By Kenneth Li and Robert MacMillan

I sincerely hope the Bancrofts DON’T cave in and let this deal go through with Murdoch. He’ll ruin the Wall Street Journal. I realize the editorial page isn’t what it used to be, but the overall news reporting is one of the best in the business. - JS

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. appeared to be inching closer to a deal to buy Dow Jones & Co. Inc. and gaining enough support from the divided Bancroft family, but both sides were still wrangling over the price.

In an attempt to win support among family members for the $5 billion deal, Dow Jones was negotiating for News Corp. to cover the advisory fees for the Bancrofts of at least $30 million, The Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site.

The Bancroft family controls Dow Jones through its 64 percent stake in voting stock of the company.

The deal would go through if two holdout shareholders agreed, the Journal reported. They are board member Christopher Bancroft and trusts managed by Denver law firm Hole Roberts & Owen. If they agree, it would give News Corp. enough Bancroft support to buy Dow Jones.

Michael Elefante, a Dow Jones board member and adviser to the Bancrofts, had set Monday as a deadline for the Bancrofts to indicate how they would vote. Elefante then is expected to present the results to Dow Jones’s and News Corp.’s boards for them to determine whether they can complete the deal.

Separately, Internet entrepreneur Brad Greenspan urged Dow Jones to meet with him and provide material to conduct due diligence as part of his own proposal for the company.

read more HERE