Murdoch has picked a side – but not the one we expected
In doing so, Murdoch is asserting his media mogul credentials – that he is more important or will outlive any elected political leader. It represents a significant U-turn for Murdoch, who has publicly supported the president since his election and was seated in Trump's VIP box for the FIFA Club World Cup only a week ago.
For Murdoch, whose partisan loyalties are seen to be dictated by his balance sheet interests as much as his political hue, steering out of the Trump lane seems in equal part risky and brave.
But it's less risky than Elon Musk's move to harpoon Trump by publicly criticising the president's Big Beautiful Bill and threatening to create a new American political party. In doing so, Musk aimed his sights squarely at his own foot.
Murdoch's gamble appears way more considered and one that demonstrates he has read the room far better than Musk.
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He effectively shirt-fronted Trump last week by green-lighting the WSJ to publish a letter from Trump to the late convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein that allegedly contained a drawing of a naked woman on which Trump's signature features prominently, with a message wishing that 'every day be another wonderful secret'.
For Murdoch, it is a gamble on how much self-inflicted damage Trump has done to his brand with his trenchant determination to keep the Epstein file under wraps.
Trump's entreaties to Murdoch and others inside the company to spike the story went nowhere. Then Trump made good on his knee-jerk social media response to 'sue his [Murdoch's] ass off, and that of his third rate newspaper' with a legal libel claim seeking $US10 billion in damages.
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