Lachlan Murdoch Doesn’t See Outcome Of Presidential Race Affecting Fox’s Ad Outlook; “Tidal Wave” Of 2024 Political Spending Long Ago Surpassed 2020

Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch says the company’s advertising outlook will not be affected by the outcome of the presidential campaign.

Asked on the company’s quarterly earnings call with Wall Street analysts about the Donald Trump-Kamala Harris presidential race, Murdoch initially joked, “That’s a tough one – what’s going to happen tomorrow? I don’t know.” Considering the matter more sincerely, he went on to say, “I don’t think it would impact us. In the market that we’re seeing, we’re seeing a tremendous amount of growth and health.”

Prior to the call, Fox reported better-than-expected results for its fiscal 2025 first quarter, highlighted by 11% year-on-year growth in advertising.

The current political season has brought a “tidal wave” of revenue, Murdoch said. And yet, he noted, “This cycle is different in some significant ways from four years ago,” he said. In 2020, “there were national dollars spent” as campaigns shifted toward national from local. In 2024, Murdoch said, “the cycle sort of reverted to form. Campaigns on all sides of politics have shifted back toward more local, targeted spend.”

CFO Steve Tomsic recalled that political ad revenue totaled about $260 million in the first half of the company’s fiscal 2021, which coincided with the runup to Election Day. “We’re north of that already,” he said, even before the final weeks of the campaign season are not counted.

Tubi, which Fox acquired in 2020, “went from virtually nothing four years ago to a meaningful number for us” in the political arena, Tomsic added. The streaming platform is now on pace to generate $1 billion a year in revenue.

Murdoch noted the company’s sports portfolio has provided campaigns with sizable platforms across college football and the NFL. “I apologize to anyone who was enjoying their football over the weekend and got bombarded by political ads,” he quipped.