Biz journalists have become advocates in Dow Jones/Murdoch story

Dan Gainor of The Business & Media Institute writes Wednesday about how journalists have stopped being impartial observers and have become part of the story that is News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch‘s attempt to purchase Dow Jones & Co., the parent of The Wall Street Journal.

Gainor wrote, “It’s easy to find reporters and editors opposed to Murdoch. They’re all over the news – NPR, the Columbia Journalism Review, The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN and in the very paper he is trying to buy.

“The Wall Street Journal’s own staffers are lobbying the Bancroft family, which owns a majority voting share in the company, urging them not to sell. The journalists’ union has been recruiting left-wing alternative bidders. And because that news has been reported by their brothers and sisters in the mainstream media, almost no one has taken them to task for such an open display of political bias.

“That’s the story behind Murdoch’s bid for the Journal – bias. Journalists have long claimed they are neutral parties without any political ax to grind. They can’t claim that any more – ever.

“The hysterical assault on one of the most successful men in the news business unveils some ugly truths about journalism. The industry is less of a business and more of a culture club. You get to join if, and only if, you say the right things and know the right people.”

Read more here.