#1 Murdoch uses controversy as viral marketing
Because of the rise of the internet, and blogs in particular, it’s a lot easier to generate a controversy in a rapid fashion and then have it virally spread around the web. And it becomes a lot bigger than maybe it should be.
Clearly what we’ve had over the past few decades in the regular media world is newspapers would print things that people would find objectionable and then people would start writing letters about that and TV news outlets would start talking about it.
This is definitely something that Murdoch is very familiar with. He courts controversy, I think, to a certain extent. He definitely pushes the envelope, and that is something that he does realize that — when he can do it right, if he doesn’t go too far — then it probably does wind up helping him out in terms of his business.
#2 Murdoch buys what he can’t create
In one sense, it’s obviously easier to buy something, particularly in the media world where a lot of the success can be found by having an already established brand name. [For News Corp,] launches, like Fox Cable News Network that was built from the ground up, are more often the exceptions, not the rule.
I think usually it is easier to try and buy something like MySpace for example, which at least at the time that News Corp bought it was the preeminent social networking site.
The Wall Street Journal is another perfect example. Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal have such great brand names. It’s something that Murdoch had lusted after for decades. So you really couldn’t build that by starting up a new newspaper focusing on the financial news side.
#3 Murdoch’s assets work well together
News Corp, I think, arguably does the best job of folding things into the larger conglomerate and really making sure that there are, as much as I hate to use a word like this, “synergies” that get exploited so that things aren’t run in isolation.
There’s a definite reason why he’s buying things, and he wants to have it interact with other aspects of the business. Clearly you see that with a lot of the cross-promotion throughout various News Corp properties. You’re seeing that now with the Wall Street Journal. Often you’ll have a video link [on the Journal’s site], for example, that goes to something that’s on the Fox Business Channel.
#4 Murdoch takes risks that would frighten others
We are in an environment, particularly when you look at what’s happening with the banking sector, where “risk” is about the dirtiest four letter word out there — probably in combination with “debt.” If George Carlin were still alive, those two words would make his list of words you shouldn’t be able to say on TV.
But what Murdoch has done throughout his career is defy that notion. He has taken many risks. A lot of them have panned out, some of them haven’t done so, and he, at times, even risked losing control of the company. In the case that I illustrated in the book, the battle between him and John Malone over Direct TV, it clearly was the case of Murdoch coming perilously close to losing control of his company.
All that said, what you really need to take from his career is that you can’t be perpetually afraid to take a risk. Even in an environment like this, because if you never take a risk, you can pretty much guarantee that you will never have a company that can be as successful as his is.
#5 Murdoch has an ego
You really do have to have a great work ethic. I don’t think that anyone becomes a mogul by being lazy, and you obviously do need to have a big ego. Any ambitious person, certainly has that desire to have his or her name mentioned as frequently as possible, regardless of whether or not it’s favorable or not so favorable. I think anyone that thrusts for that limelight clearly likes when their name is mentioned often.
Full program includes
• Lessons on running a single company well from the way Rupert Murdoch runs an empire of many successful businesses.
• The effective managerial approach that Rupert Murdoch doesn’t get enough credit for — which you can duplicate in your business.
• Lessons from the way Rupert Murdoch makes acquisitions work that you’ll be glad to know when you’re ready to acquire a company.
