Why Murdoch's strategy won't work at Wall Street Journal

Media critic Norman Solomon writes in a column why News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch‘s past strategy of using sensationalism and politics in shaping his newspapers won’t work at The Wall Street Journal if he is successful in acquiring its parent company, Dow Jones & Co.

Solomon wrote, “Investors and money managers — prime demographic targets of The Wall Street Journal — are apt to be intolerant of financial news reporting that’s unduly screened through an ideological mesh.

“Slanted journalism may be fine for big commercial enterprises when news consumers largely base their outlooks on prevailing media biases. But investors and others who move large amounts of money are apt to be less forgiving when political agendas behind news reports might impede the quest to maximize profits.

“Each day, investors seek accurate news as the basis for their money-related decisions. On Wall Street, they can recognize when an editorial page is spinning and grinding ideological axes. But investors will quickly stop relying on financial news pages if those pages are more dedicated to political maneuvers than well-founded portrayals of business reality.

“In other words, if a newspaper is just distorting reality to the detriment of civic understanding and democratic discourse, the most powerful corporations may not mind at all. In fact, corporate elites are likely to appreciate any storyline that helps them to consolidate power over the nation’s political system.”

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