Rupert Murdoch, 92, to step down as chairman of Fox and NewsCorp after 70 years – with son Lachlan set to take over

Rupert Murdoch has announced that he is stepping down from his role as chairman of Fox and News Corp after 70 years.

The billionaire, 92, will be taking on a new role of Chairman Emeritus, with his son Lachlan becoming the sole chairman of both companies.

In a statement, Lachlan said: ‘On behalf of the FOX and News Corp boards of directors, leadership teams, and all the shareholders who have benefited from his hard work, I congratulate my father on his remarkable 70-year career. 

‘We thank him for his vision, his pioneering spirit, his steadfast determination, and the enduring legacy he leaves to the companies he founded and countless people he has impacted. 

‘We are grateful that he will serve as Chairman Emeritus and know he will continue to provide valued counsel to both companies’.  

Rupert Murdoch will be taking on a new role of Chairman Emeritus, with his son Lachlan becoming the sole chairman of both of Fox and News Corp

A spokesman confirmed that Lachlan’s new role will start following the Annual General Meetings in mid-November.  

The media mogul got into the newspaper business in the 1950s, and became a major Hollywood executive in 1985 when he purchased Twentieth Century Fox from oilman Marvin Davis for $600 million.

In a memo to employees, Murdoch wrote: ‘For my entire professional life, I have been engaged daily with news and ideas, and that will not change.

‘But the time is right for me to take on different roles, knowing that we have truly talented teams.’

This is a developing story.