WSJ Changes ‘Complete’ Print, Online Integration
By Staci D. Kramer - Wed 13 Jun 2007 09:13 AM PST
The WSJ made its latest news exec re-org official today with an emphasis on completing the integration of print and online. (As we told you last night, the NYT had some of the details ahead of time.) Here’s the staff memo from new managing editor Marcus Brauchli that explains it all. The major moves in that regard:
-- Bill Grueskin’s shift from heading WSJ.com to newsgathering overall. He will be DME-News and the description of his new job sounds like a template for integration: “In his role, Mr. Grueskin’s mission is to draw on the news resources at Dow Jones to ensure that each edition of the Journal—Online, Asia, Europe or the U.S.—is getting the right content at the right time, without detracting from our core commitment to the long-form, deeply reported narrative and analytic journalism that defines the Journal. He will oversee a melding of the online and print Journals and a rethinking of how we approach and produce news.” From a newsroom memo by ME Marcus Brauchli, who calls Grueskin “one of the news department’s most skillful change agents. ... Bill will oversee a melding of the online and print Journals and a rethinking of how we approach and produce news.
-- Alan Murray will be executive editor, online. MarketWatch editor David Callaway will report to Murray as will Grueskin’s successor as ME, WSJ.com. Murray’s online role is vast. Brauchli: “His central charge is to help our news departments to be more entrepreneurial in the ways we serve our readers. ... [He] will oversee editorial development and innovation for new media, at WSJ.com and related ‘vertical’ websites, and for other online products and related events or conferences. He will work to develop news products for mobile delivery. And he will have editorial responsibility for the Dow Jones video group.” He’s not online only, though: he also retains his role overseeing the DJ relationship with CNBC and book publishing.
The changes take effect in July.
Update: Dave Callaway currently reports to Todd Larsen, COO of DJ’s Consumer Media Group, so this appears to be a significant change for MarketWatch. More to come.
Update II: From a memo from Gordon Crovitz, who heads the Consumer Media Group and is publisher of the Journal franchise (Full text): “A key theme of these changes is that the Journal will be structured to report the news 24/7, across print and online, reflecting the way our readers and consumers increasingly consume it. Bill Grueskin takes on the new role as leader of integrated news, delivering ‘what’s happening now’ news online as well as ‘what the news means’ in the print Journal, using each medium for what it does best for readers. ... We’re redoubling our efforts to fuel the growth of our online operations. Alan Murray will lead our online and other new media news efforts.”
-- “For the first time, we’re now also fully integrated on the business side. Michael Rooney is off to a strong start as our first Chief Revenue Officer, this week leading almost 200 sales and marketing executives at a sales conference in Arizona that for the first time combines the print Journal, Dow Jones Online, Barron’s, international and integrated sales and marketing groups.”
-- All of this is against the backdrop of the News Corp. bid for DJ. Crovitz: “More than any other traditional media company, we have embraced change, not feared change. Whether we remain independent or become part of a larger company, we can be certain that building on our best traditions will ensure a bright future for our unique brands and the audience they serve.”
Posted in: Companies, WSJ-DJ, MKTW, Industry Moves






