At first, to me, the above graph appears counterintuitive. Since Rupert Murdoch took over The Wall Street Journal, the newspaper has actually featured more coverage of foreign policy, U.S. politics, and government and less coverage of business. But keep in mind that this is just a tally of stories, and says nothing about their content. I'd like to know whether that 15-point jump in elections coverage is just straight horse-race campaign news or whether it is in the style of the NY Post, Fox News and the Sun. Not surprisingly, Murdoch has a larger target in sight:
Ever since Murdoch first evinced interest in the Journal, much has been made of his apparent desire to revamp the paper in order to more directly challenge the New York Times. (A recent Newsweek story on Murdoch reported that he sent Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. a letter declaring "Let the battle begin.")So how does the news agenda of Murdoch's Journal compare with that of the Times? An analysis of both papers' front pages from Dec. 13--March 13 reveals that they are not the same, certainly not yet. When it comes to politics, the Journal, with 18% of the newshole devoted to the topic, has moved much closer to its possible new rival. But it has not caught up with the Times, which filled 27% of its newshole with politics in those four months.
I wonder, however, whether Murdoch's goal is really to best the Times, or if he instead intends to overwhelm it by dominating the market.
--Mori Dinauer
