Media

Murdoch adds former Speaker Paul Ryan to Fox board


Fox has added former House speaker Paul Ryan to its board, as the Murdoch family reshapes the company following the sale of its Hollywood assets to Disney.

In addition to Mr Ryan, Fox announced two other board members: Anne Dias, chief executive of investment fund Aragon Global Holdings, and Chase Carey, who now runs Formula One but was a Fox and News Corp executive for many years and regarded by Rupert Murdoch as a possible successor. 

Lachlan Murdoch, who is running Fox, said the additions will help guide a “new chapter” for the company. “We are thrilled to welcome our new colleagues to the Fox board,” he said. 

After having secured regulatory clearances for the sale of its film and TV studios to Disney, Fox will from Wednesday be a much smaller company, focused on news and sports. The cable network Fox News will make up more than three-fourths of total profits, industry analysts have calculated. 

Mr Ryan, who was the Republican vice-presidential nominee in 2012 when Mitt Romney was defeated by Barack Obama, is the latest conservative politician to come into the Murdoch orbit. Fox News hired former Trump adviser Sebastian Gorka in 2017, a few months after he left the White House, and Republican Congressman Trey Gowdy was hired as a contributor earlier this year.

Rupert Murdoch, who is co-chairman of Fox, has previously commended Mr Ryan, tweeting in 2012 that he was the “perfect choice” for vice-president. Mr Ryan decided not to run for re-election in last year’s midterms, when the Democrats won back the House and Mr Ryan was succeeded as Speaker by Nancy Pelosi.

The board announcement comes a day after Fox News hired Donna Brazile, former Democratic National Committee chair, as a political contributor. 

With the prospects for Fox News now central to the fortunes of its parent company, investors will be more attuned controversies at the network. In the past month, remarks by two of its star hosts have caused an outcry and a New Yorker story detailed the close relationship between Mr Trump and the network. Hope Hicks, former communications director for Mr Trump’s White House, is now running public relations at Fox. 

Fox News came under fire after Fox News personality Jeanine Pirro questioned whether a Muslim lawmaker would be loyal to the US constitution. Fox News publicly condemned the comments, saying that they “do not reflect those of the network”. Tucker Carlson, another Fox News host, was also criticised for incendiary comments he made years ago and which were rediscovered this year.



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