Trying to calm nerves at the WSJ

John Koblin of the New York Observer reports that Wall Street Journal publisher Robert Thomson has been busy meeting with the paper’s journalists to calm their nerves in the wake of the resignation of managing editor Marcus Brauchli.

Koblin writes, “Staffers on the Money & Investing desk were confused when Mr. Thomson singled out The Lost Angeles Times and the Houston Chronicle for being too general and straying from hometown beats—like entertainment for the former or energy for the latter—that they might have owned.

“But wasn’t The Journal about to decentralize business coverage from its core reporting mission, to expand its coverage of politics and straight news?

“By May 1, Mr. Thomson was sounding less stern in meetings with reporters and editors on the media and marketing desk, and on a conference call with Journal bureau chiefs.

“Leders, he said, were at the paper to stay. Bureau chiefs, too.

“And naturally, all that phew spread around the company just as quickly as the previous panic had done.

“’Robert helped to calm things down a little bit, and we’re back into a zone of, we really still don’t know what this is going to look like, and it’ll take a couple years to shake out,’ said another.”

Read more here.