Young Rupert: The Making of the Murdoch Empire

Journalist Marsh presents meticulous reporting on the tangled fortunes of the Murdoch news business. It grew from its base in Adelaide, Australia, to encompass the entire continent and beyond. Opening chapters recount the career of Keith Murdoch, Rupert’s father, but there’s only a little info about Rupert’s childhood and education. He barely makes an entrance until 80 pages into the book when the senior Murdoch died, and Rupert returned from Oxford to pick up the reins of the family business. Brash and inexperienced, Murdoch relies on the advice of his longtime friend and then colleague, Rohan Rivett, who guides him over the next eight years. While there is an enormous amount of information about the many transactions Murdoch made (or attempted to make), it does not provide a sense of Murdoch as a person, beyond his insatiable need to grow his operation. A disproportionate part of the book is an account of a murder case that resulted in libel charges against The News, Murdoch’s most high-profile paper.