THURSDAY'S LINKS: Murdoch, Army Blogs, Optimistic J-Students

By: E&P Staff In today's links, more thoughts on the possibility of Rupert Murdoch taking over at Dow Jones, Phillip Carter says that the army shouldn't censor soldiers' blogs, and a look at a Hong kong magnate in the midst of an insider trading scandal centering on the Dow Jones/News Corp. deal.

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-- Wall Street Journal: The impending $17.6 billion deal between Reuters Group PLC and Thomson Corp. could have an impact on Rupert Murdoch's offer for Dow Jones. It could make some lesser-known but currently more-profitable elements of Dow Jones key factors as the company's controlling shareholders weigh Mr. Murdoch's offer.

-- New York Times: It has been surprising that American regulators are expected to examine whether prominent hong Kong businessman David Li had any role in the possible leak of confidential information to a Hong Kong couple accused of making millions of dollars from insider trading of shares in Dow Jones.

-- Washington Post: For clues about what a Murdoch-owned Wall Street Journal will be like, look to London, writes Frank Ahrens.

-- Forbes: This is no Carl Icahn buying or striving to buy a terrific property just to break it up and sell off the juicier parts, writes James Brady. Murdoch knows the inherent value of a great news-gathering organization, especially in a knowledge economy.

-- PEJ: Even as journalism school students acknowledge that their chosen profession is in the throes of dramatic and uncertain change, they also project a pretty sturdy sense of optimism about their careers and the future of journalism.

-- Slate: The Army can regulate soldiers' blogs and letters -- but it shouldn't, writes Phillip Carter.