Spend your summer at the WSJ

The Wall Street Journal is looking for 18 journalism students for its summer internship program.
The interns will dive into business and information reporting for 10 weeks from June to Aug. at one of the Journal's many bureaus throughout the country, helping the WSJ's audience better understand business life. Interns will receive a pay of $700 per week.
Candidates must be undergraduate or graduate students. Most selected applicants have typically had previous newspaper internships and been heavily involved in their college's newspaper. An applicant's clips and previous journalism experience will have major impact on his or her acceptance. Journalists selected for final consideration will be asked to attend an interview.
To apply, mail your cover letter, resume and at least a dozen of clips (photocopied on letter or legal-size paper and unbound) to:

Cathy Panagoulias
Assistant Managing Editor
The Wall Street Journal
200 Liberty Street
New York, NY 10281

Applications must be received by Nov. 1 of this year. All candidates will be notified of the newspaper's intern selection by the end of February.

Learn more about the internship here.

IMAGE CREDIT: online.wsj.com

Dow Jones needs an editor and journalists

The Wall Street Journal Online is looking for an editor to lead a new business-focused Web site. Dow Jones says the position is "a rare opportunity to help shape a new site that will break ground in the paid-content arena". The editor will lead a team of editors and create comprehensive coverage through multimedia. They will also meet with technology, product development, business development and marketing teams to make the new site.
Applicants should have a strong understanding of business along with 10 years' experience in journalism with at least three to five of those years spent in digital operations. They should also be knowledgeable in content-management systems, taxonomy and metadata design and the product-development process.

Dow Jones is also looking for journalists. A reporter to cover aerospace companies is wanted in California who has five years' experience at a daily newspaper. The company is also looking for a reporter in New York to cover the oil market for its newswire.

Learn more about the position and apply online here.

Murdoch foresees paperless future for WSJ, all newspapers

Media mogul and News Corp. chief executive officer Rupert Murdoch said Monday in an interview with FOX Business’s Neil Cavuto The Wall Street Journal could be paperless in 20 years.
Murdoch said he believes almost all news will be delivered either digitally via computer or on portable devices like Amazon's Kindle within 10 years.
While the newspaper industry is currently struggling to change its business model, Murdoch said he believes newspapers will endure. From the story:

“My feeling is that we hopefully hit a bottom here where things will be pretty stable from now on. Not as good as they were a little while back. It’s going to take time to climb out of it. That’s okay,”

View the story here.

What do you think of Murdoch's predictions and a potentially paperless WSJ? Tell us in a comment.

When business and free speech collide

The Wall Street Journal was the first to report on China's recent mandate requiring all new computers sold in the country to contain filters restricting citizens from viewing pornography and other online content it deems harmful.
China has long been notorious for its online censorship, using it to quash movements it opposes (like the freedom of Tibet) and obscure the darker parts of its history (like the Tienanmen Square massacre).
The New York Times wrote an article mentioning the impact this regulation will have on American computer companies including Dell, Lenovo and Hewlett-Packard. While the story explains that companies are still examining the regulation, the anonymous industry executives it quotes seem more concerned with how it will set back production than how it will curtail the liberties of others. Says one executive on the regulation:

“The wording may be intentionally vague but the message is clear: we have no choice in the matter,”

This seems to be a popular view of many technology companies working in China. Yahoo helped Chinese Internet police arrest a dissident Internet journalist in 2007 and Google has helped China censor its searches for years now.
While business journalists have examined the moral implications of these companies' business decisions, it still feels that many are pulling punches. Cooperation with China's censorship flies directly in the face of many of these companies' purported goals and self-sculpted images. Journalists shouldn't hesitate to pounce on that hypocrisy.
As a whole, business journalists should call businesses on it when their products do harm to those they're supposed to serve. It not only helps the journalist and their readership, but the companies in bettering themselves.
Business journalism should never forget to emphasize what companies sometimes forget; in the end, there is always a choice.
View the article here.

What do you think about the current accountability of companies aiding in China's censorship? Comment and let us know.

Last day to ask your questions

Today marks the last day that you can submit questions to John M. Geddes, managing editor of the New York Times.

Prior to working for the Times, Geddes has held posts at BIS Strategic Decisions, The Wall Street Journal and the A.P.-Dow Jones News Service.

Email your questions to askthetimes@nytimes.com.

Click here for more information.

Daniel Hertzberg leaves WSJ after 32 years

According to Editor & Publisher, The Wall Street Journal's deputy managing editor Daniel Hertzberg is leaving the news organization June 30 after 32 years at the paper. In an email to the newsroom, Hertzberg expressed gratitude for his time at WSJ:

As a reporter and later an editor, I have been lucky enough to participate in the growth of one of the world’s finest journalistic institutions, which values breaking news, lucid analysis and top-notch investigative and narrative journalism, delivered with fairness and balance.

A replacement for Hertzberg has yet to be named.
View the story here.

GM bankruptcy-what does it mean for me?

The Wall Street Journal has written an essential piece summing up how General Motor Corp.'s application for Chapter 11 will impact new-car deals, resale value, warranties, service and other car makers.
Summing up the Chapter 11 repercussions on businesses and individuals in layman's terms is the only way to address that ever-important question: What does it mean for me?
View the story here.

GM chairman to resign, five GM directors to keep seats

General Motors Corp. Chairman Rick Wagoner is being forced to resign, according to The New York Times.
Five of G.M.'s 12 directors will keep their seats, according to The Wall Street Journal.
View the story here.
For a great overview of G.M., click here.

Need other information or resources? Comment on The Pulse and we will help get it for you.

GM plant closures

The Wall Street Journal has a short, straightforward story on the 17 factories and part centers General Motors Corp. will be closing as part of its Chapter 11. The story lists the plants by their town and state locations. WSJ states that G.M. plans to cut roughly 20,000 factory jobs (more than 1/3 of G.M.'s U.S. workforce).
According to the story, 3 plants may "reopen if market demand rebounds." The story also mentions G.M.'s plans to convert a factory currently unused into a place to construct small cars.
View the story here.

Photos for the win

If one thing's for certain, business stories tend to be text-heavy and photo-light. When photos do accompany business articles, they're often of executives sitting stiffly at their desks, products sitting limply on a table, or just an outside shot of a business.
That's why I find the slideshow accompanying The Wall Street Journal's "Wal-Mart Exports Big-Box Concept to India" refreshing.
Eric Bellmen doesn't just take a picture of Mike Duke or the store being constructed. He goes a step farther, taking pictures of the people running India's small retailers soon to be impacted by Wal-Mart in a big way.
Bellmen's slideshow takes Wal-Mart's abstract business decision and makes it concrete, clearly showing the human impact of the business news. Photography is the ideal medium for reporters to incorporate more of the humanity within business news into their stories.
Learning to think outside traditional business photojournalism to create greater context and human interest within business stories is essential for all 21st century journalists to master.
View the slide show here.

Done some great business journalism photography? Comment and tell us about it.

Bling takes a hit in a down economy

A story in today's The Wall Street Journal offers an interesting look at another area touched by the down economy - "bling."
Rappers and other jewelry lovers are now finding it more difficult to afford their shiny pieces. To compensate, alternative jewelry with less precious stones, like cubic zirconia, are instead being considered for "bling."
And, as the story points out, jewelers also have to adapt.
From the story:

"A lot of these rappers simply don't have the money for real stuff anymore," says Jason Arasheben, who crafts custom jewelry for wealthy clientele, including Saudi royals and Hollywood movie stars, at his California boutique called Jason of Beverly Hills. "It's to the point where they are wearing imitation jewelry, and that's ridiculous."

Dow Jones adds financial journalists to global team

Dow Jones, parent company of The Wall Street Journal, announced the addition of two business journalists to their editorial staff for the Dow Jones Newswires this week.
Jamie Miyazaki, a former Tokyo Dow Jones Newswires correspondent, joins the Hong Kong team as a senior writer covering Asia.
Syndicated international loan market writer and former contributor to Loan Radar news service, Alessandro Pasetti, will also join the Dow Jones as a senior writer in their London office.
View the full story here.

WSJ chimes in on press coverage

NPR talks with economics editor of The Wall Street Journal, David Wessel, to chat about the highly-criticized role of media coverage during the financial meltdown on Tuesday's Talk of the Nation newscast.
Listen to the conversation here.

Dow Jones trims benefits

Though The Wall Street Journal's circulation and site usage has increased, its parent company News Corp. is cutting back benefits in the face of economic woes.
Dow Jones Chief Executive Les Hinton announced the cuts in a memo Tuesday. The cuts will freeze the Money Purchase Plan and reduce health care subsidies for the retired.
Hinton said some of the money saved in the cuts would be put toward new health and wellness benefits.
Hinton said in the memo, "We want to give Dow Jones employees - whose ages, family situations, and career profiles are more varied than ever before - increased choice and enhanced coverage while providing individuals with better ways to manage health care costs."
Read the full story here.

Wall Street Journal prints in India

The Dow Jones & Co. announced Tuesday it will print The Wall Street Journal Asia in India. The move is part of the company's expansion into India and China. It will be printed in New Delhi and Mumbai and delivered the same day to subscribers in major Indian cities.
See the story here.

Chronicling the Bear Stearns collapse

Casey Common of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune offers his analysis of "Street Fighters," a new book which chronicles the demise of Bear Stearns.
Wall Street Journal reporter Kate Kelly wrote the book after chronicling the Bear Stearns' dismantling in a three-part series for the paper.
That series served as the book's foundation.
Common says the book is "tightly written" and that it "zooms in on the three days leading to the fire sale of Bear Stearns to J.P. Morgan Chase & Co."
To read more about the book click here.

Google's Cheng to join Bloomberg

The Wall Street Journal reports that a director for product management at Google is leaving the company to join Bloomberg LP.
Ien Cheng will become the Bloomberg multimedia group's chief of staff, a role that will have him overseeing television, radio, Web and mobile properties.
From the story:

Mr. Cheng’s hire signals a continuation of a broader effort by Bloomberg to reduce its reliance on sales of the financial-data “terminals” that account for most of its revenue. The evaporation of thousands of financial-sector jobs in the past year has slowed terminal sales, prompting the company founded by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to focus on making money on the large newsgathering operation that supplies the terminals with news, say people familiar with the situation. Last fall the company hired former Sony BMG Chairman and NBC News President Andrew Lack to run its multimedia business.

Dow Jones plans expansion in India

Editor & Publisher reports that Dow Jones, parent company of The Wall Street Journal, is doubling its investment in its operations in India.
From the story:

"India is an increasingly important market for us," said Bruce MacFarlane, vice president and managing director, Asia Pacific, Dow Jones Enterprise Media Group. "The opportunities are significant and will only continue to grow as the Indian market becomes more and more hungry for high-quality business news and information."

WSJ to introduce micro-payment service

The Financial Times reports that News Corp has plans to take its paid content model one step further.
This year the company will introduce a micro-payment service that allows visitors to pay for individual articles and premium subscriptions to The Wall Street Journal’s website.
From the story:

"The move will position the Journal as the first big newspaper title to adopt a model many are cautiously studying as they seek to reduce their dependence on plunging advertising revenues. It comes as John Kerry, the senator leading congressional hearings on the future of journalism, told the FT it was conceivable that publishers could be given limited exemption from antitrust laws to discuss online models."

News Corp. posts results; newspaper division hit hard

News Corporation released its first quarter results Thursday, showing an operating profit of $755 million, down 47 percent from the previous quarter.
The newspaper division, however, was hit particularly hard, according to The New York Times:

The company’s newspapers in particular had a dismal performance. Newspaper operating income fell to just $7 million for the quarter that ended March 31, from $216 million a year earlier. Advertising revenue at The Journal fell 33 percent. News Corporation took a large write-down for the quarter that ended Dec. 31 to reflect the decline in the value of The Journal.

Chairman Rupert Murdoch remained optimistic, saying, "It is increasingly clear that the worst is over... The days of precipitous declines are gone."
Murdoch also stated that at least some News Corp. outlets will begin to charge for content online soon, according to Editor & Publisher.

In a conference call with analysts and journalists after the release of the media and entertainment giant's quarterly results, Murdoch said The Wall Street Journal has proven newspapers can charge for online content.
Asked specifically if he envisioned charging readers for that content from his general interest newspapers such as The Times of London or The Sun, Murdoch replied, "We are absolutely looking at that. Very much so."

As for a general time frame, Murdoch said that some newspapers should begin charging within the next year.

Click here for the Times article, and here for the Editor & Publisher article.

FBN Stock Market Editor: "We're not going to hit bottom until 2011 or 2012"

In an interview with Woman Around Town, Elizabeth MacDonald, stock market editor at the Fox Business Network, shared her views on the economy, the bailouts and a future turnaround for the markets. MacDonald said she is pessimistic, and noted that she does not anticipate a market bottom until 2011 or even 2012. She said the bailouts, which were a product of "hysterical blindness," may not work. "I have lots of concerns including the impact of government's fiscal recklessness (which I should note also occurred under President Bush) and a potential national security issue now that China holds massive amounts of U.S. debt," she added.

MacDonald has the following advice for investors:

Start socking away your money in a decent bond fund with long-term bonds, not short-term debt instruments, which tend to be more volatile, and max out your 401(k). Save, save, save because the U.S. government is deeper into the economy than ever before. And your taxes and costs are going to go up.

MacDonald has received multiple awards for her business coverage, including the Gerald Loeb Award for Distinguished Business Journalism. Prior to joining FBN, she worked for Forbes and The Wall Street Journal.

For more click here.

Circulation decline speeding up

Figures released by the Audit Bureau of Circulations show that newspaper circulation for the six months ending March 31 fell 7.1 percent, according to The New York Times.
That's an increase from the 4.3 percent and 3.6 percent drops over the previous two six-month periods.

Of the top 25 newspapers in the United States, all posted declines in circulation except for The Wall Street Journal, which eked out a 0.6 percent gain, according to figures released by the Audit Bureau of Circulations. For the others, the declines ranged from 20.6 percent for The New York Post, to a slight 0.4 percent drop for The Chicago Sun-Times.

The Audit Bureau also showed, however, that the number of unique visitors to newspaper websites is still increasing.
The sites combined to draw 73 million unique visitors per month in the first quarter of 2009, a year-over-year increase of 10.5 percent.
Click here to read more.

WSJ interactive map: "Pressure on the Presses"

The Wall Street Journal has an interactive map that details some of the hits the top 50 U.S. newspapers have taken between 2006 and 2009. A detailed chart also lists the same information for the top 100 newspapers. From job cuts to revenue losses to shutdowns, the multimedia piece illuminates the trouble the industry has faced in recent years.

For the piece click here.

Average time spent declines for many in March

Among the top 30 newspaper websites in terms of unique monthly visitors, most saw a decline in the average time spent per visitor in March, according to Editor & Publisher.

The average time spent per person at the NYTimes.com dropped by six minutes in March 2009 compared to the same period a year ago. The NYTimes.com has some company: The Wall Street Journal lost more than five minutes March 2009. So did Politico.
In fact, just over half of the top 30 newspaper Web sites (ranked by uniques) experienced declines in the average time spent per person.

Some sites enjoyed large gains, however. Both The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Newsday improved by more than eight minutes.
The New York Times was overtaken in first place by the Star Tribune, which lost about thirty seconds to finish with an average of over 32 minutes.
While the news can be interpreted negatively from an advertising standpoint, it can also be a sign that the number of unique users is increasing, which is the case for some papers on the list.
To see the list and read more, click here.

Murdoch tells Dow Jones employees he will set an even "higher bar"

Rupert Murdoch spoke to Dow Jones employees at their Manhattan headquarters several hours after he bought their company, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal's Sarah Ellison.
Murdoch acknowledge that change creates nervousness and is sometimes difficult, but said Dow Jones must be the essential source of financial information and comment in the world.
Ellison reports says that Murdoch told employees he understood the value of Dow Jones and in particular The Wall Street Journal.
"If anything, you will find us trying to set a higher bar," Murdoch said.
Shareholders approved the more than $5 billion sale of Dow Jones & Co. to Murdoch's News Corp. on Thursday.
To read Ellison's full report click here.

Can Murdoch save newspapers?

Diane Mermigas, Editor-at-large at MediaPost, contemplates today about Rupert Murdoch's ability to save newspapers now that he has The Wall Street Journal in his hands. Mermigas says Murdoch's advantage is that he understands and embraces the notion of a global media landscape. He is able to envision possible digital applications of many currently undervalued, and often overlooked, assets.
While many publishers are expected to post a decline in revenues for the year, "News Corp.’s newspaper holdings are growing profits better than 25% annually to more than $650 million on $4.5 billion in revenues (and a 15% margin). It must be doing something right."
Read more from Mermigas here.

Snippets: Murdoch interviewed on Fox News

Shareholders approved News Corp's purchase of Dow Jones today. Rupert Murdoch then appeared on Fox News.

Snippets from the interview...

• He plans to develop international editions of The Wall Street Journal.

• In regard to competition with The New York Times: "We are a long way in front now."

• Despite the success of the WSJ.com paid subscriber model, Murdoch talks of making the site free saying they'll cover the subscription revenue by increasing total online circulation (viewers) resulting in greater online advertising revenue. More eyes, more ad dollars.
  

• On how to get young people reading newspapers again: "Make newspapers better and more exciting."

• On making articles shorter: Murdoch wants to "keep the paper busy." Perhaps break stories in parts, "guts on the front page" and the rest inside.

• On Fox Business Network: "It's going well." Dow Jones and Fox Business Network will help each other.

Murdoch also talked politics and shared views on the writers' strike and its impacts on the industry.

Wall Street Journal sale is final

This afternoon the majority of Dow Jones & Co. shareholders approved selling the company to News Corp. for $5.6 billion.
The general council of Dow Jones said shareholders holding 60.27 percent of the company's stock had been approved for the sale, according to reports from The Wall Street Journal.
The sale ends the Bancroft family ownership of Dow Jones, which dates back to more than a century.
To read the full report click here.

Approval likely for Wall Street Journal sale

The Wall Street Journal reports that a count of proxy votes indicates Dow Jones shareholders will approve a News Corp. takeover tomorrow.
Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. has offered to buy the company for more than $5 billion, which would end the Bancroft family long ownership of the newspaper.
For the full report click here.