MediaBuyerPlanner: Protesting the proposed sale of Dow Jones to Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation, Dieter von Holtzbrinck, a Dow Jones director, resigned yesterday.
Von Holtzbrinck’s move publicly sides him with those who say that a shift in ownership would harm the editorial integrity of the company and its flagship newspaper, the Wall Street Journal, writes The New York Times.
As part of the proposed deal, the Bancrofts – the family that owns a controlling percentage of stock in the company – demanded an arrangement that would theoretically limit Murdoch’s influence over editorial content. The agreement calls for the Bancrofts and News Corp. to create a special committee that could block the hiring and firing of top editors at the Journal and at Dow Jones Newswires. Those editors would be able to independently hire and fire their own staffs.
Von Holtzbrinck says that he doesn’t believe the arrangement would prevent Murdoch from “doing what he wants to do, from acting his way.” He said that, while the News Corp. offer is very generous, a director’s duty is to vote for the most lucrative deal, unless “one can prove that such a deal bears risks for the company that overcompensate the financial profits.”
Related stories:
- Dow Jones Board Agrees to Recommend News Corp. Acquisition
- Murdoch, Dow Jones Reach Agreement, Await Bancroft Approval
- Dow Jones Advisors, News Corp. Hammering out WSJ Independence
- Murdoch Meets with Dow Jones’s Bancrofts; Burkle Expresses Interest
- Prediction: Rupert to Meet, Melt Bancrofts Today
- Bancrofts Agree to Chat with Murdoch about Future of Dow Jones
- Dow Jones Investor Urges Bancroft’s to Sell
- Murdoch Acquisition of Dow Jones Could Threaten CNBC, Reuters
- Dow Jones to ‘Take No Action’ on Murdoch Offer
- Murdoch Makes $5 Billion Offer for Dow Jones
