Were Murdoch-owned outlets or tabloids involved in reporting these allegations in 2016?

1. Murdoch tabloids were politically active in 2016, including explicit campaigning

In Britain, Murdoch’s tabloid The Sun openly backed the Vote Leave campaign in June 2016, a public editorial stance that demonstrates the group’s willingness to campaign on divisive national issues rather than merely report them ^[1], and multiple sources note Murdoch outlets have long leaned conservative and advocated policy positions—context that helps explain their visible role in 2016 political debates ^{[3] [4]}.

2. Corporate maneuvers in 2016 drove intensive coverage inside Murdoch’s world

Beyond editorial endorsements, 21st Century Fox — part of Murdoch’s media interests — moved in December 2016 to take full control of Sky, a high‑stakes deal that kept Murdoch properties at the center of intense political and regulatory reporting that year and may have influenced what stories and angles were emphasized across his outlets ^[2].

3. Historical patterns make Murdoch tabloids likely amplifiers, but sources don’t tie them to a specific allegation set

The Murdoch stable’s record of aggressive tabloid tactics and scandals — including the News of the World phone‑hacking scandal that prompted criminal and parliamentary inquiries a decade earlier — establishes a pattern in which Murdoch titles have both sought scoops and shaped political narratives ^{[5] [6] [7]}. That track record explains why observers often look to Murdoch tabloids when controversial allegations circulate, but the documents provided do not identify a named allegation from 2016 and thus cannot confirm that Murdoch outlets specifically reported or promoted the particular allegations in question ^{[5] [6]}.

4. Internal dynamics and editorial incentives that year suggest motive if coverage occurred

Reporting and commentary about Murdoch’s empire show how internal editorial priorities and commercial goals — from driving circulation to supporting political allies — can create incentives to amplify certain stories; critics argue those incentives helped tilt coverage across his newspapers and television channels toward partisan or sensational frames in multiple years, including 2016 ^{[8] [3]}. At the same time, defenders point out that large media groups also own quality titles (e.g., The Times, The Wall Street Journal) and that coverage varies across outlets under the same corporate umbrella ^{[4] [9]}.

5. Rival reporting and post‑hoc legal outcomes matter for assessing culpability

Where allegations tied to Murdoch titles have later been litigated or discredited, the public record is clear — for example, the fallout from the phone‑hacking scandal led to closures, resignations and legal exposure for News International in the early 2010s ^{[6] [7]}. For any specific allegation from 2016, the decisive evidence would come from contemporaneous Murdoch stories, follow‑up investigations, and legal or regulatory findings; such documentary linkage is not present in the supplied sources, so attribution in that granular sense remains unresolved ^{[6] [8]}.

6. Bottom line: involvement in 2016 is evidenced for political campaigning and corporate activity, not for unspecified allegations

It is demonstrable from the records provided that Murdoch tabloids and companies were active, partisan and influential in 2016 — The Sun’s Vote Leave endorsement and 21st Century Fox’s Sky bid are concrete examples ^{[1] [2]} — but the supplied reporting does not document Murdoch‑owned outlets specifically reporting the unnamed “allegations” referenced in the query, and therefore the question cannot be answered affirmatively or negatively for those unspecified claims without additional, allegation‑specific sources ^{[1] [2] [5]}.