Network Ten's acting chief executive Lachlan Murdoch has put aside food poisoning and hospital in recent days to urgently fly out for London last night as News Corp's phone hacking scandal escalates.
Murdoch, who had not long returned from the Sun Valley "media mogul" summit to be hit with food poisoning and hospital, will join the Murdoch family in London as they bunker down over the high drama which today appears to have buried News Corp's plans for a BSkyB takeover. There were also reports today that the company might sell its British newspaper operation as politicians now scramble to distance themselves from the media company.
Lachlan Murdoch's hectic schedule – he remains a global board director of News Corp – comes as he oversees a major overhaul of Ten's strategy and operations. Staff numbers are being slashed at the broadcaster and the company announced today it had appointed a new head of cross platform sales, Aaron Quirk, who will sell Network Ten's broadcast and digital assets as well as those of "strategic partners" like DMG Radio Group, which Lachlan Murdoch's investment vehicle Illyria, holds a 50% stake in.
Interestingly Quirk, who has been poached from media agency OMD, worked at one stage with incoming Ten chief executive, James Warburton, in the media department of ad agency DDB.
Although Lachlan Murdoch is now in the UK, the managing partner at Illyria, Siobhan McKenna, is also at the broadcaster every day working with Murdoch on Ten’s strategic and operational restructure. McKenna was a former McKinsey & Co partner and is a non-executive director of NBN Co. as well as sitting on the boards of DMG Radio and Prime Media Group, all media assets Lachlan Murdoch holds equity in.
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