Starcast Join the waitlist
Fresh Air

Fresh Air

How Rupert Murdoch built an empire and broke his family

Feb 3, 2026 · 44m

Coming soon to iPhone. Already have it? “Listen in Starcast” takes you straight there.

On this episode

About this episode

We go inside the real succession story within the Murdoch family media empire. It includes Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post. In 2023 Rupert Murdoch chose his eldest son and most conservative child, Lachlan, as his successor – buying out three of his other children from the family trust and estranging them in the process. “His dream was to build a family business. And what he built was a business that destroyed his family,” journalist Gabriel Sherman says. His book, ‘Bonfire of the Murdochs,’ also examines how the Murdochs changed politics on three continents over half a century. He spoke with guest interviewer Sam Fragoso. Later, TV critic David Bianculli reviews the…