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The future of Rupert Murdoch's media empire is up for grabs — for now

Rupert Murdoch in a car, 2024
Rupert Murdoch is 93. What happens to the media empire he built when he dies?

Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images

  • Yup, it was right out of "Succession": Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan, fighting three other Murdoch children in court.
  • Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch have lost that case β€” for now.
  • That means Lachlan Murdoch will need to share control of his father's empire with three siblings when Rupert dies. But we don't know what that will actually mean.

Rupert Murdoch lost a legal case about the future of his media empire. What does that mean?

Real talk: It's too early to tell. At least one appeal is coming, so this could all shake out differently down the line.

But for now: It means that Murdoch's attempt to anoint his son Lachlan as the leader of his businesses once the elder Murdoch dies has been foiled.

And if that holds up, it means the future of Murdoch's empire β€” which includes Fox News and other Fox TV networks; The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post; and TV and print assets in the UK and Australia β€” will be that much messier when Murdoch, 93, is gone.

That's because β€” if the ruling holds up β€” Lachlan Murdoch will have to share control of the family business after his father's death with three of his siblings: James, Elisabeth, and Prudence. That was the heart of the dispute fought in a closed-door Nevada courtroom this fall. The New York Times got its hands on the sealed ruling, filed by a probate commissioner this weekend.

But beyond that, it's very hard to say what the news means. Rupert Murdoch has argued that it was important to make sure Lachlan Murdoch ran the family business the way Rupert Murdoch ran it. But that doesn't mean that Lachlan Murdoch would keep things untouched once his father died.

Maybe Lachlan would sell some assets that his father didn't want to sell for whatever reason. Maybe he wouldn't run Fox News β€” a core asset for the family business, in terms of both financial and political power β€” exactly the way his father did.

Similarly, the winners in the case β€” Lachlan's siblings James, Elisabeth, and Prudence β€” now have the ability to out-vote Lachlan. Which means, in theory, that they could force sales of things neither Lachlan nor Rupert wanted to part with. They could also, in theory, change the way Fox News operates.

But just because three members of the Murdoch clan fought their father's plans to make Lachlan more powerful than them doesn't mean they would always work together. The ruling just means they have a chance to weigh in.

Through a rep, James, Prudence, and Elisabeth applauded the decision and offered "hope that we can move beyond this litigation to focus on strengthening and rebuilding relationships among all family members." I also contacted Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch's rep for comment.

I realize that this is shrug-emoji of an explainer may be disappointing to some of you who would like a more definitive answer. Particularly those of you whose interest in the Murdoch family, and its twists and turns, relates primarily to the way it was partially fictionalized in "Succession."

But here's a little bit of a reward for dedicated watchers of HBO prestige dramas: It turns out that the court case, referred to by almost everyone as "straight out of Succession" was literally straight out of "Succession."

The Times reports that the Murdoch family fight kicked off in April 2023 as the HBO series was headed toward its conclusion.

Setting off these discussions was the episode of the HBO drama 'Succession,' the commissioner wrote, "where the patriarch of the family dies, leaving his family and business in chaos." The episode prompted Elisabeth's representative to the trust, Mark Devereux, to write a "'Succession' memo" intended to help avoid a real-life repeat.

Instead, that discussion eventually prompted Rupert Murdoch to amend the family trust later that year to give Lachlan full control.

Which led to this fall's court fight β€” but not the end of the story. Stay tuned.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Get ready to pay more at Chipotle

Chipotle.
Despite raising menu prices, Chipotle reported a strong 3rd quarter, contrary to other fast food chains.

jetcityimage/iStock

  • Chipotle is considering raising prices due to the rising cost of avocados, queso, and sour cream.
  • New CFO Adam Rymer aims to keep menu items affordable despite cost pressures, the Wall Street Journal reported.
  • Chipotle's sales rose 6% last quarter, showing resilience amid fast food price hikes.

Chipotle's new chief finance officer is eager to keep menu items affordable for cash-strapped customers, but has warned that prices could rise as the cost of raw materials keeps going up.

Executives at the Mexican grill chain are contemplating raising prices further as costs have risen for avocados, queso, and sour cream, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Chipotle has not yet decided when any price increase might kick in, or how significant the rise would be, the Journal reported.

Adam Rymer started as finance chief at Chipotle in October. In his 15 years at the company, he has held various roles, including vice president of finance and compensation analyst.

Rymer was initially due to become CFO in January but instead took the position three months early after previous Chipotle boss Brian Niccol exited in August to become CEO of Starbucks. Niccol was replaced in the interim by Scott Boatwright, who served as chief operating officer beforehand.

Despite the potential for higher menu prices, Chipotle remains a better value option for customers than similar alternatives, Rymer said, per the Journal.

Inflation has not been kind to fast food prices.

Starbucks, McDonald's, KFC, In-N-Out, and Olive Garden are among the chains that have increased prices due to the soaring cost of labor and commodities.

Unlike some fast food firms, whose sales have taken a tumble as customers have cut back, Chipotle has shown resilience.

In its most recent quarter, the company's same-store sales rose 6% compared to the same period last year. Revenue grew 13% to $2.8 billion year over year.

Chipotle did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside regular working hours.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Who told the Bros to start journaling?

A man journaling.

Getty Images; Jenny Chang-Rodriguez/BI

  • Journaling is now part of a regular wellness routine for many male fitness and "hustle" influencers.
  • Instagram influencers who talk about the gym, cold plunges, and the "hustle" also talk about journaling.
  • This is probably a good thing.

The best-selling kids' book "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" opens with the titular wimp Greg Heffley emphasizing that he's writing a journal, not a diary. (Even though the notebook his mother bought him says "Diary" right on the front.)

You see, for fictional middle schoolers like Heffley, keeping a diary is considered the realm of teenage girls. (The series has some questionable notions about gender equity.)

But journaling has been going mainstream as part of a daily wellness routine that prioritizes mental health. And one surprising group in particular is taking it very seriously: the hustle bros on Instagram.

I suspect you already recognize the hustle bro genre, but I'll attempt to describe it in case you're not familiar: They're male social media creators who post about workout routines and life hacks, and they're often bodybuilders or extremely fit. They might be focused on financial goals, although the sources of their own flaunted wealth might be obscure (it seems in some cases that they got rich by selling online courses about how to get rich).

"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" on a stack of books
In "Diary of a Wimpy Kid," the protagonist is writing a journal β€” now it seems everyone is.

MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images/MediaNews Group via Getty Images

They exist somewhere within the broader world of the online manosphere but focus inward on the male self and "mindset" rather than the more explicitly toxic corners that focus outwardly on men's place in society.

Don't call it self-help, call it self-optimization

Journaling has become so mainstream that in 2022, Apple added a Journal app to its default suite of apps baked into the iPhone, prompting people to do a daily reflection as part of its ever-expanding health features.

The mainstream king of all this kind of stuff is Andrew Huberman, the musclebound neuroscientist with an incredibly popular podcast that has popularized all sorts of specific health advice on things like sleep and avoiding alcohol.

Huberman did anΒ hourlong podcastΒ about a "protocol" for journaling, which he said he based on academic research into the benefits of a specific journaling exercise where you write about your most traumatic moment for 15 to 30 minutes a week.

Most of the hustle bros I've seen talking about journaling don't describe a specific journaling method. It's not clear if they want men to reflect on their day, do something more like "The Artist's Way" of "Morning Pages" (a stream-of-consciousness three pages first thing in the morning as a form of creativity), or something more like Huberman's protocol.

Thomas Procopovich is a personal development and sales coach with almost 30,000 followers on Instagram. He's affiliated with Andy Elliott, a sales coach with 2.5 million followers whose content urges men to be physically fit to improve their sales technique.

Procopovich told me that he's been journaling for two years. He's made content about the importance of journaling and mindset. "Men need to be able to write down their thoughts more and see how much they have grown," he told me.

Vinny Brusco, a life coach and host of "The Council of Dudes Podcast," talks often about mental wellness and masculinity. "I think we are seeing a major shift in what mental health looks like in general, especially for men," he told Business Insider.

"It is becoming more and more acceptable for men to be vulnerable and expressive with their feelings. Guys are using different yet old modalities when it comes to mental health. It's almost like we are going back to our roots in some way, with things like cold plunges, saunas, meditating, and even journaling."

This is a group of men who are generally interested in improving themselves in very traditionally masculine ways (getting huge muscles, earning money).

And they're increasingly seeing mental health as part of that improvement. Journaling seems like the perfect vehicle for that.

Read the original article on Business Insider
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