“Any settlement will be very generous but the [Murdoch] empire can take and absorb such a shock; it has paid out more than $1bn over the last decade relating to phone hacking,” says Claire Enders, a co-founder of Enders Analysis and a longtime Murdoch watcher.
“Murdoch is someone who settles, quickly, efficiently and is extremely pragmatic in his settlements. Shareholders would find it a relief [but] it also spares a desire to put Mr Murdoch and others on the stand, de-risking any potential embarrassment from a public grilling.”
Alice said “What applies to Fox applies to other media organisations. The pre-trial determination has been seismic. The judge has been clear already saying that Fox knowingly broadcast falsehoods. What we have seen serves as a real warning to other outlets looking to pursue a hard line. It sets a new bar for talk TV in the US in terms of what can or can’t be said by presenters.”