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Sex, Lies and the Murdoch Succession

De: Paul Barry

Narrado por: Robert Meldrum

At the age of 82, Rupert Murdoch is divorcing his third wife Wendi Deng and gearing up for the toughest challenge of his life: to hand his empire on to his children. But is this the end of the Murdoch dynasty? Lachlan doesn't want to succeed him. James is in disgrace. And Elisabeth is not a serious contender.

His grip on the group has also been weakened by scandal. His British tabloids have been caught hacking phones and bribing officials on an industrial scale. At least twenty journalists will soon face trial for hacking and corruption and could be jailed.

But Rupert thrives on crisis. He has recently split News Corp in two, doubled his fortune to US$9 billion, and is bouncing around like a man in his prime. So can he win this one last battle and keep it all in the family?

©2013 Paul Barry (P)2013 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd.

Gripping and mind boggling

This book is presented in four parts: a history of the Murdoch empire and the man himself; a history and character study of his three children by his second wife (who are the ones most involved in or around his business); a history of the illegal activities (such as phone hacking and corruption) by parts of the Murdoch press; and a description of the fallout of the illegal activities for the corporation and the Murdochs themselves. This part also deals with who might run what when Rupert is no longer in charge.

While the whole book is good for me the best part by far was part III which described the illegal activities and the attempted cover up. Some of this was gripping and I had to force myself to stop listening just so I could get some sleep before work the next day! The callousness and arrogance was mind boggling at times. Parts I and II were also interesting especially reading about the capabilities and characters of his children.

I've been a fan of Paul Barry ever since reading The Rise and Rise of Kerry Packer and have also enjoyed his stints on Media Watch.This book another great addition to his work and is well worth your money.