prevails

Fox Corp. CEO and favored son Lachlan Murdoch prevails in family succession drama

The closely watched Murdoch succession drama has ended with a $3.3-billion settlement that gives Lachlan Murdoch control of the family’s influential media assets, including Fox News, the New York Post and the Wall Street Journal.

Fox Corp. on Monday announced the “mutual resolution” of the legal wrangling that had clouded the future direction of the television company and the Murdoch-controlled publishing firm News Corp. The dollar figure was confirmed by a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment publicly.

The succession dispute flared into public view last year after three of Murdoch’s children attempted to block proposed changes that patriarch Rupert Murdoch wanted to make to his trust to cement his oldest son Lachlan’s grip on power. In December, a Nevada probate commissioner rejected Rupert Murdoch’s request to amend his trust amid the opposition by his three adult children.

The 94-year-old mogul wanted to ensure the conservative leanings of his media empire would carry on and felt that Lachlan Murdoch, who serves as chairman and chief executive of Fox, was the most ideologically compatible with his own point of view.

Until now, Rupert’s four oldest children — Prudence MacLeod, Elisabeth Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch and James Murdoch — were set to jointly inherit control of the businesses. But, as part of the settlement, Prudence, Elisabeth and James agreed to relinquish their shares in the family trust and give up any roles going forward.

Two new trusts will be established. One will benefit Lachlan Murdoch and Rupert Murdoch’s two youngest daughters, Chloe and Grace Murdoch, who were born during his union with ex-wife Wendi Deng.

The second trust will benefit Prudence, Elisabeth, James and their descendants. Fox Corp. separately announced a public offering of 16.9 million shares of Fox Corp. stock, currently held by the Murdoch Family Trust.

Those proceeds, along with the sale of 14.2 million shares of publishing company News Corp.’s Class B common stock, will fund the new trust.

Fox said Monday that voting control of the Fox and News Corp. shares held by this trust “will rest solely with Lachlan Murdoch through his appointed managing director” through 2050.

“Fox’s board of directors welcomes these developments and believes that the leadership, vision and management by the Company’s CEO and Executive Chair, Lachlan Murdoch, will continue to be important to guiding the Company’s strategy and success,” the board said in a statement.

Fox said it is not selling any of its stock.

The family will sell nonvoting Class B shares and hold on to its voting shares — and control. Rupert Murdoch will remain the company’s chairman emeritus.

During a six-month period following the stock sales, James, Prudence and Elisabeth will be expected to “sell their de minimis personal holdings in FOX and News Corp.” to severe all ties with the companies.

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Kennedy prevails over Eagle Rock in thrilling, 15-touchdown QB duel

Drenched in sweat and tears, Diego Montes could finally gasp for air in the sweltering heat of the San Fernando Valley summer.

It wasn’t the high-90s heat that lingered through the three-plus hour City Section showdown Friday night that left the five-foot-11 senior quarterback of Granada Hills Kennedy emotional, burrowed into family members’ arms after the game ended. Montes had just surged into the end zone for a winning five-yard rushing touchdown — the last of a career-best seven-touchdown performance — in a 59-56 triumph over Eagle Rock and quarterback Liam Pasten.

If Friday served as a litmus test for the City Section squads, both vying for league titles (Eagle Rock in the Northern League and Kennedy in the Mission League), their quarterbacks more than met the challenge.

An hour before kickoff, three Kennedy students called Montes over to the football field’s side gate.

“How many touchdowns are you going to score tonight?” one student asked.

Montes replied: “I got five.”

He didn’t just secure five. His seven scores — three passing and four rushing — combined with his 280 passing yards and 164 rushing yards helped Kennedy rally, even when the Golden Cougars trailed by two scores at two points in the game.

“That’s the most tired I’ve ever been in a game,” said Montes, who scored the winning touchdown with just 11 seconds remaining. “My last first game. It means so much to me.”

Montes connected with Jay Saucillo three times — the last of which placed Kennedy ahead 51-50 with 4:11 left.

Pasten, who tallied 389 passing yards, seven passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown against the Golden Cougars, had more than enough time to strike back. Battling blow for blow with Montes — who earned All-City honors alongside Pasten a year ago — the Eagles senior tossed a 15-yard touchdown to Aidan Sierra to give Eagle Rock a 56-51 lead with 1:11 left.

“I was in the twilight zone for a little bit,” Kennedy coach Troy Cassidy said about the back-and-forth battle. “It was such a hot day today and just draining. And there were so many plays run between two no-huddle offenses.”

While Pasten is well on his way of surpassing the 36 passing touchdowns he had last season ultimately couldn’t lead Eagle Rock to victory, he embraced Montes after the game and complimented him on his standout performance.

Montes jogged to Eagle Rock’s sideline as the team prepared for the bus ride home, making a beeline for Eagles coach Andy Moran to shake his hand.

For Pasten and Montes, this is what the City Section is all about.

“Don’t underestimate us,” Pasten said. “A lot of people look towards that Southern Section, but I mean, City Section players got heart. They battle every game. So just don’t, don’t underestimate the talent.”

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Dodgers vs. Padres lives up to the hype as L.A. prevails in 10th

Rivalries in baseball can sometimes be difficult to define.

There are the obvious ones. Like the Yankees and Red Sox. The Cardinals and Cubs. And for the Dodgers, going back to their founding in New York, a generations-old hatred for the Giants.

“By definition, you can’t just decide to choose your rivalry because one team gets good,” veteran third baseman Max Muncy said. “And for the Dodgers, that’ll always be the Giants.”

But periodically, there are other emotionally charged, highly competitive, and simmering clashes; often taking root between simultaneous contenders, bad-blooded division foes or closely situated fan bases sharing a mutual dislike.

Over the last half-decade, that’s what has slowly been built between the Dodgers and San Diego Padres.

And in their first renewal of the season on Monday night at Petco Park, an 8-7 extra-innings win for the Dodgers, the two clubs lived up to the matchup’s ever-growing hype.

“Both teams are good. The fan bases are very adamant. Both environments have been hostile over the last several years,” Muncy said. “It brings everything that a rivalry should bring.”

A traditional rivalry, it’s still not quite. The Dodgers have as many World Series titles as the Padres do playoff appearances (eight each). Since the Padres last won the National League West in 2006, the Dodgers have done it 13 times.

But after three playoff meetings in the last five years, and a seemingly tight division race on tap this season, Dodgers-Padres is now a full-blown, certifiably legitimate rivalry — at least in the eyes of Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.

“I think it’s become a rivalry,” Roberts said, “because the stakes have been higher.”

That was certainly the case last October, when the Dodgers outlasted the Padres in a memorable five-game National League Division Series.

But even entering Monday, the importance of this week’s three-game series at Petco Park — plus a four-game rematch between the teams next week at Dodger Stadium — had been magnified, the Dodgers leading the Padres by just one game in the National League West standings in their pursuit to defend last year’s World Series title.

“It’s going to be an intense series,” Roberts said. “It probably will feel like a playoff game tonight.”

It certainly played out that way.

Los Angeles Dodgers' Will Smith (16) has sunflower seeds tossed at him by Teoscar Hernandez.

Will Smith is showered in sunflower seeds thrown by Teoscar Hernández after hitting a two-run home run in the third inning against the Padres on Monday night.

(Orlando Ramirez / Associated Press)

Both teams scored twice in the first inning. The lead then changed hands three times between the second, when the Padres scored on a Will Smith throwing error; and the third, when Smith answered with a two-run homer to punctuate a three-run rally, only for the Padres to score three on a bases-loaded triple from Tyler Wade that got past a diving Teoscar Hernández in right center.

The Dodgers (40-27) got the game tied again in the fifth, with Hyeseong Kim doubling home Muncy in a rare opportunity against a left-handed pitcher (he is three-for-three in such situations this season).

The Padres (37-28) skirted even more trouble along the way. In the fourth, the Dodgers couldn’t take advantage of an infield pop-up that dropped between three Padres fielders. In the eighth, San Diego reliever Adrian Morejon misfired on the most routine of throws to first base with two outs, letting Shohei Ohtani reach second, but then struck out Freddie Freeman to escape unscathed.

But once the game reached the 10th, the Dodgers surged ahead. Andy Pages led off with a line-drive RBI double that outfielder Brandon Lockridge badly misread in left. Tommy Edman followed with an RBI single that ricocheted off the second base bag. And though closer Tanner Scott gave up an RBI double to Jackson Merrill — one at-bat after Manny Machado was rung up on a controversial called third strike — the former Padres left-hander limited the damage there.

Round 1 of Dodgers-Padres this year went to the defending champions. More heavyweight fights figure to follow.

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