Starting out with a newspaper in Adelaide, Rupert Murdoch has built a powerful international media empire that has considerably altered the journalistic landscape in many countries around the world, including the US and the UK.
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Mr Murdoch holding one of the first copies of The Sun newspaper inside the News of the World building in London in 1969. Credit: Press Association Wire, via European Pressphoto Agency
Entering Britain with News of the World
1969
Mr Murdoch acquires the Sunday tabloid News of the World in 1969. It is his first foray into British media after having made a name for himself in Australian media when he took over the family business. Sex scandals aside, the paper sets out to expose wrongdoing that results in dozens of criminal convictions. The Economist later proclaims that "he invented the modern tabloid newspaper — a stew of sexual titillation, moral outrage and political aggression."
Mr Murdoch inside the offices of The Post. Credit: William E. Sauro/The New York Times
Building an empire in the US
1973
In 1973, Mr Murdoch enters the American newspaper business by purchasing two dailies in San Antonio, including The San Antonio News, which was transformed into a lurid tabloid. His News Corporation goes on to buy, and sell, a number of notable publications, including The New York Post, The Chicago Sun-Times, Village Voice and New York magazine. (He buys back The New York Post in 1993.)
A 1999 episode of the Fox show "The Simpsons" featuring Mr. Murdoch. Credit: Fox Broadcasting Company
Staking a claim on popular culture
1985
Mr Murdoch acquires the 20th Century Fox Corporation, laying the groundwork for what will become a dominant broadcast and cable media empire, including the Fox broadcast network, Fox News, Fox Sports and FX.
Mr Murdoch and News Corporation beat out Viacom in a bidding war for the social network. Credit: Mark Lennihan/Associated Press
A losing bet on social media
July 2005
News Corporation buys the website Myspace for $US580 million. The purchase proves to be a notable misstep for News Corporation. A few years later, the long-suffering site will be sold for $US35 million.
Mr Murdoch addressing The Wall Street Journal newsroom in New York in December 2007. Credit: Mark Lennihan/Associated Press
Purchasing prestige
August 2007
News Corporation reaches an agreement to buy Dow Jones & Company, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal, for $US5 billion. The deal makes Mr. Murdoch "the most formidable figure in business news coverage in this country, perhaps worldwide," The New York Times reports.
Milly Dowler. Credit: Surrey Police, via Associated Press
Defending against hacking accusations
July 2011
Allegations surface that the voice-mail account of a British schoolgirl, Milly Dowler, who went missing in 2002 and whose body was discovered six months later, was repeatedly hacked by News of the World. The report follows years of investigations into phone hacking by journalists in Britain and ignites a national outcry and official inquiry that harms Mr. Murdoch's operations and reputation.
Street art showing a portrait of Rupert Murdoch in July 2011 in London. Credit: Paul Hackett/Reuters
Withdrawing a big bid in the face of a scandal
July 2011
News Corporation withdraws its $US12 billion bid to buy complete control of the satellite giant British Sky Broadcasting, a move intended to calm the torrent of derision directed at the company over the phone hacking scheme.
Bar patrons reading the final edition of News of The World. Credit: Paul Hackett/Reuters
Shedding a damaged brand
July 2011
The Murdoch family announces plans to close News of the World, the tabloid at the center of the phone hacking scandal.
Mr Murdoch's then wife, Wendi Deng, in pink, lunging to block a protestor trying to shove a plate of foam in Mr Murdoch's face during a parliamentary committee hearing. Credit: Parbul TV, via Reuters
Interrogated by British lawmakers
July 2011
Rebekah Brooks, then chief executive of News International, with Rupert Murdoch in London in 2011. Credit: Facundo Arrizabalaga/European Pressphoto Agency
Some executives face charges
July 2012
British prosecutors bring criminal charges against eight of the most prominent figures in British tabloid journalism, including Andy Coulson, a former editor at a Murdoch paper and former aide to Prime Minister David Cameron, and Rebekah Brooks, one of Mr Murdoch's top deputies.
Andy Coulson, is shown leaving court in Edinburgh, Scotland, after being cleared of perjury charges. Credit: Andrew Milligan/Press Association, via Associated Press
And one is sentenced to prison
July 2014
Andy Coulson is sentenced to 18 months in prison for his part in the phone hacking scandal, which exposed widespread wrongdoing at Mr Murdoch's British media operation. Ms Brooks is acquitted of all charges a month earlier.
Jeffrey L. Bewkes, left, Time Warner's chief, and Mr Murdoch. Credit: Left, Casey Kelbaugh for The New York Times; right, Cameron Spencer/Getty Images
A short-lived bid for Time Warner
August 2014
Mr Murdoch withdraws an $US80 billion bid for Time Warner only a month after the bid becomes public, put off by Time Warner's apparent hostility to the prospect of the deal and by the response of his own shareholders.
Rupert Murdoch with his son James in England in 2010. Credit: Adrian Dennis/Agence France-Presse -- Getty Images
Handing over the reins
June 2015
Mr Murdoch announces plans to step down at 21st Century Fox and hand over the reins to the media empire to his son James.
The New York Times
