Murdoch loses his Succession court battle

RUPERT Murdoch's attempt to give his eldest son control of his media empire has been blocked by a US court after a lengthy legal battle with three of his other children.

- Christopher Bucktin

The real-life Succession tussle saw the 93-year-old media mogul fail in his bid to change his family trust, which now gives his four oldest children equal voting power to control the group behind News Corp and Fox News after his death.

A court commissioner in Nevada ruled Mr Murdoch and his son Lachlan the head of Fox News and News Corp - had acted in "bad faith" and called their efforts a "carefully crafted charade" designed to "permanently cement" Lachlan's control, according to a sealed document obtained by the New York Times.