R. I. P. Wall Street Journal

“It’s sad,” said a veteran reporter at one of the domestic bureaus, who did not want to be named because of concerns over his career. “We held a wake. We stood around a pile of Journals and drank whiskey.”

Something to think about…

And, as if we needed confirmation of the trainwreck ahead of us, Murdoch’s New York Post didn’t bother to report the DJ sale on its front page, or even its front news section. However, in their business section article they portrayed the sale in glowing terms:

“The Dow Jones group, including Barron’s and Dow Jones Newswires, will now be folded into the global reach of News Corp., adding more international clout to the Journal and the company’s other brands,”

I think they may have meant, “…adding more international clot to the Journal…”

Update: FCC Commissioner, Michael Copps, reminds us that there is still a regulatory process to be completed and that it will be “no slam dunk.”

Copps: “It’s interesting to hear the ‘experts’ claim the transaction faces no regulatory hurdles. Not so fast! This deal means more media consolidation and fewer independent voices, and it specifically impacts the local market in New York City.”

Amen. I’d be surprised if the Republican-dominated Commission blocked the sale, but the debate is a worthy one and Commissioner Copps, with his ally Commissioner Jonathan Adelman, could use the opportunity to shine more light on the extent to which media consolidation is harmful to journalism and to the public interest.