Nikki Finke was first on the west coast this morning to some major Grey Lady news: the appointment of Danielle Mattoon as culture editor and Sia Michel as editor for Arts & Leisure. As Finke points out, even though Hollywood does not read the paper nearly as much as it used to, the moves still put Mattoon at the top of the Tinseltown PR pitch-list.

Finke also reminds that this NYT news should have really come out before the Oscars:

Executive editor Jill Abramson‘s announcement today was nearly four weeks late according to her own timetable for naming a new culture editor. Then again, she has a lot on her plate because her publication is beset by financial problems, editorial buyouts, stiff competition, not to mention conservative critics who want to put what they see as the Liberal Paper Of Record out of business.

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