LONDON, Dec. 2, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dow Jones & Company today announced key organizational changes to accelerate the continuing growth of The Wall Street Journal franchise, naming Andrew Langhoff as publisher of The Wall Street Journal Europe and managing director of Dow Jones Consumer Media Group in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Mr. Langhoff's appointment is effective beginning Jan. 5, 2009.
Patrick J. Purcell will replace Mr. Langhoff at Ottaway Newspapers Inc. and take on the role of executive chairman also beginning Jan. 5, 2009.
Since News Corp. acquired Dow Jones in 2007, the company has invested in the European marketplace, including the expansion of news and editorial content; the debut of WSJ. -- a new glossy magazine available in all European editions of the paper; and the introduction of the U.S. edition of the Journal in London to complement the existing European edition. Part of Mr. Langhoff's portfolio of priorities will be to develop local sections on WSJ.com to create a more regionally relevant experience for readers.
"Andrew and Pat are veteran executives with proven track records at growing print and digital publications," said Les Hinton, chief executive officer of Dow Jones & Company. "These appointments signal our continued desire to invest in all of our brands around the globe."
Mr. Langhoff, previously the chief executive officer of Ottaway, the local media group of Dow Jones, will be responsible for all aspects of Dow Jones' consumer business in EMEA, including The Wall Street Journal's print and online operations. Additionally, he will take on responsibility for the consumer business in South America, including The Wall Street Journal Americas.
Mr. Langhoff will be based in the company's London offices and he will report to Todd Larsen, chief operating officer for Dow Jones Consumer Media Group.
Mr. Purcell, who will continue as owner and publisher of the Boston Herald, will be responsible for the eight Ottaway daily newspapers, 15 weekly newspapers, magazines and Internet sites. Ottaway's newspaper assets include: the Times Herald-Record, in Middletown, N.Y.; the Cape Cod Times in Hyannis, Mass.; the Inquirer and Mirror in Nantucket, Mass., the Standard-Times in New Bedford, Mass.; the Pocono Record in Stroudsburg, Pa.; The Record in Stockton, Calif.; The Portsmouth Herald in Portsmouth, N.H.; the Medford Mail Tribune in Medford, Ore.; and the Ashland Daily Tidings in Ashland, Ore.
About Mr. Langhoff
Mr. Langhoff, 47, has had a rapid rise through the ranks of Ottaway since being named general counsel in Jan. 2003. In 2004, he was named vice president for Internet development, and in 2006 was promoted to senior vice president. In July 2008, Mr. Langhoff was named chief executive officer of Ottaway.
Prior to joining Dow Jones, Mr. Langhoff held a number of business development roles within the Internet group at The Walt Disney Company, including responsibility for such sites as ESPN.com and ABCNEWS.com, where he was a member of the original launch team. He held a similar role with Virage Inc., a publicly-traded Silicon Valley technology firm. Earlier, Mr. Langhoff was with Capital Cities/ABC, Inc. supervising day-to-day legal affairs of the company's publishing operations. He began his legal career as a litigator with White & Case, a New York City law firm.
Mr. Langhoff is a graduate of the University of Virginia Law School and Tufts University.
About Mr. Purcell
Mr. Purcell, 61, acquired the Boston Herald from News Corp. in 1994. Prior to that acquisition, he held a variety of executive positions at News Corp., including chief executive officer of News America Publishing, publisher of the New York Post, president of News America/Newspapers and associate publisher of the Village Voice. Before joining News Corp., Mr. Purcell began his career at the New York Daily News as an office boy and he would eventually go on to hold various advertising positions at the paper.
He graduated with a bachelor's degree from St. John's University and holds a masters degree from Hofstra University.
About Dow Jones
Dow Jones & Company (www.dowjones.com) is a News Corporation company (NYSE:NWS) (NYSE:NWS.A) (ASX:NWS) (ASX:NWSLV) (www.newscorp.com). Dow Jones is a leading provider of global business news and information services. Its Consumer Media Group publishes The Wall Street Journal, Barron's, MarketWatch and the Far Eastern Economic Review. Its Enterprise Media Group includes Dow Jones Newswires, Dow Jones Factiva, Dow Jones Client Solutions, Dow Jones Indexes and Dow Jones Financial Information Services. Its Local Media Group operates community-based information franchises. Dow Jones owns 50% of SmartMoney and 33% of STOXX Ltd. and provides news content to radio stations in the U.S.
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