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Les Hinton appointed Dow Jones chief executive

By Paul McNally

Rupert Murdoch has appointed News International executive chairman Les Hinton to the role of Dow Jones chief executive.

The move follows the resignation last night of Richard Zannino, days before Murdoch’s News Corp is due to complete its £2.7bn acquisition of the Wall Street Journal publisher.

Hinton has spent his entire career at News Corp, joining the company as a reporter for the Adelaide News.

Before being appointed executive chairman of News International in 1995, he was president and chief executive of News America Publishing, the Murdoch-owned publisher of the New York Post.

“Les is one of the most respected executives in the media industry,” Murdoch said. “He’s been a lifetime colleague and I’ve relied on his leadership and vision for decades.

“He has a great record of introducing innovations that have been replicated by other newspaper companies around the world.

“I have every confidence that his energy, dedication and foresight will enable Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal to reach their full potential as the leading financial information source globally.”

According to a report in this morning’s Wall Street Journal Europe, a number of other key executives are expected to follow Zannino and depart once the Murdoch acquisition is complete.

Times editor Robert Thomson is expected to join the Wall Street Journal in the role of publisher, replacing Gordon Crovitz.

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