Fox Nominates New Board Members With Rupert Murdoch Leaving

(Bloomberg) -- Fox Corp., which announced Thursday that founder Rupert Murdoch is stepping down as chairman, nominated two new members to its board, including former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott.

Abbott and Margaret “Peggy” Johnson, a veteran technology executive, will stand for election at the company’s annual meeting in November, according to a filing Friday. They’re slated to replace exiting members Jacques Nasser and Anne Dias.

Dias, the founder and chief executive officer of Aragon Global Management, urged Fox management to be more critical of President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021 assault on the US Capitol by his supporters, according to testimony that was part of Dominion Voting Systems’ defamation suit against the company. Fox settled the suit earlier this year for a record $787.5 million.

Fox Corp., home to Fox News and the Fox broadcast network, has been run since 2018 by Rupert’s oldest son, Chief Executive Officer Lachlan Murdoch, who will become the sole chairman when his father steps down.

Abbott was Australia’s prime minister from 2013 to 2015. He led the country’s Liberal Party from 2019 to 2015 and served in parliament for 25 years. 

Prior to public office, Abbott worked as a journalist, including at the Murdoch-owned newspaper the Australian.

Rupert Murdoch earned $22.9 million in pay last fiscal year, an increase from the previous period, the filing showed, while Lachlan earned $21.8 million, which was little changed.

(Updates with background on Dias in third paragraph.)

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