Matt Murray Named Wall Street Journal Editor, Gerard Baker Shifts to Editor-at-Large

By Ricardo Lopez

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Matt Murray, a 24-year veteran of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones, was named editor-in-chief of the newspaper and Newswires on Tuesday, succeeding Gerard Baker, who shifts into a new role as the news organization’s editor-at-large.

Currently executive editor, Murray first started at Dow Jones & Co. in 1994 as a reporter in its Pittsburgh bureau. He joined the Journal’s money and investing section in 1997, covering banking. More recently, he has served as deputy editor-in-chief and before that, deputy managing editor.

Baker has served as editor-in-chief for the past five and a half years. In his new role as editor-at-large, he will write a regular column in Review, the paper’s weekend section. He will also host a WSJ-branded news and interview show on Fox Business Network, and host interviews with notable figures at Journal events.

“Gerry has been a very successful editor at a time when journalism has been digitally challenged,” News Corp. CEO Robert Thomson said in a statement. “I have no doubt that Matt is a worthy successor as editor-in-chief and will be a leader of the highest commitment and integrity. His strong reporting and editing background and his passion for the Journal are obvious to all who have the privilege of working with him.”

Murray will formally take the post on June 11.

Baker, who has overseen the coverage of the tumultuous 2016 president election and the Trump administration, said in a statement that “there has never been a more important time nor a greater demand for trusted, authoritative, objective journalism.”

He added: “I am very much looking forward to continuing to pursue that mission as a writer, commentator,and interviewer. I am honored to hand over the reins of this venerable institution to , an editor of unsurpassed quality and a trusted friend and colleague.”

Murray said in a statement: “There is little doubt that at a time when journalism faces a host of challenges, readers are hungry for sophisticated, fair, illuminating, and fact-based journalism — and see us as a uniquely trusted news source.”

Murray is author of “The Father and the Son” and co-author of “Strong of Heart.” He has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism from Northwestern University, and lives in New York with his wife and daughter.