bad for Rupert’s legacy.”

Fox’s legal woes date back to the aftermath of the 2020 US election, when the opinionated news channel was battling to keep hold of viewers loyal to Trump who was pushing the false idea that Joe Biden won because of large numbers of fraudulent votes.

Internal messages from senior Fox executives, made public as part of the trial, show they feared that Trump supporters would switch to rival Right-wing networks if the channel did not back the Republican.

Two technology companies, Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic USA, have accused Fox of knowingly airing false claims that their systems were used to rig votes and steal the election.

Murdoch admitted in a deposition that some Fox presenters had endorsed the idea of a stolen election on air. Asked if he could have intervened to prevent the false claims from being broadcast, the media baron said: “I could have. But I didn’t.”

This apparent awareness is at the heart of the legal challenge launched by Dominion, which argues that Fox knew the claims were false but broadcast them anyway. In a raft of explosive emails and text messages, Murdoch, senior executives and presenters voiced their concerns that the channel was airing false claims peddled by Trump and his team.

Murdoch described claims the election was stolen as “really crazy” and “damaging”, adding it was “very hard to credibly claim foul everywhere”.

Meanwhile, controversial Fox host Tucker Carlson described the idea that Dominion had rigged votes as “shockingly reckless” and described the former president as a “demonic force”. Raj Shah, a top Fox executive, said the claims were “outlandish” and “mind-blowingly nuts”. One producer on Laura Ingraham’s show wrote: “This dominion s--- is going to give me a f------ aneurysm.”

Protesters participate in their weekly Truth Tuesday demonstration at News Corp headquarters.Credit: Getty

Smartmatic is seeking $US2.7 billion ($4.02 billion) in damages, while Dominion wants $US1.6 billion ($2.4 billion) The trial is due to begin with opening statements on Monday (US time) and run for five weeks. To win, the two companies must prove that Fox either knew the statements it aired were false or recklessly disregarded their accuracy. In a blow to Fox’s case, the channel has been barred from using the defence that it was merely reporting “newsworthy” claims.

In a further setback, the judge has threatened sanctions against the channel over accusations its lawyers withheld critical details about the role Murdoch played at Fox News. Superior court judge Eric Davis said the company’s handling of the case left it with a “credibility problem”.

“From what I have seen, Fox could be in some serious trouble,” says one industry source, adding that the broadcaster could be liable to “punitive damages”.

Successful claims by Dominion and Smartmatic could open the floodgates to more lawsuits. Alice Enders says Fox’s huge profits mean it can absorb the financial blow. But she adds: “I think the fact that litigation is going to go on and on makes it very difficult to value Fox because it’s got these potential liabilities.”

Dominion has claimed $US1.6 billion in damages, which if successful, would be the largest defamation payout in US history.Credit: Bloomberg

More fundamentally, industry watchers warn the trial could have a damaging impact on Murdoch’s reputation and legacy — just as he looks to hand over the reins. A shareholder suit filed directly against Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch alleges that their failure to act on “red flags” exposed the company to the defamation suits in the first place, highlighting the risk of personal liability for the family. Lachlan is also expected to take the stand.

“The cash by itself is not so much an issue, but it may raise questions about the management decision-making and compliance,” the industry source says.

Rupert Murdoch has already suffered a shareholder backlash this year, after his attempt to merge Fox and News Corp, the parent company of titles including The Wall Street Journal, The Sun and The Times, was blocked.

The deal was seen as a way of consolidating power as the billionaire gears up for a handover.

Many also question Murdoch’s decision not to settle the Dominion case — a strategy employed during the phone-hacking scandal. News Corp is still forking out hundreds of millions of dollars to settle those claims.

Fighting the Dominion and Smartmatic cases in court has already aired Fox’s dirty laundry and threatens to turn up yet more embarrassing details once the trial begins.

“It is riveting that Fox lawyers have failed to stop the trial,” says Enders. “I would have thought that someone should have told Rupert many months ago to settle this, even though it may appear to be some form of admission.”

As Murdoch prepares to take the stand, he knows it is not only his finances on the line but his reputation.

The Telegraph, London