Over 400 members of New York media and bloggerati packed Kiss & Fly in the Meatpacking District Thursday to watch the premiere episode of VH1′s Love & Hip-Hop 3, which airs Monday January 7. For those not in the know, that’s the show that goes inside the lives (more personal than professional, really) of hip-hop stars.

While the show’s first outing focused mainly on rapper Jim Jones and his family and friends, this season has a lot of upstarts whose affiliations with the music world are flimsy at best. I’m still trying to figure out what it means for Rashidah Ali to be a “shoe consultant” to the stars, but, hey, whatever works for you.

Here are more photos from the event, courtesy of photographer Stephen Knight: Read more

With summer internships well underway, mediabistro.com gave the hardworking interns a chance to mingle and share a drink at last night’s Mediabistro Student and Intern party.

On top of meeting future co-workers in the media world, the students also got a chance to chat with Alex Weprin, editor of TVNewser, and yours truly, editorial assistant and social media coordinator. Also present were Jessica Carlson, client services associate of the Job Board, education manager Amanda Pacitti and education assistant Sandra Reitman. Lots of advice and questions were swapped, but what was the biggest concern for the interns? Breaking into that first job.

Luckily for them, online marketing manager Caitlin McKinney hosted speed interviews for two openings at our own company: online marketing coordinator and events assistant. Nineteen hopefuls jumped into the interview with two to three minutes to prove themselves.

The rest of the students didn’t leave empty-handed. Each attendee received with a $50 discount to a year-long AvantGuild membership, and all had a chance to win a free Mediabistro class and a coffee with a mentor in the field of their choice.

Missed out last night? Then tune in to our free July 31 webcast on what it takes to jumpstart your career in media. Execs and editors from Travel + Leisure, Comedy Central and ABC Television will be online to help you discover the best ways to get your foot in the door.

In the meantime, check out more photos below of last night’s fun after the jump. Read more

Credit: Dario Cantatore

The Huffington Post held a garden party to celebrate the launch of its new iPad magazine, “Huffington,” Last night. FishbowlNY was there at the Gramercy Park Hotel rooftop bar, along with a few hundred of Arianna Huffington‘s friends, staffers and a few famous faces.

We spotted Huffington Post Media Group editorial director Howard Fineman, Huffington Post editor Roy Sekoff, HuffPost’s Pulitzer Prize winning reporter David Wood and NBC News president Steve Capus in the crowd, among other well-dressed and well-heeled guests.

Huffington and Tim O’Brien, who is overseeing the venture for the company, made brief remarks:

“You may be asking ‘why a magazine?’ well the answer is that now The Huffington Post has 1,500 stories a day, about 70 to 80 of them original, and we found that we needed to pull the best, and put them in a beautiful setting like jewels, so that you could enjoy them when you had time over the weekend,” Huffington said. “It is the difference between a one-night stand and a long getaway weekend where you really get to know someone.”

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If all the spring conferences and after work mixers typically leave you noshing on free appetizers rather than actually meeting people, there’s a cure. In mediabistro.com’s latest AvantGuild feature, career coaches outline five steps to help even the most socially averse conquer their new-people phobia.

No. 2: Listen first.

The one hard and fast rule to remember is to listen more than you talk, says Juli Monroe, a coach at 1 to 1 Discovery, a Washington, D.C.-based networking and social media agency. “If you listen first, then you know how to talk about yourself,” she explained. “If you can address their needs, then you can pitch your services, but in a targeted and strategic way.”

Read more in How To Network in Any Situation.

This article is one of several mediabistro.com features exclusively available to AvantGuild subscribers. If you’re not a member yet, you can register for as little as $55 a year and get access to these articles, discounts on seminars and workshops, and more.

WeTV hosted a premiere party for its hit reality show Braxton Family Values at Tribeca Grand Tuesday. mediabistro.com was invited along with other members of the press to screen the first episode and attend a Q&A with the singing sisters. While Toni Braxton was notably absent, Traci, Towanda, Trina, Tamar and mom Evelyn more than made up for it with their usual candor.

Although the cast is still filming the final episodes, the show kicks off this Thursday, November 10. Here’s what you can expect this season along with more photos from the event:

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Top movers and shakers of the wedding industry kicked off the week by rubbing elbows with the lifestyle and cooking tycoon at the 10th Annual Martha Stewart Weddings Bridal Market Party. Guests had plenty to do with the 18 vendor booths set up all around the event space created in MSLO’s Chelsea headquarters. Make up by Vênsette, manicures by Essie, henna by Henna Studio and eyelashes by Paul Labrecque helped attendees touch up their already fabulous looks, while the candy buffet, wines and cupcakes by Edible Artistry, Creme-Delicious and Cake Power continued to fuel their energy throughout the night. Guests grooved to the live band provided by Elan Artists.

Behind the scenes tours of the editorial offices were given every half hour, and the guests also got a sneak peek at the publication’s test kitchen, personally presented by the food editors themselves. To top it off, a photo booth and flip book station gave guests something to upload to Facebook.

Among the sparkling crowd were celebrity wedding and event planner Colin Cowie, Randy Fenoli from Say Yes to the Dress, celebrity wedding designer and planner David Stark, Reem Acra, Amsale Aberra, Lela Rose and Darcy Miller, editorial director of Martha Stewart Weddings. Check out more pics from the event after the jump.

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Tuesday, mediabistro.com threw a party for New York startups at Chelsea Manor. The event was hosted by yours truly, and guests enjoyed drink specials and appetizers compliments of Chelsea Manor. Peep the pics below.

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It’s hard to believe but, once upon a time, Google was just a couple guys with a great idea. So were Apple, Facebook, Pandora, and even our own mediabistro.com (founded by Laurel Touby, all woman).

So, Tuesday October 11, we’re throwing a Startups Party in honor of all the tech and media entrepreneurs in the New York area. Join us for networking, complimentary drinks and appetizers, and the scoop on how your company can be featured on mediabistro.com’s Elevator Pitch.

Plus, I’ll have a special treat for whoever can guess which hip-hop song the headline is from. (Not really, but it’ll give us something to talk about, no?)

Go ahead and RSVP here.

Yesterday evening Discovery Communications held its annual upfront presentation, wooing advertisers and media buyers, while previewing upcoming programming and networks.

With a suite of channels that includes Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet and OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network, there was plenty of ground to cover.

Luckily, they had Oprah there to sell it.

Yes, talk show queen turned media mogul Oprah Winfrey herself was in attendance at Jazz at Lincoln Center, and revealed the 2011/2012 OWN programming slate on stage.

She was joined by Rosie O’Donnell, who will be making her return to daytime with a talk show on OWN later this year. O’Donnell performed a song and dance routine with a troupe of male dancers.

Discovery had other big names in attendance, inducing actor Morgan Freeman, who hosts and produces the program “Through the Wormhole” on Science, and magicians Penn & Teller, who have a new show “Penn & teller’s Secrets of the Universe” on Discovery later this year. Billy Ray Cyrus also unveiled his new show for TLC, “Homecoming,” which reunites military men and women with their families, while SNL’s Andy Samberg told some jokes in advance of his gig as “Chief Shark Officer” during 2011′s Shark Week.

FishbowlNY also spotted:

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The Hammerstein Ballroom was packed to the brim with wannabes, has-beens and the occasional celebrity last night, as Comedy Central taped its roast of Donald Trump.

The roast, which will air next Tuesday, saw a lineup of comedians like Lisa Lampanelli and Jeff Ross, join some celebrity roasters like Marlee Matlin, Larry King and Snoop Dogg to mock one another and Trump himself.

Also in attendance: Jersey Shore’s Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino, but more on him later.

Trump, who made (and lost) billions in real estate and casinos, and is said to be considering a Republican presidential run, spent much of the night in a chair in the middle of the stage, glowering, as his daughter Ivanka and wife Melania watched from the audience. FishbowlNY also spotted John Legend, Ice-T, Norah Jones and Russell Simmons in the crowd.

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