James Murdoch, the younger son of Australian-born media proprietor Rupert, has resigned from the board of directors of News Corp.
In a letter to the board, James cited "disagreements" about the company's editorial content as his reason for resigning, effective immediately.
James and his wife, Kathryn, are known to be disappointed with the denial of climate change among news outlets in Australia "given obvious evidence to the contrary".
They have also criticised the promotion of climate change skeptics during Australia’s bushfire crisis.
James was CEO of Twenty-First Century Fox before the split from News Corp and is a former chairman and CEO for Europe and Asia of News Corp.
His brother, Lachlan, is co-chair of News Corp.
Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch issued a statement: “We’re grateful to James for his many years of service to the company. We wish him the very best in his future endeavors.”
The full text of the letter sent to SEC in the US:
July 31, 2020
The Board of Directors
News Corporation
1211 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10036Ladies and Gentlemen:
I hereby tender my resignation as a member of the Board of Directors of News Corporation (the “Company”), effective as of the date hereof.
My resignation is due to disagreements over certain editorial content published by the Company’s news outlets and certain other strategic decisions.
Sincerely,
/s/
/s/ James R. Murdoch
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