Robert Thomson, recently appointed managing editor of News Corp.'s Wall Street Journal, replacing Marcus Brauchli who quit in April, announced in a memo key editorial changes to be made to the paper by the beginning of July.

There will be an Enterprise, a National and an International team that will directly report to Thomson, the memo said. Matt Murray will become National Editor, Nikhil Deogum the International Editor and Mike Williams in charge of Enterprise.

All three will be Deputy Managing Editors, sitting "close together" in a "news hub". In this way they will be "streamlining commissioning and editing decisions" and will have " a central role in the production and presentation of copy for the paper and the website."

Mike Miller, who is feature editor, will become Senior Deputy Managing Editor and will be in charge of the paper in case Thomson is unavailable.

Cathy Panagoulias will be a Deputy Managing Editor and "will take a greater role in providing administrative support for bureau chiefs and in hiring decisions."

Jim Pensiero will be Deputy Managing Editor for operations and will be "masterminding" the Journal's "move to Midtown and the introduction of a new publishing system."

"Alix Freedman will have expanded authority as a defender of the paper's ethical and journalistic standards," Thomson said.

Alan Murray will become a Deputy Managing Editor but will also stay as an Executive Editor of the Journal Online, "which will have a more influential role at the heart of the reformed news structure," Thomson wrote.

Dan Hertzberg, Deputy Managing Editor, will be responsible for European and Asian editions and will be in charge of constructing the Journal's "editorial presence and profile in Europe and, in particular, in the U.K."

Reg Chua is appointed Senior Assistant Managing Editor and will be overlooking the Design Team and the evolution of data resources. Thompson announced that a new Director of Design would be chosen soon.

"Most news organizations in the U.S. and around the world are in retreat, but Dow Jones is expanding its reporting resources, rapidly developing its digital content and providing journalism of the highest integrity to an ever larger audience in The Wall Street Journal," said Thomson towards the end of the memo.

UPDATE: According to SmartMoney.com Deputy Managing Editor Laurie Hays is leaving to pursue a different career path after being with the WSJ for 23 years, which Thomson mentioned in a separte memo.

Dow Jones will also create a "central news desk", SmartMoney.com reports, which "will allow for significantly enhanced co-operation between print, web and Newswires journalists, in New York and around the world," said Thomson.

Source: PaidContent.Org, SmartMoney.org through I Want Media

See also:

US: Top Wall Street Journal editor Brauchli resigns