News Corp.
Headquarters: 1211 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10036
Employees: 51,000
CEO: Rupert Murdoch
Stock Symbol: NWS
Website: http://www.newscorp.com
Career Site
News Corp. is one of the world's top media companies. It owns and operates the Fox Network, Fox News cable channel, 20th Century Fox movie studio, The New York Post, Harper Collins books and The Times of London. The company owns TV stations, newspapers, and satellite television. The company also has a stake in DirecTV and BSkyB.
The company has a major presence in Australia, Asia, U.S. and England. News Corp. moved its headquarters from Sydney to New York City in 2004.
News Corp. is led by media mogul Murdoch, who has made an enormous impact on U.S. media over the past three decades.
Fox News Channel has been the leading cable news network based on ratings for over 10 years with the help of its conservative slant.
The company also operates the Fox Business Channel, a cable network devoted entirely to business news, which was launched in 2008. The channel is available in over 50 million homes but has seen low ratings so far.
In 2011, Murdoch launched The Daily, an online newspaper only available on Apple's iPad. The online paper has not met revenue projections and has laid off at least 50 employees in 2012.
The NY Post, a NY tabloid newspaper also owned by the News Corp., reportedly suffers losses of over $10 million per year.
In fiscal 2011, News Corp. reported revenues of $33.7 billion, a 1% increase, and net income of $1.2 billion.
The company announced in June plans to split its media and entertainment and publishing businesses into separate publicly-traded companies.
In October, News Corp. agreed to pay a reported $1.5 billion for a 49% stake in the YES Network, a cable channel covering the NY Yankees and Brooklyn Nets.
History
News Corp was created in 1979 by Rupert Murdoch as a holding company for his Australian media business News Limited. His father Keith Murdoch was a newspaper editor who controlled the Adelaide News tabloid in 1949. His son Rupert would take over the paper in 1952 when Keith died.
In 1981, News Corp bought half of the movie studio 20th Century Fox, buying the other half in 1984. In 1985, News Corp announced it was buying the Metromedia group of stations, setting the stage for the launch of a fourth U.S. commercial television network. The deal to buy the stations was completed in 1986.
In 1986, Rupert Murdoch launched the Fox TV network as the fourth major television network to compete with ABC, CBS and NBC. In 1994, Murdoch upended the sports world by winning the rights to broadcast NFL football games, outbidding CBS. Fox has gone on to win rights to broadcast Major League Baseball, NHL hockey and Nascar races. Fox won rights this year to broadcast World Cup Soccer Tournament in 2018 and 2022.
The Fox Network has had a big success with reality show American Idol, which has been among the top-rated programs over the past several years. The Fox News cable channel, launched in 1996, has become the most-watched all-news channel, eclipsing rival CNN. Fox News is criticized for having a pro-Republican and conservative stance. Fox News President Roger Ailes is a former consultant for President Ronald Reagan and Murdoch is known for his conservative leanings.
News Corp. and CEO Rupert Murdoch acquired Dow Jones Corp. for $5 billion in December 2007. Dow Jones is publisher of The Wall Street Journal.
Murdoch was embroiled in a phone hacking scandal in the United Kingdom beginning in 2011. He made a decision to close News of the World, a Sunday U.K. tabloid paper, because of the scandal in July 2011. The paper had circulation of over 2 million and was published since 1843.
In 2005, News Corp. acquired social networking site MySpace.com for $500 million. MySpace was then one of the largest Internet sites but traffic has plunged with the rise of competitor Facebook. News Corp. sold MySpace this year to Specific Media for $35 million.
Benefits
The following benefits are for 20th Century Fox
- Comprehensive health plan (medical, dental and vision)
- 401(k) investment plan
- Life insurance
- Pension Plan
- Flexible spending accounts
- Paid Time Off
- Child development center on studio lot
- Employee assistance program
- Employment referral program
- Education reimbursement
- Training & development
- Credit Union membership
- Direct deposit
- Company-paid parking
- Local Area Discounts
- Merchandise discounts
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