Look, it’s the day before Thanksgiving, we have some grocery shopping and cooking to do. We’re really only into this post for the headline.

From Swampland:

Michelle Obama has been held by US Customs and Border Protection in the port of LA for the last two weeks — 10,000 Michelles, to be exact. The first shipment of the Michelle Obama action figure by Jailbreak Toys, designed in New York and manufactured in China, was on its way back to the States for its November 15 debut. But the First Lady — complete with toothy smile, toned plastic biceps and your choice of three different outfits — is currently trapped in container #00LU865121.

“We know this is a busy time for Customs officials,” says Jailbreak Toys owner Jason Feinberg. “What is most frustrating is that we haven’t been given any reason for the delay.”

On his blog, Feinberg is urging would-be purchasers of the action figure to “help us by sending a message to the bureaucrats in LA…to ‘Free Michelle Obama!’” (By “bureaucrats in LA,” he means the folks who field inquiries about the status of entry release and holds at the Los Angeles/Long Beach Seaport’s Trade Interface Unit.)

Only in America would a doll of the First lady get caught up in customs. Think on that when you’re in your tryptophan coma tomorrow.

Back in March we brought you the most hilarious song The Copy Editor’s Lament. Well now writer Christopher Ave has made a video. Just in time for the holidays…you know the end of the year with probably more layoffs.

Previously on FBLA:

The Washington Post has announced plans to close its bureaus in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York at the end of December. From Politico:

Executive editor Marcus Brauchli informed staff that “the reporters in those bureaus are being offered new roles here in Washington.” However, three news aides are being let go.

“At a time of limited resources and increased competitive pressure,” Brauchli wrote, “it’s necessary to concentrate our journalistic firepower on our central mission of covering Washington and the news, trends and ideas that shape both the region and the country’s politics, policies and government.”

Full WaPo staff memo after the jump-

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Our local rebels The Young Turks and Cenk Uygur are profiled in December’s issue of Fast Company. See if you recognize the author. Go see.

From the article:

Uygur doesn’t look like a rebel, but there is something revolutionary going on here. Roughly 450,000 people watch The Young Turks on YouTube alone; thousands more in the precious 18-to-35 demo listen on Sirius Satellite Radio and through the TYT Web site, making it competitive with, say, MSNBC’s Morning Joe (382,000 viewers a day in September), or CNN’s Lou Dobbs Tonight (616,000). And that, says Uygur, is only the beginning of a campaign “to take down television.”

“When I watch TV, I see robots,” he says. “We’re not robots; we’re people.” On a show touching on health-care reform and Senator Max Baucus, Uygur proclaimed, “The mainstream media and the politicians who do these tricks and the media who cover for them — guess what? You’re fucked. We’re coming for you. We’re coming to your house.”

Whole piece is here.

We would never accuse the Los Angeles Times of being early adopters.

LA Biz Journal reports:

“Integrity is our most important commodity: Avoid writing or posting anything that would embarrass The Times or compromise your ability to do your job,” the committee stated.

Most interesting, the committee stated that employees should “assume that your professional life and your personal life will merge online regardless of your care in separating them.” Privacy tools that determine who can see and read what you post, the committee stated, have little meaning when publishing on a public Web site.

So this memo is preempting a reporter flashing his boobs on Facebook while holding up a copy of the Turner Diaries or something? The advent of MySpace was seven years ago…way to keep up.

Anyone think this is in the wake of those horrible Katie Couric photos?

Via I Want Media

The unholy union of the classic children’s book “Goodnight Moon” and The Who’s long-deceased drummer, Keith Moon. View better quality images at the book’s website.

Playboy Enterprises Inc. has struck a deal to outsource most of the struggling magazine’s operations to Florida-based publisher American Media Inc. Chief executive officer Scott Flanders told the Wall Street Journal that the five-year deal “would help return the magazine to profitability by the end of 2011.”

That’s all well and good unless you happen to work at the magazine. The deal means many layoffs for Playboy employees. Of course, Hugh Hefner isn’t going anywhere. Editorial is the one department that isn’t being handed over to AMI. Though it would certainly be interesting to see how the company that publishes the supermarket tabloids National Enquirer, National Examiner and Globe would make over the mag.

Normally when magazines need writers and decide to post on Craigslist, they put up some info about what they are looking for and an email address. Writers will email the editor clips, a resume and maybe a pitch. It’s all very…usual.

Then there’s this:

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