In a conference call Wednesday, J.P. Morgan chief Jamie Dimon responded to analysts by saying, "In terms of buying assets or buying companies, we are very openminded." This offhand comment (well, maybe not so offhand) -- the type of boilerplate response Dimon regularly offers in quarterly calls -- prompted a thundering herd of 300 stories about J.P. Morgan's acquisition plans, according to a Google News query, led by The Wall Street Journal's story, which featured Dimon as a slightly lunatic Indiana Jones-like character searching for treasure. Most of the stories simply regurgitated the SunTrust and WaMu scuttlebutt that had already been around town. However, the Journal added to the list Bear Stearns Cos. and Morgan Stanley, both battered by the subprime mess but both posing considerable complexities to any deal.
Meanwhile, Reuters leads the charge on the AT&T-EchoStar front with the help of Citigroup Inc. analyst Jason Bazinet, who issued a report suggesting a transaction between the pair was still possible. That rumor has been circulating since cable companies began bundling phone service with TV and received a boost last year when rival Bell, Verizon Communications Inc., introduced its FiOS TV service. However, EchoStar's recent reorganization and reports that the company was entering the FCC spectrum auction knocked it down again. Now Bazinet's report brings it back to life. To its credit, Reuters did provide some skepticism by reminding readers that Bazinet's been a longtime cheerleader for this particular bit of unsubstantiated speculation, that is, rumor. - Matthew Wurtzel
See J.P. Morgan story from The Wall Street Journal
See AT&T-Echostar story from Reuters
