Rupert Murdoch

Chairman Rupert Murdoch is taking advantage of the jump in value of News Corp. stock by selling $40 million in voting shares this week. Shares closed trading Friday at all-time highs. A News Corp. spokesman declined to provide a reason for Murdoch's pre-Valentine's Day sale of nearly 1.4 million Class B shares. The sale, which occurred Wednesday, was recorded Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. News Corp.'s B shares, the voting stock, closed trading Friday at $29.34, up 1.3%.

After the coffee. Before my cable bill goes up again. The Skinny: I'm trying to create a fake girlfriend, but I can't decide between a blond or brunette. Send your thoughts. Wednesday's headlines include coverage of the Dodgers' pending deal with Time Warner Cable, a look at pilot season and a piece on how ESPN missed the Manti Te'o story. Daily Dose: ABC is pulling the plug on its sitcom "Don't Trust the B---- in Apt 23. " The twisted sitcom, about a selfish girl who has no problems tormenting her friends to get what she wants, was a critical darling but failed to attract many viewers.  What will a hot dog cost?

Now that Rupert Murdoch is spinning off News Corp.'s publishing properties into a separate company, media observers have identified the Los Angeles Times as a likely target for acquisition. Murdoch isn't one of them. "It won't get through with the Democratic administration in place," Murdoch said during a break in the Golden Globes ceremony Sunday night in Beverly Hills. PHOTOS: Golden Globes 2013 red carpet Murdoch was alluding to federal regulations that seek to limit media consolidation.

Rupert Murdoch's publishing empire, which includes the Wall Street Journal, would have recorded a $2.08-billion loss during its recent fiscal year if it had been a stand-alone company. The loss was due to write-downs, declines in newspaper advertising sales and legal expenses stemming from government investigations into the phone hacking scandal at News Corp.'s British newspapers. News Corp. made the disclosure in regulatory filings Friday as the company prepares to cleave itself into two separate, publicly traded companies: the new News Corp., which will include newspapers and HarperCollins book publishing; and the Fox Group, which will boast the lucrative television network and movie studio properties.

Dame Elisabeth Murdoch , mother of News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch, has died at her home outside Melbourne , Australia , at the age of 103. The matriarch of the world's most prominent media family was well-known in Australia for her philanthropy, and she remained active late into her life. News Corp. confirmed her death Wednesday. "Throughout her life, our mother demonstrated the very best qualities of true public service," Rupert Murdoch said in a statement published in the News Corp.-owned Wall Street Journal . "Her energy and personal commitment made our country a more hopeful place and she will be missed by many.

Dame Elisabeth Murdoch, mother of News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch, has died at her home in Australia at the age of 103. Murdoch was well known for her philanthropy and remained active late into her life. "Throughout her life, our mother demonstrated the very best qualities of true public service," Rupert Murdoch said in a statement published in the News Corp.-owned Wall Street Journal. "Her energy and personal commitment made our country a more hopeful place and she will be missed by many.

News Corp.'s the Daily will expire on Dec. 15, the company announced Monday. The tablet -only periodical was the first of its kind, a newspaper that was published for the iPad alone initially. After its first year, it branched out, expanding to the Kindle Fire and other Android devices. Rupert Murdoch launched the Daily with much fanfare in February 2011. Its executive editor, Jesse Angelo, will become publisher of the New York Post, another News Corp. property. News Corp.

News Corp.'s soon-to-be publishing company will carry the name News Corp., while the company's television and movie properties will make up a separate global company called the Fox Group. Rupert Murdoch's media conglomerate is in the process of dividing itself into two separately traded companies. It plans to spin off its publishing assets, including the Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Times of London and HarperCollins book publishing, into one entity with the more lucrative entertainment properties making up the other.

Rupert Murdoch has pulled the plug on News Corp.'s high-profile experiment to create a digital national newspaper. The demise of the Daily, announced Monday by News Corp., illustrates the challenges the media baron faces as he attempts to transform his global publishing empire for the Internet age. The Daily was introduced nearly two years ago as the first news application for Apple Inc.'s iPad and was designed to dazzle a generation of young...

James Murdoch won an endorsement from shareholders to serve another year on the board of satellite television service British Sky Broadcasting. Murdoch received 95% of the vote cast Thursday in London during the annual vote of shareholders. Murdoch did, however, receive the third-lowest vote total of any of the directors up for reelection.  Two others with long-term ties to Murdoch's father, News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch, received fewer votes. However, despite the mild protest, both David DeVoe, chief financial officer of News Corp., and Arthur M. Siskind, a News Corp.