Fox News, the media company that recently announced Rupert Murdoch‘s resignation as chairman, has revealed further changes to its board of directors. According to an SEC filing for its upcoming November annual meeting, Anne Dias and Jacques Nasser will not be running for re-election. Dias and Nasser have both served on the board since Fox became a standalone public company in 2019.
Anne Dias made headlines earlier this year when her name appeared in the flood of discovery material related to Fox’s defamation trial with Dominion Voting Systems. In the documents, Dias advised that it was time for Fox News, or Lachlan Murdoch, to take a stance following the January 6th attack on the Capitol. She believed that given Fox News’ role as a megaphone for Donald Trump, it was an existential moment for both the nation and the Fox News brand.
In response to Dias’ concerns, Lachlan Murdoch, son of Rupert Murdoch, emailed his father and informed him of the conversation. Rupert advised Lachlan to tell Dias that they were discussing the issue and that Fox News, which had called the election correctly, was pivoting as fast as possible. The defamation trial between Fox and Dominion ended with a settlement of $787.5 million, but it remains unclear whether Dias’ concerns would have been addressed in court.
As part of the changes to its board, Fox is nominating two new directors. One of them is Tony Abbott, the former Prime Minister of Australia. Abbott served as the Prime Minister from 2013 to 2015 and was a member of parliament from 1994 to 2019. He has been an advisor to the UK Board of Trade since 2020 and has served on the Board of Trustees of the Global Warming Foundation since 2023.
The other director being nominated is Margaret “Peggy” L. Johnson, a former executive at Microsoft and Qualcomm. Johnson has been the CEO of Magic Leap, an augmented reality company, since 2020. Prior to that, she held senior positions at Microsoft and Qualcomm, including EVP of Business Development at Microsoft and President of Global Market Development at Qualcomm Incorporated. Johnson also sits on the boards of BlackRock and Live Nation.
These changes to Fox’s board of directors come at a time of transition for the media company, as Rupert Murdoch steps down as chairman. The nomination of Tony Abbott and Margaret Johnson suggests a shift in the composition of the board, with a mix of political and technology expertise being brought in. It remains to be seen how these changes will impact the direction and strategy of Fox News moving forward.
Sources:
– Fox News Announces Changes To Board Of Directors
– Anne Dias Popped Up In Dominion Discovery Materials
Original Story at deadline.com – 2023-09-22 22:59:00
