Table of Biography
Rupert Murdoch is a well-known businessman, media personality, and investor from Australia. Moreover, Rupert Murdoch is the Executive Chairman of News Corporation and Chairman of Fox Corporation.
Early Life
Rupert Murdoch was born on the 11th of March 1931, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. His birth name is Keith Rupert Murdoch and is an American by nationality.
As of 2023, he is 92 years old and has a birth sign of Pisces. In addition, he has his belief in Christianity religion while belonging to the White Australian ethnicity. Moreover, he became a citizen of the United States in the year 1985. Talking about his parents, he is the son of Sir Keith Murdoch (father) and Dame Elisabeth Greene (mother).
Professionally, his father was a war correspondent and later a regional newspaper magnate owning two newspapers in Adelaide and a radio station in a faraway mining town, and chairman of the Herald and Weekly Times publishing company. He grew up with his three sisters whose names are Janet Calvert-Jones, Anne Kantor, and Helen Handbury.
Caption: Rupert’s childhood photo with his father (Source: Prabook)
Education
In terms of his academic qualification, he went to Geelong Grammar School. During his high school days, he was co-editor of the school’s official journal, The Corian, and editor of the student journal If Revived.
Meanwhile, he was also athletic and took his school’s cricket team to the National Junior Finals. After that, he enrolled at Worcester College, Oxford where he studied Philosophy, Politics, and Economics. Moreover, he earned an MA degree.
Professional Career
Talking about his professional career, Rupert Murdoch’s father was a regional newspaper magnate. Moreover, his father was the owner of two newspapers in Adelaide, South Australia, and a radio station in a faraway mining town. Meanwhile, his father was the chairman of the powerful Herald and Weekly Times publishing company.
In addition, his father taught him about businesses so that he would later take over the family business. Rupert used to work part-time at the Melbourne Helard. Similarly, he worked as a sub-editor with the Daily Express for two years. His father died in the year 1952, and Rupert took over his father’s business. From the 1950s to the 1960s, he acquired several publishing outlets in Australia and New Zealand.
Caption: Rupert is the Executive Chairman of News Corporation (Source: The Guardian)
After acquiring the News of the World, he expanded into the United Kingdom in the year 1969. Soon after that, he acquired The Sun. Then, he moved to New York City in the United States to expand there. In 1981, he bought his first British broadcast, The Times. Moreover, he left his Australian citizenship for the legal requirement for US TV network ownership and became a US citizen in the year 1985.
His holding company, News Corporation, purchased Twentieth Century Fox in 1985, HarperCollins in 1989, and The Wall Street Journal in 2007. In 1990, he established the British broadcaster BSkyB. In the 1990s, he expanded into Asian networks and South American television. By the year 2000, his company had acquired over 800 businesses in more than 50 countries. In July 2012, he resigned as News International’s director.
In 2013, Murdoch split his media empire into two separate companies: News Corp, which focuses on news and publishing, and 21st Century Fox, which includes film and television assets. Later, in 2019, Murdoch sold 21st Century Fox to Disney, retaining only a few assets, including Fox News and the New York Post.
Rupert Murdoch – Awards
Murdoch has received several awards and recognition throughout his career. In 1984, he was awarded a knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II for his services to the newspaper industry.
Later, he was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in the year 1998. He was named “CEO of the Year” by Chief Executive magazine in the year 2000. Similarly, in the year 2003, he was awarded the Order of Australia, the country’s highest civilian honor, for his contributions to the media industry and the community.
Murdoch received the Global Leadership Award from the U.S.-India Business Council in the year 2005. In 2007, he was inducted into the Business Hall of Fame by the Junior Achievement Worldwide organization. He was honored with the Anti-Defamation League’s International Leadership Award for his support of Jewish causes and his efforts to combat anti-Semitism in the year 2016.
Net Worth 2024
Being a businessman, investor, and media tycoon, he earned a huge sum of money and lived a luxurious lifestyle. As of 2023, his net worth is estimated at around $9 billion and his company News Corp owns top publishing outlets across the world.
Relationship Status
In his career, Rupert Murdoch has married four times. Firstly, he married Patricia Booker in 1956. And, the couple shared a daughter, Prudence, and the couple divorced in the year 1967.
Then, he married Anna Torv in the year 1967 and shared three kids whose names are Elisabeth, Lachlan, and James. Moreover, the couple divorced in the year 1999, and his ex-wife Anna received $1.2 billion in assets in the settlement.
Caption: Rupert Murdoch with her fiancé, Ann Lesley Smith (Source: New York Post)
Body Measurement
Caption: Rupert Murdoch posing for a photo (Source: Daily Mail)