Murdoch family holds its breath as future of media empire hangs in the balance
The fate of Rupert Murdoch's vast media empire, including Fox News, is now in the hands of a Reno probate commissioner, who will decide whether the 93-year-old media mogul can change his succession plan to preserve the right-wing editorial bent of his influential outlets.
Murdoch and his eldest children descended on a Reno courthouse to appear for evidentiary hearings in a secret trial to determine whether the 93-year-old can alter the family trust that he established decades ago, giving his four oldest children equal votes over the future of his conservative media empire after he dies.
Murdoch wants to amend the trust so that his eldest son and chosen successor, Lachlan, will remain in charge for decades to come.
Rupert Murdoch, centre, and his wife Elena Zhukov...
