How the Bancrofts Changed Their Mind

The Wall Street Journal proves today that, when pushed, it can do excellent long-form narrative investigative journalism and turn it around within 24 hours. Much kudos to Matthew Karnitschnig, Sarah Ellison, Susan Pulliam and Susan Warren for pulling together the definitive story on how the Bancrofts changed their mind, and getting it out on today's front page. (And good on the WSJ, too, for making the story free on its website.)

The full story is rich and subtle and well worth reading. But I do get the impression that the anti-Murdoch forces in the Bancroft family got a bit too complacent, and were essentially unaware that Thursday's headline-grabbing volte-face was even a possibility.

Meanwhile, the Bancrofts who were more amenable to talking to Murdoch were increasingly convinced that Dow Jones is too small and cash-poor to survive as a competitive independent entity. CEO Richard Zannino was clearly sympathetic to that view, and eventually it seems that the all-important Michael Elefante came round to it too.

Rupert Murdoch comes off as very smart, quietly sending emissaries to key Bancroft constituents as long ago as September 2006. Meanwhile, Christopher Bancroft and William Cox Jr, who are opposed to selling Dow Jones, seem to have made a serious tactical error by not turning up at a key family meeting in Boston, with the latter saying he "could care less" what was discussed.

What happens next is still far from clear, although we know there will be a meeting on Monday with Rupert Murdoch, which will concentrate on the question of editorial independence. From reading the WSJ report, my feeling is that the Bancrofts will be working with Murdoch, rather than against him, in an attempt to construct some kind of structure which would allow them to sell to him while not feeling that they're selling out the paper.