WSJ editor quits as Murdoch puts stamp on paper

By Robert MacMillan

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Wall Street Journal's top editor resigned on Tuesday, giving News Corp chief Rupert Murdoch an opening to further put his stamp on the newspaper he bought four months ago.

"I am proud to have been part of this exceptionally talented team," Marcus Brauchli said in a letter to staff on Tuesday. "But now that the ownership transition has taken place, I have come to believe the new owners should have a managing editor of their choosing."

Brauchli, 46, will stay at News Corp as a consultant.

While it was not clear if Brauchli resigned of his own accord, his departure is one of a series of events at the world-renowned paper that are allowing Murdoch to redesign the business as he looks to expand his media empire.

On Tuesday, Murdoch was close to an agreement with Tribune Co to buy the daily newspaper Newsday for $580 million and run it as a joint venture with the New York Post, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Murdoch also has made several changes to the makeup of The Wall Street Journal, including giving political and general news more prominent placement in the paper as he remakes it into a direct competitor of The New York Times.

Brauchli was named to the top editorial position at the paper a year ago, but his role was expected to be short-lived after Murdoch bought parent company Dow Jones & Co in December.

Brauchli's announcement came after the 20-year veteran of The Wall Street Journal met with a committee designed to protect editorial integrity at the newspaper. The committee was created as a condition of News Corp's $5.6 billion purchase of Dow Jones.