The Successor: The High-Stakes Life of Lachlan Murdoch

An heir apparent to the first global media dynasty, Lachlan Murdoch has been waiting to run his father Rupert’s empire all his life. In this riveting first biography of a little-understood but hugely influential figure, acclaimed journalist Paddy Manning asks: can the dutiful son hang onto the empire, or will the third generation of Murdoch moguls prove the last?

Despite a life in the spotlight, Lachlan’s personality, politics, and business acumen remain enigmatic. Is he the ultra-conservative ideologue media reports maintain, or a free-thinking libertarian, as some friends suggest?

After emerging victorious from the Murdoch family’s turbulent succession wars, Lachlan is stepping up at a time of unprecedented instability. What can we expect from his time at the helm, and does he have what it takes to chart a future for this century-old company? This is a book about the good, the bad, and the ugly of the global media world, and about America in the age of Trump and Murdoch. It is a book about power, apprenticeship, and succession.

Paddy Manning is the author of several award-winning books, including biographies of Malcolm Turnbull and Nathan Tinkler. During almost twenty years in journalism he has worked for Crikey, The Sydney Morning Herald, Australian Financial Review and The Australian, and has won several awards for journalistic excellence. His most recent book, Body Count, won the 2021 Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for non-fiction.