Wondering what that keening, mournful wail you just heard coming from 200 Liberty Street was? At long last, push has finally come to shove and the unholy union of Dow Jones and News Corp. has been made. From Reuters:

Dow Jones & Co. Inc.'s controlling Bancroft family "has accepted" News Corp.'s $5 billion offer to buy the publisher of the Wall Street Journal, an executive of a Dow Jones unit said on Tuesday. "The Bancroft family has accepted," John Prestbo, editor and executive director of Dow Jones Indexes, told reporters on Tuesday in Chicago. Dow Jones "will be part of News Corp," he said.

In the end, the Bancroft's hesitation may have aided in Rupert's victory, as the Dow's share price took a precipitous drop yesterday, finishing down 5.31%. Additionally, Editor and Publisher noted that the Dow drag seemed to be pulling a lot of other newspapers down with it: McClatchy, Sun-Times, Gannett, and Lee all suffered losses yesterday. We'll be learning, in short order, the rationale behind the Bancroft's decision, but we're guessing that the potential loss in value to Dow Jones stock played a significant role.

At any rate, the deal is, at last done. It's too bad we don't have some sort of recap montage prepared, with Rupert's announcement, the conflict-of-interest coverage, the many many editorials of Jack Shafer, the WSJ reporters walk out, all the would-be saviors (Pearson, Burkle, Ottaway, McElree)...it would likely end with the forlorn image of Chris Bancroft's "Bite Me" hat, blowing in the wind somewhere in the Financial District. Because, in the end, all we are, is "Bite Me" hats in the wind.

Anyway: welcome to the Rupert Murdoch Holiday Camp, Dow Jones! Good luck with everything!

PS: Get cracking, internets! You've got wiki pages to update!

Related:
Bancroft family accepts News deal - DJ executive [Reuters]

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