News Broadcasting
Saudi Prince sells his stake in Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp for $188 million
MUMBAI: Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Holding, the investment firm owned by billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, has sold majority of its stake in Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.
During its portfolio review last year, Kingdom Holding decided to reduce the size of its investment in NewsCorp via an orderly disposal program that was predominantly executed in the first half of 2014 and successfully completed by the end of the year. As a result, KHC has decreased its holding in NewsCorp from 13,184,477 class B shares, representing approx. 6.6 per cent ownership to 2,000,000 class B shares, representing approx. one per cent ownership, generating $188 million dollars.
However, the company continues to holds its 6.6 per cent share in News Corp’s company Twenty-First Century Fox, worth approximately $1.7 billion at current market prices.
Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal said, “The reduction of KHC’s holding in News Corp has been decided in the context of a general portfolio review. We remain firm believers in News Corp’s competent management, led by CEO Robert Thomson, and are fully supportive of Rupert Murdoch and his family. Our investment in Twenty-First Century Fox, constitutes a solid foundation for our long standing relationship that we expect will endure. Twenty-First Century Fox owns a 19 per cent stake in Rotana Group that I own independently from Kingdom Holding.”
Kingdom Holding CFO Mohammed Fahmy added, “As an actively managed holding company, KHC reviews its portfolio of publicly listed and private investments on a regular basis. Decisions to add, hold, dispose of or reduce particular investments are always considered in the context of the overall portfolio allocation.”
Kingdom Holding held a stake in Murdoch’s media conglomerate since 1997.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to host Kolkata Town Hall on Hooghly River
‘Bhalobasa Bengal Inspiring Bharat’ event on April 20 brings cultural icons, trailblazing women and leaders aboard a cruise to celebrate Bengal’s enduring influence.
MUMBAI: Bengal is about to make fresh waves on the Hooghly and this time the current is pure conversation. CNN-News18 is taking its iconic Town Hall format to the waters of the iconic Hooghly River on 20 April 2026 with a special edition titled ‘Bhalobasa Bengal – Inspiring Bharat’. The floating event will celebrate the state’s rich cultural legacy and how its ideas, creativity and spirit continue to shape the rest of the country.
The unique riverside setting draws on Bengal’s history as a cradle of reform, art and intellectual thought. The speaker line-up mirrors that diversity: cultural heavyweights Mithun Chakraborty and Sreenanda Shankar will share the stage with trailblazing “Devis” such as Tanya Sanyal (India’s first woman firefighter in aviation), Ipsita Chakraborty (Kolkata’s first woman bartender) and Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi (Nari Shakti awardee and marine pilot). Music will flow through the celebrated pianist-vocalist duo Sourendro and Soumyojit, while public life and governance will be represented by Smriti Irani, Leander Paes, Saira Shah Halim, Keya Ghosh, Rekha Patra, Roopa Ganguly and Babul Supriyo.
CNN-News18, editorial affairs director, Rahul Shivshankar, said the event honours voices that carry Bengal’s legacy forward. Smriti Mehra, CEO – English & Business News, Network18, added that Bengal’s stories resonate far beyond its borders, especially as the state heads into polls.
From the first woman to battle flames in the skies to legendary actors who shaped Indian cinema, the gathering promises a rich mix of inspiration, courage and candid dialogue. In a city where culture has always flowed as freely as the river itself, CNN-News18 is turning the Hooghly into a floating forum for ideas that matter.
Tune in on 20 April on CNN-News18, CTV and YouTube to catch Bengal’s heartbeat in full flow.
