On the heels of Rupert Murdoch's Dow Jones takeover, to be made official with tomorrow's shareholder vote, today was a big day in Murdoch/Dow Jones news.

The New York Times reports that although the sale becomes official, Murdoch has already been making changes to his new prize possession, The Wall Street Journal:

Mr. Murdoch has already seized the reins of Dow Jones and The Journal, setting in motion what amounts to an overhaul of the look, content and staff of one of the world's most prized newspapers.

"He's not wasting any time," said one Dow Jones executive who, like most of the people interviewed, asked for anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the changes being made. "He's already calling the shots, making decisions. We know that's his M.O., but it's amazing to see."

For The Journal's editors and reporters, this is a time of both anxiety and anticipation about what will happen when more than a century of independent family ownership reaches its end.

The New York Observer reports that outgoing Dow Jones CEO Richard Zannino, who resigned last week, will stick around to aid with the transition:

News Corp. is set to take over the day-to-day running of the company beginning Dec. 14, but Mr. Murdoch's plans have been in place for some time. Richard Zannino, the outgoing Dow Jones CEO, told Off the Record that shortly after Labor Day, the two men agreed that Mr. Zannino would leave the company. Very shortly thereafter, he said, Mr. Murdoch made the decision to bring in Mr. Hinton and Mr. Thomson.

"Oh, I knew for a while," said Mr. Zannino, referring to the identity of his replacements. "I knew well in advance. Once Rupert and I agreed I'd move on, then he started sharing with me ideas about what he would do."

Mr. Zannino may stick around for a while to help with the transition. "I told Rupert that I'll stay for as long or as little as he would like me to stick around," Mr. Zannino continued. "I'll help him finalize next year's budget and put planning issues to bed."

And, of course, there's already a "budding feud" among New York journalists to chronicle the juicy events of the takeover. The New York Post's Keith Kelly reports:

A budding feud is developing between Vanity Fair columnist Michael Wolff and Wall Street Journal reporter Sarah Ellison, both of whom now have book deals to write about Rupert Murdoch and News Corp.'s takeover of Dow Jones.

But Wolff isn't taking kindly to a reporter from the WSJ jumping into the fray.

"The problem with someone from The Wall Street Journal writing a book is that they are inevitably conflicted," said Wolff. "Either they're bitter that Murdoch bought the place or they are trying to save their job."

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