FOX sells nine television affiliates, gears up for big buy

Without explanation, Rupert Murdoch's News Corp announced that it is planning to sell nine of its FOX affiliates:

The stations are generally in the smallest markets among News Corp.'s35-station television group, including stations in Greensboro, N.C.,Memphis, and Birmingham, Ala.

The nine stations are WJW in Cleveland, OH; KDVR in Denver, CO; KTVI inSt. Louis, MO; WDAF in Kansas City, KS; WITI in Milwaukee, WI; KSTU inSalt Lake City, UT; WBRC in Birmingham, AL; WHBQ in Memphis, TN; andWGHP in Greensboro, NC.

News Corp, which has $7.3 billion in cash, might be cutting costs in order to secure its purchase of Dow Jones.  This is a very big story because Dow Jones owns the Wall Street Journal.  Many worry that Murdoch's reputation at FOX could damage the credibility of the Wall Street Journal -- making it more into a tabloid magazine like the NY Post, which Murdoch also owns.

So at the moment, the Bancroft family, which owns Dow Jones, wants to install safeguards that would protect the journalistic independence of the Wall Street Journal:

The Bancrofts have said they will continue talks with Rupert Murdoch'smedia giant only if an agreement is reached first on formal safeguardsfor the Journal, Dow Jones's flagship newspaper.

Whether you like the Wall Street Journal or not, most serious news readers agree that it is miles ahead of the New York Post in terms of its objectivity.  If Murdoch owns both newspapers, it will be a sad day for the newspaper industry.

Comments

[granny]

It's hard to imagine that the Bancrofts are not savvy; but no more can I imagine any safeguard that can't be broken once the checks have been cashed and ownership turned over.

Rupert Murdoch is still Rupert Murdoch. Why would he have any interest in publishing any other kind of paper - unless the money is better with one than the other? Though The Wall Street Journal is no rabble rouser as it is.

I guess the short version is: I don't want him to get ahold of DOW Jones, I don't care what he promises or pays. It's a bad idea.

[George]

The New York Post is what it is - basically a waste of time if you're looking for hard news. That said, the biggest problem here is more of the media being owned by fewer people.

[Chief Editor: Todd]

Yes, the consolidation of media is extremely serious! Even though the WSJ is conservative, I still find it credible. When I took political science at the UW, every class forced you to read the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times each day. If the WSJ becomes a tabloid like the NYP, it will be a very dark day for journalism.