News Corporation reached a $139 million settlement in a lawsuit filed against its board, alleging that the media giant’s top brass put chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch‘s interests before those of the company.

A group of shareholders, suing on behalf of the company, settled a class suit filed in Delaware two years ago claimed the board failed to prevent the phone-hacking scandal in the U.K. and negotiate a fair price for the acquisition of Shine Group, a TV production firm owned by the boss’s daughter, Elisabeth Murdoch.

The board put in place new rules, appeasing the plaintiffs, last year.

News Corp. will recover $139 million in insurance proceeds.

“We are pleased to have resolved this matter,” News Corp. said in a statement on Monday. “The agreement reflects the important steps News Corporation has taken over the last year to strengthen our corporate governance and compliance structure and we have committed to building on those efforts going forward.”

The News of the World tabloid, the main antagonist in the phone-hacking debacle, was shuttered in July 2011, months after Murdoch bought Shine in an all-stock deal worth about $675 million.

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We were more than a little disappointed to learn that we missed Dan Stevens aka Matthew Crawley on Downton Abbey when he lunched with producer Paula Wagner at Table One on Monday. (Doesn’t he know Wednesday is the day for lunch at Michael’s?) Luckily, today’s oh-so-fabulous lunch with the cast of Oxygen’s new ’supermodel competition’ series, The Face, more than made up for it. While in town to promote the new series, which premieres Tuesday, February 12 at 9 pm on Oxygen, supermodels Naomi Campbell, Karolina Kurkova, Coco Rocha and renowned photographer Nigel Barker decided to make ‘Lunch’ their sole joint appearance on their whirlwind media tour.

I couldn’t imagine what yet another reality competition series about fashion could bring to the party, but when I watched the screener of the premiere episode in anticipation for our lunch I was pleasantly surprised. Aside from its stellar production values, The Face has some serious fashion cred thanks to executive producer and supermodel coach Naomi Campbell’s considerable star power (along with fellow coaches Karolina Kurkova and Coco Rocha) and unrivaled sense of what works. As host, Nigel Barker is a commanding yet reassuring presence. Everything on the show has an authenticity that real fashionistas will appreciate, while giving ‘civilians’ a true glimpse into what it really takes to make it in modeling. The most refreshing twist the series offers is in its approach to working with the 12 hopefuls vying to be the new face of ULTA Beauty. The contestants also get some major opportunities in the course of the show, including photo shoots with the legendary Patrick Demarchelier and challenges with W magazine. Celebrities Wendy Williams and Amare Stoudemire make appearances as guest judges.

Coco Rocha and Diane Clehane

The three supermodels act as mentors to their respective teams and took their roles very seriously. Even though the show wrapped months ago, Naomi, Karolina and Coco forged such strong bonds with their ‘girls’ that all of them remain in touch with the wannabe models, offering career advice whenever the need should arise. “I really worry about my girls,” Naomi told me. “It’s funny, when I’m working in New York or Paris, I always feel like I’m going to miss everyone when the week is over, but after a few days you get on with it. When we finished shooting the show, I felt a little sad. I still talk to my girls and I’m texting them all the time. I really grew quite fond of them.”

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Despite claims from News Corporation shareholders that there is rampant nepotism taking place, it looks like the Murdoch family will not be stopped. According to Bloomberg, the next move is to name Elisabeth Murdoch a member of the company’s board.

The board was expected to meet today and discuss her joining the ranks. Add that to James Murdoch‘s recent promotion, and the fact that Lachlan Murdoch is still on News Corp.’s board, and you get the feeling the Murdoch family is going to be calling the shots for a long, long time.

Shareholders might be complaining for decades.

Rupert Murdoch has been remembering the importance of family lately, what with the hiring of son James Murdoch as Deputy COO of News Corp., and now Guardian is reporting that News Corp. has purchased his second daughter Elisabeth Murdoch‘s Shine television production company in a deal where Shine shareholders received £290m.

Elisabeth Murdoch owned 53% of Shine, so the math wizards at Guardian have worked out that she made £153m off of her dad. Um, jealous! The rest of Shine was owned by Sony and BSkyB (itself the subject of a proposed bid by News Corp.)

We’re going to refrain from saying that this had anything to do with Elisabeth Murdoch being Rupert Murdoch’s daughter.

But we are not above saying that other people are saying that! Last month a group of investors – Amalgamated Bank of New York and the Central Laborers Pension Fund– filed a lawsuit alleging that News Corp had not achieved a fair price for Shine because Rupert Murdoch treated the company like a “wholly owned family candy store”.

The Murdoch Family Reunion came one step closer to becoming a reality today with News Corp confirming its plans to purchase Shine Group, the TV production company owned by Elisabeth Murdoch, for $673 million.

The acqusition means Murdoch will once again be working with her father, Rupert Murdoch, at News Corp. She’s expected to join the company’s board when the deal is completed.

Rupert must be happy – but now that the family reunion is getting closer – we have to wonder: Will he man the grill or will James Murdoch? You might not think that matters, but trust us, it does.

Reacting to Sunday’s New York Times profile, and subsequent opinion columns from Lloyd Grove and Michael Wolff this week, Roger Ailes and Fox News took to The Los Angeles Times today to set the record straight: Ailes is certainly not on the way out at the news net, no matter what a Murdoch relative may have told the NYT.

This week’s Times profile included a quote from Rupert Murdoch‘s son-in-law, British publicist Michael Freud, criticizing Ailes. But to the LA Times, News Corp. president Chase Carey was quick to show support the Fox News chief. “News Corp. is 100 percent behind Roger Ailes,” Carey said. “We hope and expect he will continue to lead Fox News well into the future.”

For his part, Ailes made light of the whole situation. After explaining that he’s never had a problem with any of Murdoch’s children and said he has spoken with Freud’s wife, Elisabeth Murdoch, and her brother James Murdoch, since the profile was published, Ailes said he probably won’t be speaking with Freud. “I’m obviously not going to be invited to his house..with him home anyway,” he said.

Read more: Roger Ailes’ Job Safe, Fox News says –Los Angeles Times

Ailes To Freud: He ‘Needs To See A Psychiatrist’ –TVNewser

Previously: No Matter How Murdoch Feels, Fox News’ Roger Ailes Makes Bank

A profile of Roger Ailes in The New York Times yesterday highlighted the tension between the Fox News chief and his boss, Rupert Murdoch.

The profile includes a quote from inside the Murdoch family that speaks harshly about Ailes and his work at Fox News. Says Matthew Freud, great-grandson of Sigmund who is married to Murdoch’s daughter Elisabeth:

“I am by no means alone within the family or the company in being ashamed and sickened by Roger Ailes’s horrendous and sustained disregard of the journalistic standards that News Corporation, its founder and every other global media business aspires to.”

Of course, this is not how Murdoch officially feels about his company’s Fox News division. He told the Times, “I’m proud of Fox News and what it is accomplishing, and I am grateful to Roger and his team for creating such a great asset for News Corporation.”

He also offered Ailes a contract that earned him $23 million, plus bonuses and additional income, more than Murdoch made himself last year, the Times reported. If Fox News really is as successful as the profile claims — said the article: “Fox News is believed to make more money than CNN, MSNBC and the evening newscasts of NBC, ABC and CBS combined” — then Ailes earned it. And that’s something he can take to the bank, no matter how Murdoch and his family really feel about him.

Read More: A Fox Chief at the Pinnacle of Media and Politics –New York Times

Previously: Ailes and Obama Called Truce?