Public pressure won't convince Bancrofts to sell Dow Jones

Applying public pressure to persuade Dow Jones & Co.’s family owners to sell the media company to News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch may do more harm than good, according to a Reuters story Thursday.

On Wednesday, the chief investment officer of T. Rowe Price, the largest institutional investor in the owner of The Wall Street Journal, said it wishes the Bancroft family would consider Murdoch’s $5 billion offer.

Reuters reporter Svea Herbst-Bayliss wrote, “‘Large investors will try to put pressure on the family to sell and I, too, wish they would say ‘Yes’,’ said Jean-Marie Eveillard, a top mutual fund manager who owns Dow shares. ‘But I’m not sure this will help the situation.'”

Later, the story noted, “Meanwhile other large investors like Fidelity Investments and hedge funds have kept silent about Murdoch’s proposed deal, something investors and analysts say is a smart move.

“Fidelity managers own Dow Jones shares and the company manages Dow Jones’ retirement plans.

“‘The big players often have conflicts of interest that force them to stay silent. But even if we still owned a lot, I don’t think we would have tried to help our case by pressuring the family,’ Eveillard said.”

Read more here.