(James Murdoch.Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for National Geographic)
James Murdoch railed against racial violence that erupted in Charlottesville, Virginia, in an email to 21st Century Fox employees published on Thursday.
"I can’t even believe I have to write this: standing up to Nazis is essential; there are no good Nazis. Or Klansmen, or terrorists," Murdoch's email read. He implored Democrats and Republicans to take a firm stand against hate groups, even as President Donald Trump wavered in his denunciations of white nationalists and neo-Nazis over the past week.
Murdoch is the chief executive of 21st Century Fox, the parent company of the Fox News channel. The company was founded by his father Rupert Murdoch, a close confidant to Trump.
Trump is also a frequent guest on Fox News programs, and the network regularly promotes narratives that are seen as favorable to the president.
James Murdoch did not name Trump specifically in his email to employees.
Observers noted the omission, which happened at a time when lawmakers, business leaders, and tech moguls have roundly condemned the president's equivocations about white nationalists and Confederate monuments — a matter Trump sought to relitigate during a heated press conference on Tuesday.
Murdoch said he was writing the email in a personal capacity to "remind us all why vigilance against hate and bigotry is an eternal obligation." He announced that he would pledge $1 million to the Anti-Defamation League in protest of the deadly Charlottesville rally.
"We hardly ever talk about our charitable giving," Murdoch said to employees, "but in this case I wanted to tell you and encourage you to be generous too."
Read Murdoch's full email below:
Subject: Personal note from James Murdoch re: ADL