• Reuters, Friday, December 5, 2008 9:30 AM

The Wall Street Journal's top editor doesn't accept the conventional wisdom that big advertising budget cutbacks will devastate print newspaper and magazine publishers. After recoiling from the initial financial crisis earlier this fall, advertisers are slowly returning, says Robert Thomson. They seem to be seeking more conservative, comfortable outlets to make their case to buyers, he says. "People are looking for a safe harbor in times of turbulence."

Thomson also believes that advertisers are starting to understand that consumers often ignore ads in other media because they are doing other things at the same time that sap their attention. Online the link between the reader; the ad is more transient than it is in print, he says.

Nonetheless, digital information is the growth business at WSJ parent, Dow Jones & Co, owned by News Corp. Yet print advertising is still a lucrative business, even though it has been shrinking.

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