CNN host gives scathing obituary of Rupert Murdoch’s career and the ‘mess left behind’

CNN host Abby Phillip has given a scathing obituary of Rupert Murdoch’s career and “the mess left behind”, after the 92-year-old media mogul announced on Thursday that he is stepping down as chairman of Fox Corporation and News Corp.

In a segment on the liberal network, Ms Phillip slammed Mr Murdoch’s legacy at Fox News, accusing him of enabling the creation of “outrage porn” and “partisan red meat” and of “stoking relentless culture wars.”

“American democracy is in perilous condition,” she said in the segment, which she also posted on X.

“The nation’s politics are poison, truth has become optional, instead of desired or even required.”

She continued: “So much of the current state of our democracy can be traced back to the beast of his creation.”

Her remarks were followed by a six-minute compilation of current and former Fox hosts, including Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Bill O’Reilly, and Brian Kilmeade, spouting conspiracy theories and offensive remarks on the right-wing network.

In one Fox & Friends clip from 2010, Mr Kilmeade says: “Not all Muslims are terrorists, but all terrorists are Muslims.”

The compilation also included instances of bogus conspiracies relating to the 2020 presidential election being floated on Fox News, for which the network was forced to pay a landmark $787.5m lawsuit to Dominion Voting Systems earlier this year.

Fox News also faces an unresolved lawsuit from fellow voting machine firm Smartmatic, which is seeking around $2.7bn.

“That is Fox News – 25 years of it,” Ms Phillip went on to say.

“Now you can cherry-pick any outlet’s blunders, mistakes, embarrassments, but the difference here is that what you saw are not anomalies. They are features, not a bug. One of their tricks of the trade is repetition – daily, even hourly.”

“If you say the talking point consistently enough, Americans become addicted to the outrage,” she continued, citing the lead-up to the January 6 insurrection.

The CNN host also pointed out that Mr Murdoch admitted in a deposition in the Dominion case that he let false election claims air on Fox News.

According to court documents of his sworn testimony, he said that his decision was “not red or blue, it is green”.

Ms Philip continued: “Murdoch… accelerated this idea that if someone called out a lie and called it a lie, you are a liberal stooge. You’re a hack not to be trusted. You are woke, whatever that means. And there is no doubt that it’s working – for his bottom line at least.

“But the question is, tonight, at what cost? At what cost to America, and at what cost to all of us?” she concluded.

The Independent has reached out to Fox News for comment.

Mr Murdoch announced on Thursday that his eldest son Lachlan Murdoch will be taking over as chairman of Fox Corporation and News Corp.

In a letter to colleagues, the Australian-born businessman, 92, who owns Fox News, newspapers The Times and The Sun, said it was the right time “to take on different roles”.

Mr Murdoch, who is believed to have a net worth of over $17bn, said he will become chair emeritus of the two corporations as he vowed to remain “engaged” in the businesses, which span the US, UK, Europe and Australia.

In his parting statement, the media mogul, who said he was “proud” of his achievements, criticised the “elites” – and the media “in cahoots” with them – as he promised to “be involved every day in the contest of ideas”.

Mr Murdoch acquired 20th Century-Fox, a movie studio, in 1985 before launching broadcast network Fox News in 1986.

He also owns The New York Post and the Wall Street Journal, which he acquired in 1976 and 2007 respectively.

Lachlan Murdoch also released an announcement congratulating his father and his legacy.

He said: “On behalf of the Fox and News Corp boards of directors, leadership teams, and all the shareholders who have benefited from his hard work, I congratulate my father on his remarkable 70-year career.

“We thank him for his vision, his pioneering spirit, his steadfast determination, and the enduring legacy he leaves to the companies he founded and countless people he has impacted. We are grateful that he will serve as chairman emeritus and know he will continue to provide valued counsel to both companies.”