Murdoch received £15.8m salary last year

by Jacquie Bowser, Brand Republic 07-Sep-07, 14:45

LONDON - Rupert Murdoch, chief executive of News Corporation, received a total salary of $32.1m (£15.8m) in the last financial year, including $24.3 million in various compensation payouts.

Murdoch received a base salary of $8.1m, which was an increase of $3.6m from the year before.

News Corp, which has agreed to buy Dow Jones & Company for £2.8bn, also paid Murdoch a $15.8m performance-related bonus, $1m in stock awards, $6.87m in pension benefits and $356,175 in other compensation.

However Peter Chernin, president and chief operating officer of News Corp, received a higher total package than Murdoch, pocketing $33.96m.

Almost $13m of this was from stock awards and just over $10m in performance-related bonuses.

A company statement said News Corp retains an independent consultant to advise on pay.

It said: "The goal of creating long-term growth and value for our stockholders drives the philosophy of how we design our executive compensation programme.

"News Corporation's executives are central to the value the company creates for our stockholders. It is their leadership, creativity and ability to identify and execute on business opportunities that spur the company's future growth and success."