Who knew? Apparently the board of Dow Jones is good for something after all:
the WSJ’s Sarah
Ellison is reporting that they’re going to take over the negotiations with
Rupert Murdoch.
It’s clear that there’s enough internal dissent within the Bancroft family
that they’ll never agree to anything without a bit of outside pressure. The
board is the obvious entity to provide that pressure, if only because of the
fact that it does have a substantial family presence, so the Bancrofts aren’t
exactly being left out of the loop.
If the board – including the board’s family representatives – recommends
a deal to the family, it will be very hard, I think, for the family to say no.
Unless, of course, the NYT’s investigation
into Murdoch turns up some serious dirt. Then, all bets are off.
And whither all the bellyaching about editorial independence? I’m sure that
the Dow Jones board and News Corp between them can come up with something impressive-sounding.
But if Murdoch buys a paper, he intends to control it. So don’t expect his hands
to be tied very tightly.