Mr Stokes will step aside as chairman of Seven West Media in February, should a merger with Southern Cross Media transpire. If it is the end of Mr Stokes’ heavyweight career in media, then the creation of a new powerhouse national entity would be a fitting way to go out. Mr Stokes, ranked by Forbes as Australia’s 11th most wealthy person with a fortune worth $11.7 billion, didn’t start his remarkable career in media. “Ben Roberts-Smith is innocent and deserves legal representation,” Mr Stokes said in 2022 after the Seven West AGM. And quote me on that.”Mr Stokes’ retirement is contingent on the Seven West-Southern Cross deal being accepted by both sets of shareholders, and regulators.