Fox's $787.5 mn deal saved it from a long trial, says Lachlan Murdoch

By Gerry Smith

Fox Corp. Chief Executive Officer Lachlan Murdoch said the company’s $787.5 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems Inc. over a defamation lawsuit was a “business decision” made to “avoid the acrimony” of a years-long court case.
 

Murdoch’s remarks are the first public comments he’s made to investors about the record settlement reached last month with Dominion, which accused Fox of promoting false theories that the voting machine manufacturer rigged the 2020 presidential election. 

During an earnings call Tuesday, Murdoch didn’t directly address the ouster of Tucker Carlson, who had one of the most popular programs on cable TV before he was fired when the trial revealed messages in which he bad-mouthed guests and colleagues. Murdoch did however say that Fox News’s prime-time programming strategy wouldn’t change.

Fox is facing yet another, potentially more damaging lawsuit from voting machine manufacturer Smartmatic. Murdoch called this one a “fundamentally different case” from the dispute with Dominion and said the company was prepared to defend itself in a trial that could begin in 2025.

Murdoch’s comments came as the media company, controlled by the Murdoch family, reported revenue that rose 18% to $4.08 billion in the fiscal third quarter, beating Wall Street’s projections. Adjusted earnings also surpassed estimates. Fox’s broadcast of the Super Bowl in February was a key driver for advertising revenue growth of 43% in the quarter. Shares were up 2% at 10:45 a.m. in New York.

The parent of FS1 and the Fox broadcast network said, however, that the company posted a quarterly net loss of $50 million compared to net income of $290 million reported in the quarter the prior year, “primarily due to charges associated with legal settlement costs” at Fox News.

Viewership of Fox News in prime time fell nearly 30% in the week after Carlson’s dismissal, according to Nielsen data.