Brauchli Said to Be Next 'WashPost' Editor

It sounds like Marcus Brauchli is going to be the next executive editor of the Washington Post.

Politico is saying an announcement about who will succeed Len Downie in the job is expected early next week, and Brauchli, who resigned as The Wall Street Journal's top editor in May, is rumored to be it.

All of that is exactly what I'm hearing from my sources -- along with the additional fact that Brauchli's lawyer recently met with News Corp., the Journal's newish corporate parent, and received assurances that the non-compete agreement built into Brauchli's contract won't be an issue. (That agreement, says one person familiar with the matter, is intended mainly to keep him from going to work for a direct competitor, such as Bloomberg or the Financial Times, and from poaching talent from the Journal.)

Since stepping down, Brauchli has held a new role as a consultant to News Corp. on various matters, including business opportunities in Asia. Although eager to get back into an editing role, according to sources familiar with his thinking, he did have reservations about relocating his family to Washington, D.C., for the job. Evidently he got over them -- although those who have seen Brauchli recently say he has been cagey about the Post rumors.

No response yet from Brauchli; a Post spokeswoman declined to comment.