Albanese appoints Murdoch’s former top lieutenant as consul-general in New York

New York: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has named Siobhan McKenna - the former top lieutenant to Lachlan Murdoch - as Australia’s next consul-general in New York, securing one of the country’s plum diplomatic postings.

McKenna, who was named in US court documents this year as the “driving force” behind the plan to reshape Rupert Murdoch’s family trust and cement his eldest son’s control of the News Corp and Fox Corporation empire, will take up the senior diplomatic posting after a career spanning corporate Australia and government boards.

The prime minister announced her appointment while launching Australia’s bid for a seat on the United Nation’s security council in New York on Sunday (Monday AEST). She will succeed Heather Ridout, the businesswoman and former chief executive of the Australian Industry Group, whose four-year term expires in December.

Albanese, who has maintained a close relationship with the younger Murdoch, defended the appointment as an “outstanding” merit-based choice, after questions from journalists, pointing to McKenna’s experience across the private and public sectors.

“Siobhan McKenna is a professional, and she will do an outstanding job representing Australia and the Australian government here in New York,” Albanese said.

“The fact that she has experience in both the private sector and the public sector is a very good thing. I’m someone who supports people being employed on merit.”

Acting as a senior diplomatic official under the ambassador, the consul-general leads Australia’s presence in key international cities by championing local trade and investment while driving bilateral engagement with regional government and business leaders.

The position comes with a salary of around $350,000, a substantial entertainment budget as well as an official residence at One Beekman, a pre-war high-rise cooperative apartment building located near the United Nations in the Turtle Bay neighbourhood in New York. Albanese said she would move to the IS with her husband, James Flintoft, a prominent Melbourne board director and former ANZ executive, and their three children.

It is the second time Albanese has appointed the 54-year-old to a public role, having installed her as chair of Australia Post in December 2022, and reappointing her for a second term. She was widely regarded within News Corp as being the “Albo whisperer”, a source with inside knowledge said. McKenna was contacted for comment.

The posting marks a significant new chapter for McKenna, who formally cut ties with News Corp in October last year after two decades as one of the most influential figures in Lachlan Murdoch’s Australian business interests.

She became News Corp’s head of broadcasting in 2017, overseeing Foxtel and Sky News Australia and playing a central role in the development of streaming services Kayo Sports and Binge.