Who is Siobhan McKenna, the ‘irreplaceable’ former Murdoch aide given a top diplomatic posting?

The next general consul to New York chairs Australia Post and is a former News Corp executive

F ormer News Corp executive Siobhan McKenna will be Australia’s next consul general to New York in a surprise appointment given her background as a key strategist and trusted “right hand” to Lachlan Murdoch , a vocal Labor critic.

The diplomatic posting in Donald Trump’s home town places one of Australia’s most influential media insiders and corporate leaders into a city where trade and conservative political networks intersect.

Veteran media analyst Peter Cox says the choice is about as far from appointing a traditional Labor stalwart as possible.

“The appointment of Lachlan’s ‘right-hand person’ will come as a surprise to many, but it would not have been made unless there’s a good relationship there with the government,” says Cox.

While McKenna is best known for her long association with News Corp, Labor governments have previously elevated her into politically sensitive roles, which included chairing the national broadband enterprise, NBN Co, and, currently, Australia Post.

The consul-general role is designed to promote Australia’s economic interests in major global centres, where finance and politics often overlap. The position traditionally supports the broader strategy marked out by an ambassador.

The appointment marks a significant pivot for McKenna, who formerly headed News Corp’s broadcasting division overseeing Foxtel and Sky News Australia (now News24).

US court documents recently revealed her central role in a contentious plan to amend a Murdoch family trust and give Lachlan sole control over the Fox and News Corp media empire, without interference from his siblings, in order to retain its highly conservative voice.

A Nevada judicial officer said in 2024 that the plan, known as Project Family Harmony, was an “attempt to stack the deck in Lachlan Murdoch’s favour after Rupert Murdoch’s passing so that his succession would be immutable”.

The probate commissioner, Edmund Gorman, said “the evidence shows that Project Family Harmony had its origins with Siobhan McKenna and Lachlan Murdoch in the middle of 2023, before Rupert Murdoch was brought into the plan later that year”.

The plan was ultimately unsuccessful, and the bitter legal battle involving Rupert Murdoch’s heirs only ended when a financial deal was reached in 2025 .

McKenna was contacted for comment on Monday. She is due to start in the new role early in 2027.

McKenna left News Corp late last year after two decades with the conglomerate, and shortly after News Corp sold its controlling stake in Foxtel.