Rupert Murdoch descending into 'erratic' behavior amid Fox News' legal problems: analysis

Billionaire media tycoon Rupert Murdoch is making "erratic" decisions on the leadership of Fox News amid the network's legal woes, reported Max Tani for Semafor on Monday.

"Last October, Murdoch launched a plan to merge his two public companies, News Corp and Fox Corp," said the report. "In November, Semafor reported that News Corp would oust Matt Murray, the editor-in-chief of the Wall Street Journal, and replace him with Sunday Times editor Emma Tucker. Later that month, the editor of the Australian, Chris Dore, abruptly resigned. In January, Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch announced that they had withdrawn their proposal to potentially re-combine Fox Corp and News Corp amid widespread skepticism from shareholders ... On April 18, Murdoch — who had fought to go to trial with Dominion Voting Systems — abruptly reversed course and green lit a massive $787 million settlement with the voting services company."

This is even spilling over into Murdoch's personal life, the report noted.

"On March 20, Murdoch announced through New York Post columnist Cindy Adams that he would marry Ann Lesley Smith, a former dental hygienist turned conservative radio host. ('I was very nervous. I dreaded falling in love — but I knew this would be my last. It better be. I’m happy,' he told Adams," said the report. "On April 4, Murdoch called off the engagement."

The most notable massive shakeup is the firing of Tucker Carlson, Fox News' controversial primetime megastar, although according to the Wall Street Journal, it was actually his son Lachlan and Fox CEO Suzanne Scott who made that decision. Carlson had pushed a lot of the conspiracy theories that led to the Dominion lawsuit, and a separate suit by former producer Abby Grossberg describes a toxic work environment on his set, but the Journal reports the reason he was fired was that he attacked network employees in private.

Fox News' problems are far from over, even with the Dominion lawsuit settled. Another $2.7 billion lawsuit is being brought by Smartmatic, another voting equipment manufacturer, and the network is also trying to renegotiate its licensing fees, a critical source of the network's revenue, with major cable providers.

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