Taking aim at the NYTimes

A National Public Radio segment Tuesday morning assesses whether The Wall Street Journal can take away readers from the New York Times. It interviews Journal managing editor Robert Thomson and Times executive editor Bill Keller.

The segment states, “Keller says the Journal has yet to put its new identity in focus, citing speculation after Murdoch bought publisher Dow Jones that the paper would soon challenge the Gray Lady in its sports and cultural coverage.

“‘In hindsight, I think a lot of that was bluster,’ Keller said. ‘They may have found a lot of readers were a little confused by — what is this, The Wall Street Journal that’s trying to be the New York Times?’

“The Journal, Keller says, is ‘less of a competitive threat now than it was two years ago.’

“Thomson would almost certainly disagree. In his view, he says, a weakened newspaper industry means that ‘an investment of a dollar in news coverage now will get you a greater return than at any time in history.'”

Read more here.