News Corporation NWSA
News Corp's dual-class structure entrenches a fractious Murdoch family with 14% economics but 41% of the vote; collapsing it would remove a governance discount already rejected by 90% of unaffiliated holders.
Thesis
Starboard Value, a large News Corp shareholder, argues the Company is significantly undervalued and burdened by a dual-class share structure that hands the Murdoch family 41% of the vote despite only ~14% economic ownership. With founder Rupert Murdoch now Chairman Emeritus and super-voting control passing to Lachlan Murdoch amid a reported legal battle between Murdoch siblings over the Trust, Starboard contends the rationale for founder protection has vanished and family infighting now threatens strategic stability at both News Corp and Fox. Starboard has submitted a non-binding proposal for the 2024 Annual Meeting calling on the Board to collapse the dual-class structure, noting that a prior similar proposal drew ~90% support from unaffiliated holders (49.5% of total votes). If the Board again ignores the message, Starboard signals further action will follow.
SCQA
News Corp has transformed into a growing, digital-first, subscription-oriented business since 2013, yet still operates under a decades-old dual-class share structure inherited from founder Rupert Murdoch.
Super-voting power has now transitioned to Lachlan Murdoch amid a public legal battle among Murdoch siblings over the Family Trust, creating strategic paralysis and entrenching a 14% economic owner with 41% voting control.
Shareholders should vote for Starboard's non-binding proposal at the 2024 Annual Meeting directing the Board to take all necessary actions to collapse News Corp's dual-class share structure.
Eliminating the dual-class structure would close News Corp's governance-driven valuation discount relative to its inherent value; specific upside is not quantified in this letter.
The three reasons
- 1
Dual-class structure transfers super-voting power from founder to children, paralyzing strategy
- 2
Murdoch family owns ~14% economics but controls 41% of vote
- 3
90% of unaffiliated shareholders already backed prior dual-class elimination proposal
Primary demands
- Collapse News Corp's dual-class share structure
- Board to take all necessary actions to eliminate super-voting shares
- Shareholders to vote in favor of Starboard's non-binding proposal at the 2024 Annual Meeting
KPIs cited
Pattern membership
Where this document fits across the library's 12 rhetorical / structural patterns.
Precedents cited
- Prior News Corp dual-class elimination proposal (~90% support from unaffiliated holders, 49.5% of total votes)
- Starboard's 2023 presentation at the 13D Monitor Active-Passive Investor Summit
Notable slides (3)
Notes
Short 3-page shareholder letter signed by Jeffrey C. Smith; governance-only campaign focused on collapsing NWS dual-class structure. Cites NYT and WSJ (July 24, 2024) quoting court filings on Rupert Murdoch's intent to consolidate control in Lachlan — used as third-party evidence, not a management self-contradiction. References prior 2023 13D Monitor summit presentation, so this is a follow-up in a multi-step campaign. No valuation math, no peer chart, no sum-of-parts in this letter — those may appear in the forthcoming proxy statement Starboard signals.