Surprising no one, News Corp.
For starters, Murdoch intends to start a long-discussed business news channel under the Fox umbrella. The channel, which will compete head-to-head with General Electric's
Murdoch still harbors a desire to acquire Long Island-based newspaper Newsday from Tribune
Murdoch also defended News Corp.'s decision to remove itself from the satellite television business by selling its stake in DirecTV
He takes pride in the company's Fox movie studio and its prospects, stating that he had seen the film Borat three times and "laughed like hell." He said that the film's creator, Sacha Baron Cohen, is on board for a sequel.
MySpace has grown more rapidly than Murdoch and other News Corp. executives anticipated when they bought it two years ago. He remains undaunted about competition from Facebook, a fellow social-networking site largely directed toward college students. As Murdoch said, a user's new relationship with Facebook does not necessarily result in a breakup with MySpace.
As the Fool's resident geezer, I find it especially appealing that, at 75 years of age, Murdoch obviously comprehends traditional media and new media with equal facility. His dexterity in that respect is perhaps one reason why, while other media companies have struggled, News Corp. -- whose portfolio of business consists of an array of newspapers, film, television, and new media -- has watched its shares rise nearly 50% in the past year.
But I was most intrigued by Murdoch's declaration of a new business news channel. The area has been virtually the sole province of CNBC since the 1990s, and it seems to me that competition from another well-founded -- and well-financed -- network will benefit investing Fools considerably.
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Fool contributor David Lee Smith does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned. The Fool has a disclosure policy.