The American basic cable and satellite news television channel is set to undergo the long-awaited generational transition. Rupert Murdoch, the American-Australian media mogul is handing over his position to his sons James, 42, and Lachlan, 43, Variety reports. The younger Murdoch will be taking over the CEO position, while Lachlan will be the company's new co-executive chairman alongside the 84-year-old media titan.
The vision is for both sons to jointly run the company the same way Rupert and Chase Carey, who is to step down from his chief operating officer position, did in the previous years. James, will not be getting full-control as the patriarch but will remain actively involved to the day-to-day operations of the company. "He's not going anywhere," sources said.
This move had been in the works with both assuming positions in the company March of 2014: Lachlan was named non-exec chairman of 21st Century Fox and News Corp. while James was named co-COO of Fox working under Carey.
Both have since become hands-on in the dealings of the company, digging into the details of budgeting and long-term planning with division heads.
"Anybody who has not been expecting the Murdoch family or the sons to take over has not been paying attention. They've been actively positioning this," Rich Greenfield, media analyst with BTIG research said. "The sons are ready to step into more prominent roles."
Meanwhile, people in the stock market are not a bit worried with the price of 21st Century Fox staying stable and unmoved. It also means that those in the know on Wall Street understand that the change in leadership does not have any negative effect on the company's strategy and direction, Forbes reports.
Even Roger Ailes, head of highly profitable Fox News cable, is not affected by the shift. In an interview with Variety, he states how his liaison with the patriarch will continue through the transition: "My job is to report to Rupert, and I expect that to continue."
Meanwhile, the announcement for 21st Century Fox, Inc. did not include any information on leadership with News Corp, Wall Street Journal, The New York Post, and Harper Collins.
