With markets closed, new WSJ falls on deaf ears

Katherine Seelye of the New York Times writes Tuesday that the redesigned Wall Street Journal probably isn’t reaching as many people as it initially expected because the stock markets are closed due to the death of former president Gerald Ford.

Seelye wrote, “That means The Journal’s core audience is likely to miss the ballyhooed first issue.

“A spokesman for The Journal said that the closing of the markets would not have much affect on the paper’s publicity plans, which include giving away half a million copies free at 40,000 newsstands across the country — most of them not in Manhattan. And most of those copies that are in Manhattan are to be distributed at transportation hubs outside the financial district, like Grand Central Terminal, Penn Station and the Port Authority, to reach ordinary commuters, not the pinstripes downtown.

“But the crowning feature of the planned hoopla was for Peter R. Kann, chairman of Dow Jones, which owns The Journal, to ring the closing bell at the New York Stock exchange tomorrow. That prized showcase is now canceled.”

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