Thaindian News

Washington, Oct 14 (IANS) Dow Jones & Co. has faced fresh probe over an alleged deal to boost the circulation numbers of The Wall Street Journal Europe, a media report said Friday.

It has been alleged that the paper sold bulk copies to a consulting firm and simultaneously directed money to the firm for separate services, The Wall Street Journal itself reported.

People familiar with the matter say that, for two years, a small Dutch firm called Executive Learning Partnership (ELP) bought 12,000 copies of The Wall Street Journal Europe each day for just one European cent apiece - helping the paper maintain an audited circulation of about 75,000 at a time when newspaper circulation is dropping industrywide.

Andrew Langhoff, publisher of The Wall Street Journal Europe, stepped down after an internal probe showed he had pushed for publication of two articles that favorably featured ELP.

Dow Jones, which publishes all editions of The Wall Street Journal, is owned by News Corp.

Wall Street Journal Europe officials, including Langhoff and circulation department employee Gert Van Mol, executed several side deals in which the paper directed thousands of euros to the Dutch firm through third-party companies for services ELP said it provided at events.

Journal officials arranged the payments at a time when ELP said it was unhappy about its deal with the paper.

In a statement, Dow Jones said the payments were “admittedly complex but nevertheless legitimate.”

The company said it grew uncomfortable with the arrangements and terminated them. ELP said that account was “contrary to the facts. ELP stopped and ELP is not pleased that our name appears in this context.”

The matter creates controversy in another corner of the News Corp. empire, which is already feeling effects from a scandal surrounding its now-closed News of the World tabloid, which is facing three criminal investigations in the UK.

Van Mol said Dow Jones initiated the investigation into his behavior only after he lodged a complaint with top company executives about Langhoff and the ELP relationship. The paper conducted what it described Wednesday as an investigation into “concerns about his business dealings”. Van Mol’s job was eliminated earlier this year.

During that investigation, Van Mol made allegations against Langhoff, accusing him of misdeeds in connection with ELP and an arrangement in which the Journal made payments for providing services at a book party. Both Van Mol and Langhoff were longtime Dow Jones employees.

The Dow Jones investigation didn’t identify the problems with the editorial component of the ELP deal that led to Langhoff’s resignation.

According to a person familiar with the matter, those problems only came to light last week, months after Van Mol began emailing complaints to Dow Jones executives. That’s when the paper re-examined the situation.

Newspapers and magazines have long relied on the distribution of free or heavily discounted copies to boost reported circulation numbers, which dictate how much they can charge for advertisements.