March 18, 2010 3:19 PM
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What Happens to Murdoch's Top Adman When the News Corp. Founder Dies?
(MoneyWatch) 
What will happen to Paul Carlucci, Rupert Murdoch's top adman at News Corp. (NWS), when Murdoch dies? Murdoch is 78. Succession is already an issue. When that happens, investors and board directors may look to reshuffle News' top ranks -- and they may look askance at Carlucci's recent run of bad luck.
Murdoch has favored Carlucci's presence since 1991, but recently he's presided over a $530 million loss on litigation as CEO of the company's supermarket advertising business, News America Marketing Group. Those losses could expand if one of those settlements comes unraveled in court, and another is set to go to trial soon.
On top of that, as publisher of The New York Post, Carlucci has reigned during a 30 percent circulation decline, leaving it once again read by fewer people than the New York Daily News.
The Post has long been a vanity project for Murdoch. He likes its voice and the political presence it gives him. But with Carlucci overseeing the business side, the paper lost $15-30 million a year, even in the good years. Murdoch may tolerate that -- but investors who want to see adult supervision at an old media company that is still transitioning into the digital age may not in a post-Murdoch era.
Back in the mists of the late 1990s and early 2000s, Carlucci was president of News' ill-fated bundling of TV Guide and Gemstar, according to a May 1997 story in Frohlinger's Marketing Report*. The unit took a $4.2 billion writedown in 2002.
Like Murdoch, Carlucci has a take-no-prisoners management style in which success is defined by making sure your rivals fail. That may make him a favored son in Murdoch's eyes. Whether it will be equally advantageous when the worst happens is an open question.
*No longer online but you can see the top of the article in this archive. Image of Murdoch from Flickr user World Economic Forum, CC. Related:
What will happen to Paul Carlucci, Rupert Murdoch's top adman at News Corp. (NWS), when Murdoch dies? Murdoch is 78. Succession is already an issue. When that happens, investors and board directors may look to reshuffle News' top ranks -- and they may look askance at Carlucci's recent run of bad luck.Murdoch has favored Carlucci's presence since 1991, but recently he's presided over a $530 million loss on litigation as CEO of the company's supermarket advertising business, News America Marketing Group. Those losses could expand if one of those settlements comes unraveled in court, and another is set to go to trial soon.
On top of that, as publisher of The New York Post, Carlucci has reigned during a 30 percent circulation decline, leaving it once again read by fewer people than the New York Daily News.
The Post has long been a vanity project for Murdoch. He likes its voice and the political presence it gives him. But with Carlucci overseeing the business side, the paper lost $15-30 million a year, even in the good years. Murdoch may tolerate that -- but investors who want to see adult supervision at an old media company that is still transitioning into the digital age may not in a post-Murdoch era.Back in the mists of the late 1990s and early 2000s, Carlucci was president of News' ill-fated bundling of TV Guide and Gemstar, according to a May 1997 story in Frohlinger's Marketing Report*. The unit took a $4.2 billion writedown in 2002.
Like Murdoch, Carlucci has a take-no-prisoners management style in which success is defined by making sure your rivals fail. That may make him a favored son in Murdoch's eyes. Whether it will be equally advantageous when the worst happens is an open question.
*No longer online but you can see the top of the article in this archive. Image of Murdoch from Flickr user World Economic Forum, CC. Related:
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