Panel to Shield Journal Editors

A watchdog committee, not would-be owner Rupert Murdoch, would hire and fire editors under a tentative pact to protect the editorial independence of the Wall Street Journal,  a source familiar with details of the deal tells MarketWatch. Members of the panel would be chosen by Murdoch's News Corp., Dow Jones, and the Bancroft famiiy.

The committee would have authority over hiring and firing of  subordinates, news judgments and other editorial decisions, and allocation of resources, says Marketwatch, also a Dow Jones property.  The proposal hasn't been finalized and a price for the paper has not been agreed upon. Murdoch's original offer of $5 billion or $60 a share was rejected. (More Rupert Murdoch stories.)