In its second statement of the day, Dow Jones said a director who represents the Bancroft family has informed the board that “members of the family and the trustees of trusts for their benefit have advised him that they will vote shares constituting slightly more than 50% of the outstanding voting power of Dow Jones as of April 30th excluding options against the proposal submitted by News Corporation to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Dow Jones common stock and Class B common stock for $60.00 per share.”

The board will “factor this information into its evaluation.” I would guess so given the inability to make a deal without the majority of the voting power being in favor.

Update: The IAPE represents Dow Jones employees even though the contract has expired. From the union statement: “The staff, from top to bottom, opposes a Rupert Murdoch takeover of Dow Jones & Co. ... Mr. Murdoch has shown a willingness to crush quality and independence, and there is no reason to think he would handle Dow Jones or The Journal any differently. Despite our differences of opinion with current management, we strongly encourage the Bancrofts to continue to stand up for the institution’s independence, and to walk away from this offer. Moreover, the massive premium Mr. Murdoch is offering suggests only one recourse to make the acquisition profitable: gutting the enterprise and slashing the staff that make it the leading financial news organization.”