Estates Gazette to close | Murdoch loses family trust battle | More Pink News allegations
Plus a journalist denies charges of stalking George Osborne and Guardian staff war with the Scott Trust in the letters page
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Big news overnight in the battle for the future of News Corp.
Siblings Prudence, Elisabeth and James have upheld their right to have an equal say in the future of the company (along with Lachlan) after 93-year-old Rupert's death. The ruling makes it more likely that CEO Lachlan could be ousted by his brothers and sisters who are believed to lean to the left of him politically.
In the UK media, the battle over the future of The Observer has now spilled into the Guardian letters page, where high-profile current and former staff are engaged in a war of words with owners The Scott Trust over the yet-to-be signed sale of the title to Tortoise Media.
And there is sad news from the world of business media as one of the UK's largest B2B brands has been consigned to the history books.
Property industry newsbrand Estates Gazette is to close after 166 years of publication. Headwinds in the sector are said to be to blame for the end of the title, which was worth £59m (£143m in today's money) in 1990.
Reach is to bring more data into its newsroom decision-making with the recruitment of Ellen Stewart to the new role of performance director for editorial.
And the leadership of Pink News - founder Ben Cohen and COO Anthony James - are today facing serious allegations of misconduct following an investigation by BBC News.
Concerns raised by the Pink News Whistleblower account on X were first investigated by Press Gazette in September when we reported on staff concerns about a hostile working environment which sources described as damaging to their mental health.
And finally, a journalist has appeared in court to deny two charges of stalking former UK chancellor George Osborne and his wife.
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On Press Gazette
RELX-owned B2B title Estates Gazette to close after 166 years
“The past few years have been very difficult for the real estate industry as a whole, and EG has been caught in these headwinds too. We have worked hard to fortify the business but have unfortunately had to make this extremely difficult decision.”
Rupert Murdoch loses attempt to give Lachlan control in family trust overhaul
A court commissioner ruled that Murdoch and his son Lachlan – the head of Fox News and News Corp – had acted in “bad faith” and called their efforts a “carefully crafted charade” designed to “permanently cement” Lachlan’s control, according to a sealed document obtained by The New York Times.
Guardian staff letters contradict Scott Trust claims it consulted over Observer sale
“Neither Ole Jacob, nor any of his fellow trust members, once raised the issues that he now says were critical to the decision to sell the paper, even though I reported annually to the trust in person and routinely invited discussion about the Observer’s future.”
Journalist denies George Osborne stalking charges
Alexandra-Maria Eugenicos, defending Lydia Suffield, 27, told the court that any communications sent by her client were in her professional capacity as a journalist.
Journalist-friendly CMS Labrador is packed with time-saving AI tools (promoted)
The Norwegian company has designed its cloud-based solution to be so straightforward that users can get to grips with everything in a matter of minutes.
News in brief
Reach has hired Ellen Stewart in its new leadership role of performance director for editorial, aimed at enhancing “data-led decision making” across its newsrooms. (Press Gazette)
BBC News has published new serious allegations of misconduct against Pink News chief executive Benjamin Cohen and his husband, chief operating officer Anthony James. Press Gazette reported in September on the fallout from a Pink News 'whistleblower' X account, with former staff speaking about feeling stressed, anxious and overworked while there. (BBC News)
Texas has subpoenaed tech outlet 404 Media for confidential details relating to a leaked Google privacy violation database it reported on in June. The publication has condemned the subpoena and others like it as "an existential threat" to press freedom and is calling for financial support. (404 Media)
Chelsea Football Club owner Todd Boehly has held talks with interim Telegraph owner RedBird IMI as well as lead bidder Dovid Efune in recent weeks, the Financial Times reports, seeking involvement in the auction that "could be alongside or instead of" Efune. (FT)
As part of ongoing changes to the Express leadership team, Sun digital editor Simon Garner is joining as head of audience and content with website associate editor Rob Virtue promoted to be his deputy.
Sponsored: Congratulations to Glide Publishing Platform which has been chosen to provide the CMS for Arsenal Football Club. (Glide)
This week on Press Gazette:
Guardian chair says Tortoise deal will end ‘inevitable decline’ of Observer
Wired UK to go quarterly and merge teams with global editions
Why journalists are cautious about calling current conflicts ‘genocide’
News media job cuts 2024 tracked: Conde Nast and Vox Media latest hit
Comment: Online ecosystem is squeezing small publishers out of business
On the picket line at Guardian: ‘Observer, Observer, James Harding don’t deserve her!’
Podcast 78: Generative AI in the newsroom at The Telegraph
Telegraph Media Group director of technology Dylan Jacques talks to us about the title’s ambitious plans to roll out a new generative-AI powered feature every month for 12 months.
It has already rolled out AI-written summaries and various internal tools which are helping journalists use AI to improve content, increase reader engagement and so sell more subscriptions.