'Journal,' Dow Jones Newswires Partner

By: (AP) The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires, both owned by Dow Jones & Co., said Wednesday they will begin working together more closely on news stories in an effort to be more competitive.

In a memo to staff, Paul Ingrassia, president of Dow Jones Newswires, and Paul Steiger, the Journal's managing editor, said that starting next month, the divisions would coordinate on "announcement-driven news" -- earnings, acquisitions, and economic indicators -- and other stories.

Although Dow Jones has come under increasing pressure to cut costs, the editors said the move reflected the desire to be more efficient, rather than to reduce expenses or personnel.

The economic slowdown has caused a steep drop in technology and financial advertising, two of Dow Jones' staple revenue streams. The company has eliminated 1,120 positions since the beginning of 2000, including some jobs at the Journal, but no cuts were announced Wednesday. The two newsgathering operations will remain separate under the new system.

The memo said that although the cooperation would be a "cultural change" for some staffers, similar moves are already occurring in overseas bureaus.

"The objective is to take greater advantage of the tremendous journalistic resources at this company, to reduce duplication of effort where possible, and to build on the considerable advantages of two news staffs that define the best in business and financial journalism," Steiger and Ingrassia said. "Newswires and the Journals have different comparative advantages, obviously, but we at Dow Jones are a single news organization. This integrated and coordinated approach to covering core news is essential for us to build upon our premier business coverage across all mediums and to meet the challenges of competition and the needs of all readers."

The Journal is Dow Jones' flagship newspaper, while Dow Jones Newswires delivers news electronically. Dow Jones also publishes editions of the Journal in Asia and Europe.