Rupert Murdoch overtaken by son in British media power ranking

AFP, July, 2008

LONDON (AFP) — Media mogul Rupert Murdoch, chairman of News Corp., was overtaken by his son James for the first time in a ranking of the most powerful figures in British media published Monday.

Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page topped The Guardian's list of the most powerful people in British media because "of the all-pervasive impact of Google on the media", the newspaper said.

James Murdoch, chairman of satellite broadcaster BSkyB in Britain and News Corp. Europe and Asia's chairman and chief executive, ranked second in the list, while his father was in fifth position.

Rupert Murdoch's daughter Elisabeth ranked 27th, making for three Murdochs in the top 100.

The Guardian said James overtook his father "partly because Rupert has been more...