News Corp. reached an agreement with members of the Bancroft family, which owned controlling interest in Dow Jones — the parent company of “The Wall Street Journal,” July 31 to purchase the company for $5 billion.
The three-month negotiations for the purchase of Dow Jones had its ups and downs, many of which were related to a desire of some members of the family to win guarantees that Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. would maintain the journalistic integrity and independence of Dow Jones.
As part of the agreement, News Corp. will allow one member of the Bancroft family onto its board of directors. It also will create a committee to guard the journalistic independence of Dow Jones.
FOX News, which is owned by News Corp., plans to launch the FOX Business Network Oct. 15. There was no immediate word about what, if any, involvement the reporting resources of Dow Jones will have with the new business network.
The deal is still subject to the approval of regulators.
