Murdoch Bid on Dow Jones Advances

It's true that there are fewer and fewer news media companies, but at the same time there are more outlets than ever for news and information on the Internet and through niche products. Someone who is seeking an array of perspectives can turn to Bloomberg, The New York Times, Reuters, Business Week and all of the niche products like business newsletters. Also, don't minimize the power of the web to provide alternative voices. The business and investment communities, probably more than others, are on the net trolling for information all the time. And of course there are the television broadcasts, which barely existed a few years ago. While I respect the Wall Street Journal, it is not the main source of financial news for "most" Americans. I think local newspapers, TV and the web are the main sources.

Any financial story has potential impact on the world's financial markets, so the concern is whether there would be influence on the selection, play and content of stories. The financial media raises the visibility of issues, companies and leaders on a specific day, setting the financial agenda. The Wall Street Journal is widely read in this country by investors and business, so it helps set the agenda.

What's different from even a decade ago is that there are many more sources of daily news on financial topics, such as Bloomberg, CNBC, The Financial Times and other more focused news sources. Some even tend to have more worldwide reach than the Journal, which has never extended its readership much beyond the U.S. (just relatively small European and Asian editions). These days, online newsletters, advisories, blogs and the like also provide financial information, in addition to magazines such as Fortune, Business Week and others. If Murdoch succeeds in making the Journal more of a worldwide presence, it would certainly add power to the words of a publication whose stories already resonate around the world. But it would still be one of many financial voices.

Concentration in fewer hands is a trend throughout all businesses, except perhaps for the very newest industries (and even there Google gained power quickly). Media in the past century tended to be in the hands of families, but that connection eroded with each generation. Attempts to perpetuate and control publications, such as enactment of the Newspaper Preservation Act of 1970, haven't worked very well because ultimately the reader and viewer decide whether a news source is viable and popular.

Murdoch is the only one with a lot of money who has shown interest in building his own global media empire for financial reasons. In the past there were Hearsts, McCormicks, Pulitzers and the like (and all of those had detractors who said they manipulated the news to their benefit and their ideology). All had tremendous power in their time, but they didn't live forever and the American public has proven capable of sorting out what it does and does not have faith in.

The public will evaluate the viability of the Murdoch Journal, and if it doesn't live up to its standards or expectations, other financial news sources will rise up to fill the void. In the meantime, let the paper know what you think of its coverage.