Phil Rosenthal, who covers the media for the Chicago Tribune, says the NY Times’ launch of a Bay Area edition is part of a national strategy to fend off the Wall Street Journal, which intends to become the national newspaper of record.

[T]his may not simply be a play for the hearts left behind as the San Francisco Chronicle and San Jose Mercury News recalibrate themselves to the harsh economic realities afflicting the newspaper business. The Times’ maneuver may be as much defensive as offensive.

The financially-troubled Times, which in the past year was forced to mortgage its headquarters to remain solvent, seems an easy target for the Journal, now owned by Rupert Murdoch, whose assets include Fox News.
The Journal plans to launch its own Bay Area edition in January, and both papers will apparently launch local editions in Chicago next.