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| February 27, 2009 |
| Rupert Murdoch Suffers Rotten Week |
| By Kevin McCauley |
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It has been a rotten week for Rupert Murdoch.
The hard-driving News Corp. CEO ate much crow yesterday with an apology for the bone-headed decision of New York Post editor-in-chief Col Allan to run a cartoon of a bullet-ridden chimp that some translated as the assassination of President Obama. That followed a week of noisy protests against the Post and calls for the head of Allan, Rupe’s protégé. What took you so long, Mr. Murdoch?
 The “I’m Sorry” statement came only after the protests expanded from New York to the national stage after NAACP chief Ben Jealous ripped the cartoon. “It is hard not to interpret the cartoon, which was juxtaposed to a photo of President Obama, as an encouraging sign to those who would assassinate our 44th president because of the color of his skin,” said Jealous, who wants a meeting with Murdoch, Allan and cartoonist Sean Delonas dumped and more diversity at the money-losing Post. Murdoch has his hands full indeed.
The mea culpa wasn’t the biggest blow to News Corp., which posted a whopping $6.4B loss in its latest quarter due to write-offs. The decision of president & COO Peter Chernin to depart when his contract expires June 30 sent the company’s stock reeling. Shares crumpled 4.3 percent to under $7 a-share (off 75 percent from its peak) on the news of Chernin’s departure.
The 57-year-old Chernin manages News Corp.’s Hollywood operations (Fox Broadcasting and 20th Century Fox film studio) He is credited for blockbusters such as “Titantic,” “Slumdog Millionaire” (winner of the ’08 ‘best picture Oscar) “The Simpsons,” (TV's longest running series), “Beverly Hills 90210” and “American Idol.” In other words, Chernin managed the money-making portion of News Corp.
The New York Times says Chernin is “one of a very small handful of executives” who “excelled at both the internal dynamics and the rapidly changing economic prospects of the entertainment industry.” The Los Angeles Times reports Chernin’s exit means News Corp. is now “without its ambassador to Wall Street and Hollywood.”
Media baron Murdoch, who has ink flowing through his veins, now plans to oversee Chernin’s west coast operations. With all due respect, isn’t it a little late in the game for Murdoch to transform himself into a Hollywood tycoon?
Murdoch also will get more involved with his prized Wall Street Journal property as the paper moves from Wall Street to News Corp.’s 6th Ave headquarters. There’s only so much a guy can do, especially one that turns 78 next month. |
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