It’s been three days since the New York Daily News reported* that NBC News prez Neal Shapiro was planning to step down. Conventional wisdom suggests it’s a done deal, but there have been no NBC press releases as of yet.

Shapiro has been president of NBC News since June 2001, and his shows — “The NBC Nightly News With Brian Williams,” “Meet the Press” and “Today” — are all on top. Ah, but one of those shows is “Today,” that ink-generating albatross with the rapidly-gaining rival That Shall Remain Nameless (it’s GMA!).

And as we all know, “Today” is giving Jeff Zucker a nasty ulcer (that and the whole last-place TV thing).

It’s unclear whether Shapiro is being forced out or what, but the NYT‘s Jacques Steinberg reports that Zucker, after being asked about finger-pointing regarding the “Today” slippage, said (ominously): “At the end of the day, each of us is responsible for the units we run. We’re all responsible for the successes and failures in our particular units.” (BTW, Zucker was once exec. producer of “Today.”)

Steinberg also quotes two anonymous (hmmmm)”senior executives” who say that Shapiro wants to “jump before being pushed,” a la the recently-ousted Tom Touchet (a Shapiro hire). Meanwhile, the “Today” team remains in flux: TV Newser confirms that former Maury EP Amy Rosenblum was appointed “senior producer” of the third hour of “Today”, reporting to Touchet replacement Jim Bell.

Gossip! Conjecture! Rampant speculation! And no word either way from NBC. TV Newser has some new-prexy suggestions; Phil Rosenthal at the Chicago Tribune has a nice rundown, as does Newsday. One thing is certain: Neal Shapiro’s vacation is probably not very relaxing.

Shapiro may be leaving NBC News [Newsday]
NBC News May Get New Chief [NYT]
Morning gloom likely to doom NBC News exec [Chicago Tribune]
Shapiro ‘Replacement Watch’ Begins [Broadcasting & Cable (subscription)]

*Yes Lloyd, we know it was you, and, yes, we’re proud of you.

According to our in-the-know cousin at TVNewser, the staff of 60 Minutes II was decimated yesterday. A CBS staffer confirmed early reports that a wide swath was cut through the staff:

Most of the ’60 Minutes Wednesday’ staff lost their jobs today…a handful are going over to the Sunday ’60 Minutes’…some of us are being told to meet with executives at other CBS News broadcasts for possible openings…and a good portion were just told they’re out. It’s one of the saddest days I’ve ever seen in more than two decades of working for CBS News.

The New York Daily News reports that at least 50 people lost their jobs. Sigh. Happy holiday weekend from Les Moonves!

Hmm, now this is interesting: on the same day that the NYT amazed and delighted us by telling us about Bluefly, this email went out to everyone on their “Sophisticated Shopper” list:

What an AMAZING coincidence! Jonathan S. Adelstein is picking out a pair of John Varvatos pants right now.

(By the way, yes that is me on the email and yes I am a sophisticated shopper. Also by the way, the article left out the most important things about Bluefly: one, you can retun anything after you’ve bought it and realized that you’re actually not a size 4; and two, after a few weeks of not buying anything they’ll send you an email with a nice 15% discount in order to lure you back. So there.)

This week’s New Yorker includes a small “Talk of the Town” piece about some much-beloved, much-enjoyed mounds, mounds that require careful tending and attention and have been romped on with enthusiasm and vigor. Gawker pointed out that there were certain, er, associations evoked by the article (well, pointed it out only to those prurient enough to have already made that connection), and we were relieved that we were not alone in said prurience.

No, we’re not alone – upon a closer read, this week’s New Yorker totally joins us. First, there is the poem on page 50. Free, unrhymed verse always sounds so terribly smart, but this one doesn’t fool us – any poem that has some guy “heaving between” a woman’s “long, bare legs” – in a graveyard, no less! – is the kind of stuff Jeff Seagall used to make us pay a quarter to read in his parent’s basement back in sixth grade. I blush to quote, but there was some talk of someone’s head “riding up and down” to, uh, “restart” someone else, while a panting dog looked on. When did Wolcott start guest-editing the New Yorker?

Leaving dirty poetry aside, I moved on to “Shouts and Murmurs.” Hi, Serious Writer Ian Frazier, how are you? Oh, look, it’s called “Chinese Arithmetic,” we like math, what fun! We start reading. It’s about a guy with an unceasing, relentless boner. (Hi, Serious Writer Ian Frazier, how are you?). Seriously, this boner won’t go away! He explains why not, in agonizing priapic detail, over the course of 850 words. It’s too bad he doesn’t know the girl from the poem. He should go play on the mounds. I bet that would help.

*Have you found something dirty in The New Yorker? Let us know at fishbowlny@mediabistro.com. But remember, we’re a family-friendly blog.

From CNN.com, updated 4:57 pm

Oh, my goodness. You know, when Black Table editor A.J. Daulerio‘s interview with Greg Gutfeld in his pre-Huffie days made us blush, we just figured it was because Gutfeld was, well, Gutfeld, with all his his lad-mag proclivities. But now, in an excruciatingly frank interview with E! Online gossip maven Ted Casablancas, it’s obvious that Daulerio is just a bad influence. I mean, Ted! Our golden Ted! Honestly, we would have been happy with a high-five. Read at your own risk.

ROCK AND A HARD PLACE: E!’S TED CASABLANCA [The Black Table]
Previously:
Greg Gutfeld: Just a tiny scrap of fabric away from the NY Racquet and Tennis Club [Fishbowl NY]

How novel! According to the New York Times Thursday Styles section, apparently there is a newfangled shopping website out there called Bluefly, and apparently you can get chic designer duds for a fraction of the price! Alas, the secret is out and other people know about it, bent on thwarting our efforts at Chip & Pepper jeans in our size. Helpfully, the Times offers some novel hints on how to effectively and efficiently shop online:

1. If you’re a man, click on “men” like savvy Minnesotan shopper Dack Ragus (because Minnesotans know shopping!), who takes us through his Bluefly transaction step-by-step: “I start at the home page, then click on ‘men,’ then all the new arrivals and then the designers on my list.” So that’s how it’s done. Awesome.

2. Thumbnails – only click on the ones you want to see! “The site’s useful tools allow you to set preferences to scroll through as many as 72 thumbnail images on a single results page.” The world has shifted on its axis. Again, awesome.

3. Customize your search! You are an individual, with unique takes on color and style. You are also your own unique size (and we’re not judging you for it). So, take this handy advice from shopping innovator Kristin Camplese (because Pennsylvanians know shopping!): “If I’m looking for a dress for a party, I’ll search first for a color, like black, and then I’ll narrow the search to just my size, and then by price, and then by designer.” Be still my wildly beating heart, AWESOME. Whew, I totally need a cigarette.

Why wait? Go straight to Bluefly (there’s a helpful link right in the article! Yes, Jonathan S. Adelstein, it’s true!). And good luck looking like that in those jeans.

Bargain Hunters Stalk the Bluefly [NYT Thursday Styles]
Related:
You can use makeup FREE at Sephora! [NYT Thursday Styles]

Tina Brown uses phrase “rocks out,” plugs Radar: Empress of Buzz Tina Brown rocks an op-ed in the Washington Post today that begins as a wry and savvy take on celeb PR machinations (beginning with the cringe-worthy declarations of leurve by Tom Cruise for girlfriend-bot Katie Holmes) and somehow manages to swing it all around to the administration’s attempts to shove Terri Schiavo, Social Security, and Newsweek-as-national-security-threat down our throats. Damn, she’s good. Now I know why David Carr likes her. Our favorite paragraph after the jump. [WaPo]

The FCC, protecting us from nipples and Pepsi Edge: Federal Communications Commission member Jonathan S. Adelstein has called for an investigation into “covert commercial pitches” on TV, not only on news shows a la James Oppenheim and Corey Greenberg but on shows like The O.C., where Death Cab for Cutie and American Airlines each enjoy exalted status (Newport Living Magazine would NEVER stoop so low). Armstrong Williams, your shadow is long. [AdAge]
p.s. we’re drinking Diet Coke right now and loving it. Diet Coke, you’re welcome to pay us for that.

Kenneth Tomlinson will not be ignored, Part II: Over at Salon, Eric Boehlert investigates how hippie liberal sympathizer Kenneth Tomlinson came by his birkenstock-wearing, tree-hugging, First Amendment-loving ways. He traces the links all the way back to Joseph McCarthy. Even so, who doesn’t love Brit Hume? [Salon]

Read more

Lloyd Grove, we made fun of you last week for trumpeting all your dishy scoops, but today all is forgiven because you gave smackdown where smackdown was due. You didn’t want to do it, but Tim Robbins started it; you finished it. You were threatened with physical violence, and even though you’re surprisingly tall in person, so too are Tim Robbins and Howard Stern, and there are two of them. No, you did what you had to do: totally burned Tim Robbins. And today, we salute you for it.

Letter to Tim: Take out the trash, already [NYDN]

In this week’s New York Observer, Sheelah Kolhatkar ponders the Estrichian question of where the women are on the op-ed pages…but all she has to do is look to the New York Times to see them right on top of the Most Emailed List!

Guest op-ed contributor Matt Miller is no woman (unlike the columnist he replaced, the book-left and very womanly Maureen Dowd), but that doesn’t mean he’s not pulling for the ladies in his MEL-topping effort from this week, locking in the number-one spot from yesterday’s column, “Listen to my wife” (and yes, he actually says “take my wife” in the piece), in which he agitates for an evolution in the workplace to accommodate the myriad talents of careerists-cum-child rearers. Aw. He thinks his wife is good.

Meanwhile, John Tierney’s offering from Tuesday has already shot up to the top of MEL 7 – an impressive feat for a recent article. The topic? “What Women Want.” Just like that swoony Mel Gibson, he finds his way into the hearts of women – and Times readers.

Meanwhile, the title of MoDo’s book? “Are Men Necessary?” Who knows, but clearly women are. See Estrich? Problem solved!

Listen To My Wife [NYT]
What Women Want [NYT]
Daughters of Maureen…Hello? [NYO]
Related: Girl Fight [Slate]

Update: at Salon, Katharine Mieszkowski wraps it all up with a delightful feminine touch in today’s Wives of the Times.