The family, which controls around 64% of Dow Jones voting shares, met in Boston yesterday with legal and financial advisers, but no vote was held.
Bancroft family lawyer and Dow Jones board member Michael B. Elefante said in a statement: "The family had a very productive meeting and now have all the information they need to make a good decision about the News Corp offer."
Dow Jones board member Christopher Bancroft, who is against the Murdoch bid, said a decision must be made by the end of the week to meet the deadline set by News Corp.
He said: "Everyone has to decide for himself. Some people are for it and some people are against it. I want the best possible outcome for Dow Jones & Co."
Some family members are reported to be concerned about the issue of editorial independence at The Wall Street Journal should it be sold to Murdoch, and some are keen to wait for a different buyer to show up. However, others are believed to be ready to cash in on their shares.
Last week the Dow Jones board of directors endorsed News Corp's bid, but the company cannot be sold unless the Bancrofts approve. Murdoch first made the offer in May; it values the business in the region of $60 a share, or a 67% premium.
But Dieter von Holtzbrinck, a German publishing executive and one of the board members, subsequently resigned from Dow Jones following its approval of the sale because he said he could not support a sale to News Corp.
In a letter addressed to his fellow board members and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, he said that although he understood the deal was good in financial terms, he was "very worried" about the issue of journalistic values..jpg)
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