A year ago this month, wedding ring misplacer Rupert Murdoch had set his sights on Dow Jones & Co. and its Wall Street Journal newspaper, successfully clearing the bid with shareholders and leading up to the December closing. At the time, media speculators trashed Murdoch, accusing him of looking to the Journal not to improve its credentials, but to add it his enormous empire of political and business influence. But Wall Street wasn't on board with that scenario; instead, they nudged Murdoch on.

It's a very difference scenario today.

The press is defending Murdoch; even Jack Shafer has nice things to say about his stewardship of the Journal. Meanwhile, Wall Street has trounced News Corp.' stock; it hovers around $14, or 40 percent less than its 52-week high. Something about the instability of the print media market, and Murdoch's insistence on subsidizing any losses with big gains made elsewhere. And then there's the whole Dow Jones part of the equation; where does that thing fit in with, say, MySpace? And what about Murdoch's tendency to treat financial weaknesses in other media companies as a chance to snap 'em up on the cheap? So, so many concerns, this deserves an exposé!

And Variety is there (emphasis ours):

Investors also fret that Murdoch will be so tempted by cratering values for other media assets around that world that he will go on a shopping spree. For example, there are frequent Wall Street rumors that News Corp. is eyeing broadcast and cable assets overseas.

The mogul and his company always generate strong reactions. In good times, Murdoch is a global visionary. In bad times, he's a willful chief of an overly complex and confusing conglomerate.

Some say the worry over the News Corp. empire is overstated, given that newspapers can't make or break a global behemoth. (It could be worse: News Corp. could have ended up with Newsday. Murdoch lost a bidding war earlier this year.)

"While we cannot defend the price paid for Dow Jones … nor can we fathom why News Corp. has continued to operate/own the money-losing New York Post for years, understanding the components of News Corp.'s (business) highlights stark differences with pure-play U.S. newspaper stocks — which should drive a less negative view," Pali Research analyst Richard Greenfield wrote in a recent note to his clients.

In other words, "Newspapers are simply not a reason to avoid owning (News Corp.) shares, particularly at today's valuation," he adds.

Which is to say: Wall Street analysts know News Corp. is a company to reckon with, but its newspaper plays that make up the most business headlines don't many any sense.