Media Maneuvers

Lachlan Murdoch

Lachlan Murdoch is to head the version of 21st Century Fox that will be left following the sale of most of the company’s assets to the Walt Disney Company. Murdoch will become chairman and CEO of the new company, which be billed simply as “Fox.” The new entity includes Fox Sports, Fox Broadcasting Network, Fox News and the Fox Business Network. Murdoch’s appointment follows the announcements that Suzanne Scott will continue as CEO of Fox News and Fox Business Network, while Jack Abernethy remains CEO of Fox Television Stations. Several other Fox execs will be given new titles and responsibilities, including current Fox Sports president Eric Shanks, who is to become the division’s CEO, and Mike Biard, who will be upped to president of operations and distribution for Fox from his post as president of distribution for the Fox Networks Group. In addition to Murdoch’s new title, he is getting a hefty raise. Variety reported on Sept. 28 that his compensation has been hiked to $50.7 million, up from $20.6 million in 2017. All appointments will take effect on the close of 21st Century Fox's Disney transaction and the creation of Fox.

Julia Turner

The Los Angeles Times has named Julia Turner deputy managing editor, with responsibility for arts and entertainment coverage. She succeeds Mary McNamara, the Pulitzer Prize-winning critic and columnist who had requested a return to writing. Turner joins the Times from Slate, where she has been editor-in-chief since 2014. For a decade, she’s been one of the co-hosts of Slate’s “Culture Gabfest” podcast, which she’ll continue co-hosting from Los Angeles. Turner will be taking on a range of departments and products, including those that cover the arts, books, culture, film, music and television, as well as the businesses and technologies that drive them. She will report to Kimi Yoshino, who was recently promoted to senior deputy managing editor. Turner will join the Times in mid-November.

iHeartMedia has agreed to invest up to $10 million in High Times. The deal, which is expected to give iHeartMedia an approximately a 5 percent stake in High Times Holding Corp., would give the marijuana company access to iHeartMedia’s digital and radio advertising platforms. The deal follows High Times’ $11.2 million acquisition of Dope Media, the Seattle-based publisher of Dope Magazine, last month. The company has also recently picked up digital publication Green Rush Daily and Culture Magazine. According to the Wall Street Journal, High Times lost $24.7 million in 2017 on revenue of $14.5 million, most of which came from its festivals and events.