Murdoch sons perform poorly in the election to the Board of Directors

James, who as head of the European business is partly responsible for the wiretapping scandal at the now defunct British Sunday newspaper News of the World, fared particularly badly. James Murdoch received 35 percent of votes against at the AGM on Friday. His brother Lachlan Murdoch fared little better, receiving 34 percent of votes against. News Corp. announced the result in a stock exchange release on Monday. Although both will be joining the company's highest board, the strong opposition from shareholders is a slap in the face for the entire Murdoch clan.

The poor performance is all the more painful given that Rupert Murdoch alone, as the founder of the company, holds around 40 percent of the voting rights. Together with the shares of the allied Saudi prince Al-Walid bin Talal, Murdoch even has 47 percent of all votes on his side. At the AGM, shareholders complained that the 80-year-old runs the US media group like a patriarch and demanded that the family's influence be reduced. Although Murdoch holds around 40 percent of the voting rights, he only holds 12 percent of the shares. This is made possible by two different types of shares, of which only the B shares carry voting rights. (SDA)