Bancroft Family

Yesterday, lots of Wall Street Journal staffers and one former Dow Jones board member, James Ottaway, talked to the Observer about what, in the final hours of News Corp.'s bid to buy Dow Jones, had increasingly become the central issue: Could Dow Jones set up a $30 million fund to pay the lawyers and bankers who had advised the Bancrofts on the sale-and have Rupert Murdoch foot the bill?  read more »

Here was former Dow Jones board member James Ottaway Jr.'s reaction to the news that the Dow Jones board was ready to approve the sale to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.:

It’s a bad thing for Dow Jones and American journalism that the Bancroft Family could not resist Rupert Murdoch’s generous offer.

It’s a sad thing that the 105-year family tradition of protecting Dow Jones independence as a public trust will end.  read more »

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A spokesman for the Bancroft family just sent us this statement:

“The process of canvassing the Bancroft family members and trustees as to whether they wish to commit their respective shares to the proposed News Corporation transaction is still under way. Any suggestion that the process has been completed and/or that a particular level of support has been established is at this point premature."

David Faber, the CNBC reporter who first broke the news that Rupert Murdoch had offered $5 billion to buy Dow Jones, is now reporting that Dow Jones will agree to the sale.

According to Faber, a "definitive agreement" is expected from the Dow Jones board tonight. You can click through here to see CNBC video of his report.

A print extract accompanying the video presently reads in part:  read more »

While you were sleeping, the proposal to sell Dow Jones, Inc. to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. got more complicated.

The Bancroft family, which controls Dow Jones Inc., missed a self-imposed deadline yesterday to line up enough votes to agree to sell the company to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.  read more »

You might think that a family journalism dynasty would be more conscious of deadlines—but alas, the Bancrofts have already blown News Corp.’s 5 p.m. cutoff. Family advisors and Dow Jones board members tried convincing holdout family members to accept Rupert Murdoch’s $5 billion bid, according to the Wall Street Journal.  read more »

The Wall Street Journal reports today that the Bancroft family is still divided over whether to sell Dow Jones, Inc. to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. for $5 billion.  read more »

One previously undecided member of the Bancroft family, who votes about 15 percent of Dow Jones shares, has come out against a deal to sell the company to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., The Wall Street Journal reports.

Jane Cox MacElree, whose daughter, Leslie Hill, brought Brad Greenspan and Ron Burkle's counterproposal before the board of directors of the company, is said to have stated her position during family meetings begun in Boston yesterday.  read more »

Shortly before 8 p.m., Bancroft family lead trustee Michael Elefante emerged through a revolving door, from the back entrance of the Hilton Hotel, in Boston’s financial district. There, he very briefly addressed reporters, waiting outside in the light rain.  read more »

Today's Wall Street Journal has some valuable retread over the events at Tuesday night's meeting between representatives of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. and the board of directors of Dow Jones Inc., which is considering selling itself to the Australian-born media mogul.  read more »

Last night, Dow Jones Richard F. Zannino finished a marathon session with News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch by hammering out a tentative agreement to sell him the company.  read more »

The Wall Street Journal is citing sources on both sides of the deal saying that the purchase of Dow Jones Inc. by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. is almost a done deal.  read more »