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CNN Makes It Official: Piers Morgan Will Replace Larry King (NYT / Media Decoder)
CNN said Wednesday that Piers Morgan would take over for Larry King next January, putting an end to speculation about one of the most prized time slots in television. Morgan, the British-born journalist and talent show judge, will host an interview show weekdays at 9 p.m., the network said. A name for the show was not announced. TVNewser: "I have a lot of opinions, do I want to shove them down my viewer's throats? No, there are enough people doing that on cable news at 8 or 9 o'clock at the moment," Morgan says. "I don't want people to view me as a political animal, I don't put my own politics into it. CNN's one objective with the new schedule is to be provocative, aggressive and ballsy, and to seek out the truth."
New York Times Stock, Options Surge On Takeover Talk (Bloomberg)
New York Times Co. was the biggest gainer in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index and bullish options trading surged to a six-month high on renewed speculation the newspaper publisher may be acquired. Almost 7,200 calls to buy the stock changed hands, 40 times the four-week average and six times the number of puts to sell. The most-active contracts were October $9 calls, which almost doubled to 35 cents and accounted for about two-thirds of call volume. Before today they had an open interest of five outstanding contracts. WSJ: The New York Times Co. shares rose as much as 8 percent and options volume surged Wednesday on renewed speculation that Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim was either looking to buy or raise his stake in the media giant. Slim has denied in the past that he wants to buy the publishing company. Asked on Wednesday whether there was any truth to the rumors that Slim planned to increase his stake, spokesman Arturo Elias Ayub said, "No, not at all."
Lucky Girl Brandon Holley Ditches Yahoo's 'Brainy Geeks,' Returns to Condé (NY Observer)
Former Jane editor Brandon Holley is returning to Condé Nast after a stint at Yahoo's Shine to take over Lucky magazine from founding editor Kim France. She is only the second editor to return to the company after leaving. "I feel like I went to school for three years and now I can bring that back," Holley said. She compared Yahoo to MIT. "You have all these crazy, brainy geeks."
Executive Shuffles Atop Meredith National Media Group (Folio:)
Following the exit of Meredith National Media Group president Jack Griffin, the magazine publisher has announced several promotions. Executive vice president and chief brand officer Andy Sareyan is taking on the role of president of consumer brands. Michael Brownstein was promoted to executive vice president and chief revenue officer and Doug Olson will take on the added duties of overseeing Meredith's men's titles. Jeannine Shao Collins was promoted to executive vice president and chief innovation officer.
Bob Woodward Starts Rollout Of His Obama Book On ABC (Yahoo / The Upshot)
Bob Woodward's books inevitably cause a stir in Washington, both for what they reveal and for the guessing game over who leaked what to the Washington Post reporter. Woodward may get government officials to blab, but he's tight-lipped about his own work before it's published. However, Woodward explained how ABC landed the exclusive on his book. "I found a determined seriousness in ABC and Diane Sawyer on all subjects, particularly the war in Afghanistan," Woodward said.
Welcome To The Nerd Blog (ProPublica)
"Today we are introducing our Nerd Blog," writes ProPublica's Scott Klein, "a place to talk about what programmer-journalists at ProPublica are working on, announce newly-launched news applications, and to hear from technically-minded readers, as well as our fellow nerdy journalists. We're going to be writing about each of our projects as we release them, and flagging open source tools we've found useful."
Anna Wintour Weaves Her Web (WWD)
Just what Anna Wintour needed: another project. On the eve of New York Fashion Week and a mere two days before her brainchild, Fashion's Night Out, she is unveiling the new vogue.com. And it's about time -- Vogue, the world's most influential fashion magazine, is late to the online game.
Arthur Sulzberger On Charging Online: To Succeed, We Need To Take Risks (Editors Weblog)
Speaking at the WAN-IFRA 9th International Newsroom Summit in London, chairman and publisher of The New York Times Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., stressed the need to take risks and not be afraid of failure in the quest to find a business model that can adequately support high-quality journalism. Putting up a paywall does not in itself constitute a business model. Rather, "We must reconsider the very nature" of user engagement.
Google Instant Makes SEO Irrelevant (Steve Rubel)
Google yesterday launched an ambitious effort to speed up searching. But what they really did is kill SEO. Google says: "Google Instant is a new search enhancement that shows results as you type. We are pushing the limits of our technology and infrastructure to help you get better search results, faster." This means no one will see the same Web anymore, making optimizing it virtually impossible. Real-time feedback will change and personalize people's search behaviors.
New Media Upstarts Relying On Journalism For A Change (TheWrap)
New websites are launched every day -- most, it would appear, involving photos of cats in compromising situations. Yet three recent digital media launches -- Capital New York, D.C.-focused TBD.com and Yahoo's Upshot, each rolled out within the span of a month -- have the potential to change the game by putting journalism first. And each started by hiring some of the Web's top editorial talent away from established players well ahead of their launch dates.
Like It Or Not, Twitter Has Become A News Platform (GigaOm)
There's been plenty of debate lately about whether Twitter has become "mainstream" or not, but examples continue to pile up of how the social network/microblogging platform has worked its way into our lives, to the point where it has become a form of media unto itself. The reality is that, for all its flaws, Twitter is a publishing tool, and an increasingly powerful one. And it can be used by anyone, journalist and non-journalist alike.
Garnock Named Harper's Bazaar Associate Publisher (minOnline)
Brian Garnock, New York Times VP for advertising since 2007, is Harper's Bazaar magazine's senior VP / publisher Valerie Salembier's choice to succeed Kevin Martinez as associate publisher/advertising. Martinez ended his seven-year collaboration with Salembier in June to become publisher of Harper's Bazaar rival Elle.
Source Interlink Sells CD-DVD Distribution Business (Folio:)
Source Interlink Companies has officially sold Alliance Entertainment to M&A firm Platinum Equity and the Gores Group, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Alliance is a wholesale distributor of CDs, DVDs and games to more than 14,500 locations in the U.S., including retailers like Barnes & Noble, Borders and Amazon.com. It also provides fulfillment services, among other things.
Silence Or Death In Mexico's Press (CPJ)
The drug traffickers, violent criminals, and corrupt officials who threaten Mexico's future have killed, terrorized, and co-opted journalists, knowing that controlling the flow of information will further their needs. They have been increasingly successful, and the results have been devastating.
A Close Look at Apple's Latest Astonishing Twitter Takeover (AdAge)
Last Wednesday, Apple's CEO made all kinds of new-product announcements, including the launch of Ping, its iTunes-based social network. Steve Jobs, when he's talking up product, is perhaps second only to teen pop star Justin Bieber in his ability to electrify Twitter. When all the relevant terms (e.g., Apple, #apple, Steve Jobs, iTunes, etc.) are rolled up, more than 2 million tweets were Apple-related last Wednesday.
Now that summer is unofficially over and the glitterati have shuttered their cottages in the Hamptons, the regulars have begun to trickle into Michael's for catch-up power lunches. Today, MSNBC's Chris Matthews dropped by for the early show, Cathie Black and Lauren Zalaznick dined at Table 14 and a certain Obsessed (and very pregnant) actress was spotted in the Garden Room.
Chris Matthews Stops by Michael's (FBNY)
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LHJ Turns Blog Into Event Series (minOnline)
Ladies' Home Journal's popular blog 'Ladies Lounge' has become an event series. At several mall and show venues this month and next 'The Ladies Lounge' will come to life. The events are designed as offline social occasions that let women connect with LHJ's breadth of content, from food and style to health and civic mindedness. The Lounge will appear first at the Southern Women's Show in Charlotte, North Carolina on Sept. 16-19 where 30,000 women are expected.
Former William Morris Chairman Takes On New Role at AOL (NYT)
Jim Wiatt, the former chairman of William Morris, has stepped down from AOL's board after less than a year to become a full-time "strategic advisor" to the Internet company as it seeks to build a broader portfolio of original programming. Tim Armstrong, AOL's chief executive, said the new role will allow his company to more fully tap Mr. Wiatt's relationships with Hollywood and media companies.
Australian Judge Rules There Is No Copyright In Headlines (paidContent)
Australia's federal court has ruled that there is no copyright in newspaper headlines. The decision has far-reaching implications for publishers who are seeking to seal off their editorial content from people who do not pay for access to their online material. The court dismissed a copyright claim by one of the country's leading newspaper groups, Fairfax Media, over headlines in its title, the Australian Financial Review.
More Newsfeed here...
Today on the Morning Media Menu, we looked at a former governor's new CNN show.
In a sneak preview, Eliot Spitzer and Kathleen Parker announced that their show will be called Parker Spitzer. We also explored how political protesters used Facebook to refile former British Prime Minister Tony Blair's memoir at the bookstore and how Gawker Media has passed almost all of the major newspapers in traffic.
Follow this link to listen.
The show was hosted by GalleyCat editor Jason Boog and SportsNewser editor Alex Weprin. You can download episodes for free on iTunes.
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