Dow Jones Surrender Negotiations Continue

Bancroft family members en route to buyout talks

Press reports suggest that the Bancroft family is "warming" to Rupert Murdoch's takeover offer, with the Washington Post saying "the family will tell the company's board of directors it can start negotiating a sale price" if Murdoch "can assure the family owners of Dow Jones that he will not meddle in the news coverage of the Wall Street Journal."

Translation: the surrender negotiations are picking up steam.

As part of its face-saving effort to salvage some dignity out of this capitulation, the Bancrofts are making a new proposal today to guarantee "editorial independence" at the Journal.

This is such utter nonsense. Even if they come up with a way to keep Murdoch from interfering with the day-to-day operations of the paper, he still controls the purse strings and it is absurd to believe that his wishes will not be heeded. Columbia Journalism Review made that oft-repeated and obvious point again today.

The newspaper's union, meanwhile, is telling its members something they know already, which is that their jobs are in jeopardy.

La lucha continua, but is endinga soona.

© 2007 Gary Weiss. All rights reserved.

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