July 6, 2007
No Deal
There were a number of rumors ( or perhaps just one repeated in a variety of outlets) Friday indicating that the News Corp. bid to buy Dow Jones & Company was a "done deal." No so.
Not only did Dow Jones deny any truth to the story, the source of the report (whoever that may have been) missed the fundamental point of the entire process: There is no deal unless the Bancroft Family says there's a deal. And the Bancroft Family has said nothing of the kind.
In fact, the Bancroft Family hasn't said anything recently to indicate a change in its comittment to the continued independence and unquestioned integrity of Dow Jones and its flagship publication, The Wall Street Journal.
IAPE believes Dow Jones— its employees, investors and readers— are best served by an independent company without any hint of a personal, corporate or political agenda.