James Murdoch, the youngest son of News Corp founder Rupert Murdoch, and his wife Kathryn have put out a statement criticizing the family media company for being a part of the "ongoing denial" of climate change.
"Kathryn and James' views on climate are well established and their frustration with some of the News Corp and Fox coverage of the topic is also well known," a spokesperson for James, a former News Corp executive and now the CEO of private investment company Lupa Systems, and Kathryn Murdoch, who works for the Clinton Climate Initiative, told The Daily Beast.
"They are particularly disappointed with the ongoing denial among the news outlets in Australia given obvious evidence to the contrary."
The Australian wildfires have killed 27 people and an estimated 1 billion animals, and have destroyed thousands of properties in multiple states. News Corp Australia, which publishes more than 140 newspapers and employs about 3,000 journalists in print, television, and online, has been repeatedly criticized for downplaying the effects of climate change.
Andrew Bolt wrote in The Herald Sun that it's "silly" to think climate change is "causing worse bushfires around the world," and Fox News contributor Raymond Arroyo said on "The Ingraham Angle" last week, "This is incomplete reporting, Laura. Though Australia has had the highest temperatures on record — the driest season ever — it's not correct to say climate change caused these wildfires."
News Corp announced on Monday that it will donate $3.5 million to fire relief efforts in Australia. Rupert Murdoch and his wife Jerry Hall said they would donate $1.4 million as well.
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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