Trump Dines with Rupert Murdoch Amid Ongoing Lawsuit Over Wall Street Journal
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump and Rupert Murdoch shared a private dinner at the White House, even as Trump faces a staggering $10 billion lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal, which Murdoch owns.
Sources familiar with the meeting confirmed the gathering took place amidst a protracted legal dispute that has persisted for over six months. The lawsuit stems from an article that allegedly exposed Trump's connections to the late Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender.
Efforts to obtain comments from both the White House and News Corp representatives regarding the dinner have been initiated, but responses remain pending.
Murdoch, 94, is the head of News Corp, which oversees numerous media outlets globally, including The WSJ and Fox News in the United States.
The friction between Trump and Murdoch reportedly ignited last July when Trump filed the lawsuit following a report detailing his purportedly “bawdy” birthday letter to Epstein from 2003. Trump has categorically denied any wrongdoing and has not faced criminal charges related to these allegations.
Despite the ongoing legal battle, Murdoch has maintained a cordial relationship with Trump. Notably, both attended a state banquet in the U.K. in September 2025, honoring Trump, just two months after the lawsuit was filed. A month later, they dined together again at the White House.
However, The WSJ has not shied away from criticizing Trump and his administration's policies. In a December editorial, the publication dismissed Trump's claims regarding the 2020 election as “nonsense,” urging Republicans to stop indulging his assertions.
“Mr. Trump will never admit his 2020 claims were partisan nonsense. But Republicans who care about the future could do their man a favor by refusing to keep indulging them,” the editorial board stated.
As of Tuesday, Trump's legal challenges continue, particularly concerning election offices in Georgia. Newly released documents revealed that the FBI conducted a raid in Fulton County, seizing ballots from the 2020 presidential election as part of an investigation into alleged irregularities surrounding Trump's loss in the state.
Meanwhile, other News Corp outlets have begun to question certain administration policies, particularly regarding immigration enforcement in Minnesota. Prominent figures from Fox News, including Brian Kilmeade and Sean Hannity, have recently urged Trump to reconsider his administration's aggressive tactics following tragic incidents involving federal officers.
On January 26, Kilmeade repeatedly called on Trump to send border czar Tom Homan to “settle things down,” a request Trump later acknowledged on Truth Social. Hannity also expressed concerns about ICE operations, suggesting that arresting individuals in places like Home Depot was not advisable.
These shifts in tone come amid a notable decline in Trump's approval ratings, driven by public sentiment regarding immigration policies and economic management as midterm elections approach.
