Gawker

Friday's RTCA Dinner Wrap Up|Meredith Titles Show Ad Growth In July|Gawker's Denton Says He's Not Bored|NYT's Pogue Takes Heat For Speaker's Fee|Dumenco Continues Anti-HuffPo Campaign - Posted June 22, 2009
FishbowlDC: Coverage of the Radio & Television Correspondent's Association Dinner, including reviews of keynote speaker John Hodgman. minOnline: Four of the top five magazines showing ad sales growth in July are Meredith titles: Fitness, Family Circle, Ladies' Home Journal and More. Flex rounded out the top five. Washington Post: Howard Kurtz interviews Gawker's... [FishBowlNY]

Observer Picks Up Majority Stake In Webby Winner Very Short List - Posted June 15, 2009
Today, IAC and the Observer Media Group officially announced their deal passing majority control of IAC's email newsletter Very Short List to Jared Kushner-owned Observer. VSL, which last week won a Webby Award for "Best Guides, Ratings and Review Website," has been renamed The Observer's Very Short List and will be... [FishBowlNY]

Denton, Newmark, Fuller, Twitter's Dorsey And WSJ's Murray Talk Media's Future - Posted June 3, 2009
We interrupt coverage of Mediabistro Circus to bring you news of another media panel going on at New York University today. I Want Media hosted a panel earlier today featuring former Star magazine editor Bonnie Fuller, Gawker chief Nick Denton, The Wall Street Journal's deputy managing editor Alan Murray (left), Craigslist.org... [FishBowlNY]

Denton, Newmark, Fuller, Twitter's Dorsey And WSJ's Murray Talk Media's Future - Posted June 3, 2009
We interrupt coverage of Mediabistro Circus to bring you news of another media panel going on at New York University today as part of New York's Internet Week. I Want Media hosted a panel earlier today featuring former Star magazine editor Bonnie Fuller, Gawker chief Nick Denton, The Wall Street Journal's deputy... [FishBowlNY]

Friedman Gives Back $75K|Double X Takes On Jezebel|10 Reasons Why Bailing Out Newspapers Is A Bad Idea|Mag Publishers' Buyout Deal|Bankrupt Tribune Denied Severance - Posted May 13, 2009
The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10cArizona State Snubs Obamathedailyshow.comDaily Show Full EpisodesEconomic CrisisPolitical Humor GalleyCat: New York Times columnist and author Thomas Friedman has returned a $75,000 speaker's fee. WebNewser: Slate's new online women's magazine, Double X, published a critique of Gawker's lady blog, Jezebel, on its... [FishBowlNY]

Friedman Gives Back $75K|Double X Takes On Jezebel|10 Reasons Why Bailing Out Newspapers Is A Bad Idea|Mag Publishers' Buyout Deal|Bankrupt Tribune Denied Severance - Posted May 13, 2009
The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10cArizona State Snubs Obamathedailyshow.comDaily Show Full EpisodesEconomic CrisisPolitical Humor GalleyCat: New York Times columnist and author Thomas Friedman has returned a $75,000 speaker's fee. WebNewser: Slate's new online women's magazine, Double X, published a critique of Gawker's lady blog, Jezebel, on its... [FishBowlNY]

Has Jossip Folded? - Posted April 20, 2009
Click on the homepage of Jossip.com and you will find a message that says "We're on Pause." Gawker however is reporting that David Hauslaib's six-year-old gossip site, which has been up for sale since March -- David spoke to us on the Menu about it back in February -- has... [FishBowlNY]

True/Slant Launches, Experiments With Sponsored Content - Posted April 9, 2009
At this point it's becoming fairly clear that as the panic increases over the demise of newspapers we are entering an era of 'we're willing to try anything' decision making (closing papers as bargaining tactic, anyone?), which may or may not result in a blurring and/or redefining of ethical lines when... [FishBowlNY]

True/Slant Launches, Experiments With Sponsored Content - Posted April 9, 2009
At this point it's becoming fairly clear that as the panic increases over the demise of newspapers we are entering an era of 'we're willing to try anything' decision making (closing papers as bargaining tactic, anyone?), which may or may not result in a blurring and/or redefining of ethical lines when... [FishBowlNY]

Gawker Named 'Most Valuable Blog' - Posted February 23, 2009
Gawker may be slimming down...again! But that hasn't stopped finance blog 24/7 Wall St. from naming it the most 'valuable' blog out there in its top 25 ranking. The site explains its full criteria here, and points out that the list does not include blogs which are... [FishBowlNY]

Time to Help Save Your Newspapers - Posted February 5, 2009
The newspaper crisis is no longer just an industry conversation for those of us who work in and follow the media. Time's new cover story 'How to Save Your Newspaper' is penned by former Time managing editor Walter Isaacson, who is arguing for paid-content of an iTunes-like variety —... [FishBowlNY]

Should Yahoo Buy Gawker, The New York Times? - Posted January 26, 2009
So what's in store for Yahoo? New CEO Carol Bartz will be announcing the company's first quarter results tomorrow, and all signs point towards the numbers being less than spectacular. What's a CEO to do? Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster appears to have some suggestions: Why not buy Gawker?... [FishBowlNY]

Lesser of Two Evils: Media Companies Explore Alternatives to Laying Off - Posted January 15, 2009
Not that long ago news that major media companies were mandating unpaid weeks off and significant salary cuts would have been greeted with outrage. These days, while not great news, one is tempted to breathe a sigh of relief: it's better than being laid off! And it certainly seems... [FishBowlNY]

Today's NYT News Round-Up - Posted January 12, 2009
Let's talk more about The New York Times, which lately seems to be filling in as some sort of representative for the state of journalism everywhere, both good and bad. First up rumors of Bill Keller's demise are apparently untrue. Gawker called Keller about the recent newsroom chatter that... [FishBowlNY]

Gawker's Sheila McClear Respectfully Says Goodbye - Posted December 30, 2008
Nothing like ending the year with your own layoff post. Over at Gawker Sheila McClear is saying good-bye (incidentally leaving Gawker entirely girl-free!).Still, I accidentally cried when he informed me of the termination of our mutually mercenary arrangement in the see-through glass box of a conference room. I was surprised... [FishBowlNY]

Gawker to Become a Boys' Club? - Posted December 2, 2008
Not to beat this to death, but it has yet to be noted that with the departure of Sheila McClear from Gawker the site suddenly finds itself without a female contributor for the first time since Choire Sicha took the reins from Elizabeth Spiers back in 2003. Of course, as... [FishBowlNY]

Wintour Out At Vogue: Don't Think So, Says Newhouse - Posted December 2, 2008
We here at FBLA don't want to tread on blogger territory too harshly, but we only bring up Gawker's "scoop" on Anna Wintour's departure from Vogue as good example of listening to the wrong people -- and then reporting it. When Wintour herself declines any comment and Conde Nast Chairman S.I. Newhouse... [FishBowlLA]

More on the Time Inc. Layoffs - Posted November 20, 2008
A tipster tells us that Southern Progress arm of Time Inc. has been hit again in the current round of layoffs (we reported on a series of layoffs there last month). More specifically that a number of high level, much-admired, editors, as well as a publisher have "decided not to... [FishBowlNY]

Ex-Gawker Editor Speculates on Why Denton Shuttered Valleywag - Posted November 20, 2008
Over at the L.A. Times ex-Gawker editor (and recent Radaronline scribe) Choire Sicha is speculating as to why Nick Denton decided last week to shut down Valleywag and fold it into the main Gawker site. The short version is that in the not too distant future things may actually be... [FishBowlNY]

Noah Robischon to Leave Gawker for FastCompany.com - Posted November 12, 2008
FBNY has learned that Noah Robischon, managing editor of the Gawker Media Network, will be leaving the company to take up as the new executive editor of fastcompany.com starting December 1. We hear from Gawker that his position there will not be filled (there is some speculation that with site... [FishBowlNY]

Nick Denton: Doom-Mongering the Future of Media - Posted November 12, 2008
Never one to let things lie Nick Denton held a "doom-mongering" summit of sorts at Gawker headquarters last night apparenty feeling that it was time for a "reality check" (more like a brutal intervention of sorts, actually) regarding how this economic downturn will affect the media world. The short version... [FishBowlNY]

Radar: The Long Goodbye Continues - Posted October 28, 2008
Yep, everyone is still reeling from Friday's sudden folding of Radar and the horror show that has subsequently taken its place over at Radaronline. Former Radar-er (and current fundraiser) Ana Marie Cox and HuffPo's Jason Linkins have vlogged their own tribute to the magazine and its "vastly talented" staff below,... [FishBowlNY]

Bill Keller: No More Layoffs at the NYT - Posted October 28, 2008
Here's a little slice of sunshine in an otherwise gloomy day. At the annual New York Times State of the Newsroom meeting executive editor Bill Keller assured employees that there would be no further layoffs at the paper. "The answer is no...No, I do not see another round of... [FishBowlNY]

Radar Folding? [Updated] Magazine Folds, AMI Purchases Website - Posted October 24, 2008
Gawker is reporting (and FBNY has also heard separately from sources within) that Maer Roshan's multiply-launched magazine Radar is folding. The magazine, which pubbed at varying degrees of frequency, and was rumored to have been funded (at least in its later incarnations) by Ron Burkle, never really gave the impression... [FishBowlNY]

Elizabeth Spiers' New (ish) Project: An Online Maxim for Women - Posted October 23, 2008
Elizabeth Spiers, who launched Gawker back in 2002 along with Nick Denton, and also had a hand in launching this blog (among others), is talking with WWD about her new project, something she is describing it as an online "Maxim for women." Per WWD:Her idea is to "cater to the... [FishBowlNY]

Things Left Unsaid?: The New Yorker Profiles Arianna Huffington - Posted October 6, 2008
For the past few weeks rumors have abounded that The New Yorker was preparing a "hit piece" on Arianna Huffington. Since the term "hit piece" is not something we normally associate with The New Yorker we had our suspicions as to how hard-hitting it was actually going to be. ... [FishBowlNY]

Sharon Waxman Skewers Nick Denton, Internet - Posted October 6, 2008
Sharon Waxman takes aim at Snarker-in-chief Nick Denton (which we get) as well as the flight of talented journalists to the Internet (which we don't get). As she says: "And while I'm at it, let me publicly lament the flight of talented colleagues, Jeff Leeds of the Times and Gabriel Snyder, once of Variety,... [FishBowlLA]

Nick Denton: 'I Felt I'd Done My Job' - Posted October 6, 2008
Our sister site, Agency Spy has an interview today with Gawker's Nick Denton about the recent layoffs, hires and rehires. One of the most interesting aspects of the Gawker changes has been Denton finding a replacement for himself as managing editor. As Agency Spy has it: Matt: On your managing editor replacement, Gabriel... [FishBowlLA]

Gawker Lays Off 19 Editorial Staff Including Moe Tkacik - Posted October 3, 2008
Gawker had their own black Friday newsdump today. In a move that may soon become known as the Denton doctrine, Gawker head Nick Denton announced that he was preemptively laying off 19 members of the editorial staff, including recently hired Moe Tkacik, and suspending page view bonuses for the first... [FishBowlNY]

As the New York Media World Turns - Posted October 1, 2008
Two different stories are floating around the very fishbowl-like world of New York media today (hey we didn't just pluck our name from a hat). First off, Radar is reporting that Gawker may finally have found the managing editor they've been looking for in Gabriel Snyder, formerly of the New... [FishBowlNY]

NYMag.com's Daily Intel Decides There Is Something in a Name! - Posted September 24, 2008
We're at bit late to this, but it looks like New York Magazine's blog Daily Intel has finally capitulated to the byline. Up until August, when the change took place, Daily Intel posts by staff bloggers (contributors were always name-checked) remained unsigned — a source of frustration for regular readers... [FishBowlNY]

Wherein Gawker Hijacks the Election - Posted September 17, 2008
We love the idea of Gawker becoming a player in this election SO much — because seriously, how else could it get any crazier? (No really, how else?) — that we wanted to update you. Apparently, Rick Davis has confirmed that the Palin emails Gawker got their hands on are... [FishBowlNY]

Does Gawker Have Screen Grabs of Sarah Palin's Personal Email Acct? - Posted September 17, 2008
It looks like John McCain's aversion to the Google may be a good thing after all, or at least something to be envied if you're Sarah Palin. It's been widely been reported that Palin routinely used a private email to conduct state business raising questions regarding government transparency. Well,... [FishBowlNY]

Gawker Wanted: Denton Signing Off As Managing Editor - Posted September 2, 2008
After eight successful (there's a graph if you don't believe us) months Nick Denton is stepping down as managing editor at Gawker. Think you're up for the job? Here's what he's looking for:My permanent replacement needs to be plugged into both society gossip and mass culture. (I only faked... [FishBowlNY]

NYT: In the Market For a Little Deja Vu? - Posted August 4, 2008
Last week Gawker pointed out that something about the New York Times was sounding awfully familiar, as in, haven't we read this before? We had the exact same experience this Sunday upon opening the Style section and glancing the article about how Manhattan is currently being overrun by foreigners taking... [FishBowlNY]

NYT: In the Market For a Little Deja Vu? - Posted August 4, 2008
Last week Gawker pointed out that something about the New York Times was sounding awfully familiar, as in, haven't we read this before? We had the exact same experience this Sunday upon opening the Style section and glancing the article about how Manhattan is currently being overrun by foreigners taking... [FishBowlNY]

In Which the 'Montauk Monster' Gives New Meaning to Dog Days of Summer Media Blogging - Posted July 31, 2008
We've sort of been ignoring the Montauk Monster up until now, mostly because between the water bug we found in the bathtub yesterday and seeing Jaws at far too young an age we've had our fill of scary water monster stories. However! Being that it's a slow Thursday in... [FishBowlNY]

In Which the 'Montauk Monster' Gives New Meaning to Dog Days of Summer Media Blogging - Posted July 31, 2008
We've sort of been ignoring the Montauk Monster up until now, mostly because between the water bug we found in the bathtub yesterday and seeing Jaws at far too young an age we've had our fill of scary water monster stories. However! Being that it's a slow Thursday in... [FishBowlNY]

Who is Who? New York's '2,109' Most Notable - Posted July 7, 2008
We all know "notable" New Yorkers never get tired of hearing about themselves, much as the blogosphere never tires of writing about them. To that end, Gawker is reporting that Cityfile, the brainchild of Remy Stern, has gone live. According to the site, Cityfile aims to be a "guide to... [FishBowlNY]

Who is Who? New York's '2,109' Most Notable - Posted July 7, 2008
We all know "notable" New Yorkers never get tired of hearing about themselves, much as the blogosphere never tires of writing about them. To that end, Gawker is reporting that Cityfile, the brainchild of Remy Stern, has gone live. According to the site, Cityfile aims to be a "guide to... [FishBowlNY]

Hey Gawker, Nice Story ... One Week Late - Posted June 25, 2008
We expect Old Media stalwarts like Business Week to come late to the party, but Gawker? Aren't you guys supposed to have your "witty" retort at the ready before anyone has even said anything? A week after we reported that the Orange County Register would be moving copy editing jobs to India,... [FishBowlLA]

FBNY Dishes About All Things Gawker - Posted April 14, 2008
Our sister blog, Fishbowl NY, wakes up a lot earlier than us. It also works harder than we do, smiles less often and wears more black. But that's beside the point. FBNY has all the scoop about the Gawker sales, including this quote from Nick Denton "To be blunt: they each had... [FishBowlLA]

Mo' Margaret B., Mo' Peggy Seltzer. Mo Fiction - Posted March 4, 2008
More Margaret B. Jones/Peggy Seltzer info: Gawker has some of her author interview, now vanished from Penguin's site, but found here: At one point I was showing my agent around my old neighborhood. We were shooting a video for the book. She said it was so much nicer than she thought it... [FishBowlLA]

Gawker's New io9.com Has Like, Design Futurism and Zany Architecture and Stuff - Posted January 3, 2008
As soon as we trained ourselves not to look at the header (why, why do they want to make us cry?), Gawker's new sci-fi blog io9 lured us in with what is pretty much all design-related content. The blog, which debuted yesterday, is edited by Annalee Newitz, who used to work... [UnBeige]

Gawker Abused in Salon - Posted December 26, 2007
In a piece about Gawker and celebrity news, Heather Havrilesky asks Salon readers: But in this head-spinning year of celebrity obsession and backlash, did we gain anything by listening in on Alec Baldwin's private phone message to his daughter, or watching camera-phone footage of David Hasselhoff drunkenly scarfing down a hamburger, or... [FishBowlLA]

Sundown on Sunset - Posted November 30, 2007
Evel Knievel dies at age 69. Martin Scorsese's newest film: La Clave Reserva Just in time for the holidays! KOST fires Kim Amidon, after 22 years. via Franklin Ave. Hollywood Bitchslap has an Oscar tote board up. Sasha Stone as well with better commentary but less useful visuals. EW lists the 50 Smartest... [FishBowlLA]

Spencer Pratt Tutored at USC, Outed at Gawker - Posted November 27, 2007
Gawker posts about Spencer Pratt's old tutor who got the Hills resident evil mastermind through freshman English at USC. The tutor, Nicole Kristal, wrote about how dumb rich kids suck for Newsweek in 2005. The aptly-named Pratt was outed by some tipster, but we're betting on Kristal herself. She should pitch... [FishBowlLA]

SNL Live: Sklar Approves - Posted November 19, 2007
Does the Huffington Post pay by the word? 4511. On the live Saturday Night Live show. And only 5 comments. Gawker, however, recaps the recap, and Rachel Sklar shows up to defend herself from the vicious readers. Sklar has quite the schwarmerei for SNL. ... [FishBowlLA]

Charlie LeDuff: Who's Your Daddy? - Posted November 8, 2007
Author Charlie LeDuff traveled the globe for the NY Times, and now lives in Hollywood, but he's a million miles away from all the strike action. Why? Because he and his little daughter are at home or driving to Yoga World or going to the park. He writes in Men's Vogue: I... [FishBowlLA]

WGA Strike Snippets of News - Posted November 5, 2007
The WGA members seem to be worried about their public image. Maybe if they start the picket lines before 9 (like when the Teamsters go to work), the strikers might be taken more seriously. And lose the lattes and the Blackberries. United Hollywood suggests there'll be chaos. They wish. We stand... [FishBowlLA]

Grigoriadis Dissects Gawker, Finds Shriveled Heart - Posted October 15, 2007
Vanessa Grigoriadis gets back at Gawker for making fun of her wedding write-up. Writing in New York, Grigoriadis writes: Like most journalists, I tend to have a defeatist attitude about Gawker, dismissing it as the Mystery Science Theater 3000 of journalism, or accepting its vague put-downs under the principle that any press... [FishBowlLA]

Gawker Clubs Baby Seals, Neal Pollack's Son - Posted September 28, 2007
Gawker hit a new low, posting a hit piece about a 4-year-old this week. They called said 4-year-old "the worst," declared they "hate" him and justified it all by explaining that he's not a 4-year-old; he's Neal Pollack's 4-year-old. Now, we're no fans of Pollack, but this is out of line. And... [FishBowlLA]

Jeffrey Epstein, Prince Andrew, And Nipple Torture - Posted September 26, 2007
While Gawker was speculating about the state of John Connolly's Vanity Fair story on sleazebag Jeffrey Epstein, the Mail on Sunday published an eye-widening piece about Johanna Sjoberg, a church-going, all-American brunette, was recruited six years ago into Epstein's household as an occasional home help, and was induced to perform demeaning... [FishBowlLA]

Vogue: Fat September - Posted August 21, 2007
Glossed Over live blogs the September Vogue, and lives to tell. Gawker notes that the same issue has gained a little weight, while Jossip points out that last year's issue was bigger. Sienna Miller's on the cover, despite all the Amy Winehouse gossip. And Cathy Horyn actually found reading matter hidden in the dead-tree... [FishBowlLA]

Choire Sicha Defends Los Angeles Times on Theresa Duncan - Posted August 20, 2007
Over at Gawker, Choire Sicha sticks up for his new pals at the LA Times, claiming that there weren't two Theresa Duncan tribute pieces as we'd mentioned. He posts: The paper didn't "run" two tribute pieces--as far as we can tell, the first was rushed and only put online.) We're guessing... [FishBowlLA]

Sale of Mediabistro.com Inspires Tears, Tantrums Too - Posted July 18, 2007
News of mediabistro.com's sale has caused quite a stir in Blogotopia. Well, bloggers like traffic, and who knew that Laurel Touby + boa would replace Britney Spears + Nude as a sure-fire search term? Gawker tries to laugh through tears and clenched teeth. Not a good look. Gridskipper's Chris Mohney does the... [FishBowlLA]

Greg Gutfeld in NY Observer--Once Ate Reagan's Chicken - Posted May 23, 2007
George Gurley profiles Greg Gutfeld in the NY Observer. Gutfeld adores Paul Lynde, has gotten fired quite a few times, and thinks liberalism is all about getting laid. Gawker readers don't quite get his appeal.... [FishBowlLA]

R.I.P. Socialite Rank - Posted April 26, 2007
Socialite Rank is shutting down, and the creators are working on a book about the whole experience. Were we all just pawns in their little game? ... [FishBowlLA]