If there is any lingering doubt that Rupert Murdoch is going to change the Wall Street Journal, consider The Far Eastern Economic Review. The small monthly became part of the Australian uber-mogul's empire in December. The magazine was planning to run a review of a tell-some book about Murdoch's time in China. When editors realized that the book wasn't a Fox News-esque glowing portrait of Murdoch, they ditched the piece.

The actual review isn't harsh. The meanest thing it says is that Murdoch failed in China. But with a title like Rupert's Adventures in China: How Murdoch Lost a Fortune and Found a Wife, the criticism is hard to avoid. (The piece also mentions that his young wife, Wendi Deng, could be a gold-digger. A shocking assertion, perhaps, to the blind.)

Still, the editor of the Review sent the author an email on Thursday saying, "I'm afraid I am getting cold feet on this one—I've just gotten a copy of the book, and it looks more like the work of a disgruntled ex-employee, rather than an analysis of the business." In fact, the review comes to the opposite conclusion, saying, "the reader still comes away with a nagging feeling that the author has held back."

Murdoch is so powerful that he doesn't even need to kill negative pieces himself. His minions will do it themselves to protect their overlord.

So let this be a lesson. When the Wall Street Journal weekend edition comes out with a flattering profile of the Murdoch's marriage, be suspicious. Larger forces are at work.

Editor Gets 'Cold Feet' On A Critique Of Murdoch [IHT]
A Tell-All Book About Rupert Murdoch [Asia Sentinel]