Bill Kristol, Highly Recommended

Maybe he's seeking new ammunition: Kristol left yesterday on his first trip to Iraq.

Life Under Murdoch

An air of resignation has settled over the Wall Street Journal newsroom.

With Rupert Murdoch's takeover of parent company Dow Jones all but completed, Journal editors and reporters have been pondering what life would be like under the mogul who owns Fox News, the New York Post, Times of London, Weekly Standard and other media and entertainment properties.

While some reporters have sent out their résumés -- and others are being courted by rival news organizations -- those contacted say they have little choice but to try to adapt, especially in a tight job market.

"There's a lot of apprehension, but I don't think there's panic," one veteran staffer says. "There are some people who in conversation will say they're not hanging around. Other people are going to wait and see. I don't know anyone on our news staff who was rooting for this outcome. As with everything else in life, you accept it."

Says another staffer: "There are people who say this means doom for the paper, but I find sentiment is turning. People are right to be anxious, but what's the alternative? You've got this guy who loves newspapers, believes in newspapers, and wants to open his checkbook to make sure the Wall Street Journal makes it to the other side."

Journal employees are acutely aware of Murdoch's history of meddling in news coverage, particularly when his political or business interests are at stake. The question is whether he would be unusually restrained in the case of this acquisition, a theory described by the Journal veteran as "he's too smart to wreck the franchise, because that would wreck the economic value of what he's paying $5 billion for."

Numerous staffers -- none of whom would not be identified discussing their likely boss -- say they now believe the collapse of Murdoch's bid would have a major downside. Since the offer caused Dow Jones stock to nearly double, they say, its withdrawal -- exacerbated by a recent drop in advertising revenue -- would lead to cutbacks, layoffs and perhaps the closure of the Asian and European editions. In an era of shrinking newspapers, at least Murdoch is talking about beefing up the Journal's political coverage.

Many are pinning their hopes on an agreement to create a five-member committee to protect the paper's editorial independence. One member would come from the Bancroft family, which controls a majority of the stock, and Murdoch has said he would name former managing editor Paul Steiger.

The panel would have to approve the hiring or firing of the two top editors (the agreement says Managing Editor Marcus Brauchli and Editorial Page Editor Paul Gigot would remain, but doesn't say for how long). It says that coverage should reflect independent judgments rather than the owner's "preferences," and that the committee can go to court to enforce these standards.

Of course, former Sunday Times of London editor Harry Evans -- who was fired two decades ago despite a similar agreement -- has quoted Murdoch as saying that such pacts "aren't worth the paper they're written on." Murdoch has denied the comment, but one thing is clear: When you spend $5 billion for a newspaper, you can pretty much be assured of getting your way. Perhaps the Journal's greatest challenge will be covering Murdoch's News Corp. with the same aggressiveness it has displayed in reporting on the takeover battle.

Magazine Mystery

U.S. military officials are now challenging the veracity of an anonymous diarist who has been writing for the New Republic about misconduct by soldiers in Iraq.