• TVNewser: He hasn’t even officially started his new gig at Fox Business News, but Charlie Gasparino got one hell of a scoop today by reporting on Tiger Woods’ return to golf.

• Business Insider: NBC has yet to explain why it won’t show any of the Olympic coverage live.

• WebNewser: b5Media has launched women’s site Crushable.com with our own ex-editor Amanda Ernst, Erin Carlson (formerly of BusinessInsider), and Jean Bentley.

• TheStreet: Finally, some good news for Sirius XM…stocks for the satellite radio company raised above $1 for the first time in two years.

• New York Post: Keith Kelly reports: Mort Zuckerman‘s Daily News isn’t exactly overflowing with extra funds. After the 401k program was slashed last year, the newest way to pinch pennies involves salary cuts for anyone getting over $110k a year. At least they still have a janitor.

No one in their right mind is going to tell you that journalism — especially online journalism — pays very well. Sure, there are a couple of examples where people have made names for themselves and ended up a featured (and well paid) columnist for a newspaper’s website or a blog, but overall you’d be better off being a waitress if you were in this gig for the money. (Look no further than our own ex-Fishbowler Amanda Ernst for a clue.)

Yet we’re still shocked to hear that a source as big as The Associated Press still manages to undercut its writers, especially since this is the same company that makes such a stink about online aggregators making money off its content.

Read more

Today is my last day as FishbowlNY editor, and I was lucky enough to be welcomed on the mediabistro.com Morning Media Menu podcast one last time.

Jason Boog of GalleyCat, AgencySpy‘s Matt Van Hoven and I could talk forever, but this morning we stuck to just over 15 minutes of conversation about where I’m heading next, Hachette Book Group’s current dispute with Amazon and the Superbowl.

Listen in to hear about the new project I’ll be working on starting next week, and our opinions about CBS’s decision not to run the now-infamous commercial for homosexual dating site Mancrunch.com.

You can listen to all the past podcasts at BlogTalkRadio.com/mediabistro and call in at 646-929-0321.

Despite Apple’s denials, everyone in the entire (media) world seems resigned to the fact that today’s big announcement will be a tablet device reveal.

So naturally, today’s mediabistro.com Morning Media Menu podcast was all atwitter with tablet news and gossip, as host Jason Boog of GalleyCat was joined by FishbowlNY’s Amanda Ernst and eBookNewser editor Craig Teicher.

The group discussed the excitement that’s been brewing for the tablet’s release and cautioned against magazine and newspaper publishers hoping the new device will help save the industry. McGraw-Hill‘s CEO may have confirmed the tablet’s existence last night, and The New York Times had more details yesterday, but you just never know what Steve Jobs will unveil today — and how it will shake out in the industry over the next few months.

Also discussed: Newsday‘s pay wall disappointment.

Follow all of today’s breaking Apple news on eBookNewser.

You can listen to all the past podcasts at BlogTalkRadio.com/mediabistro and call in at 646-929-0321.

How long have we been living under the looming shadow that is the threat of a New York Times‘ pay wall? The answer most likely is since TimesSelect’s fall in 2007, after the paper’s first attempt at getting online readers to pay for content.

Since then, publisher Arthur Sulzberger has made vague promises, culminating in today’s announcement of a plan to launch a metered pay model on NYTimes.com next year. It makes sense: last year saw the Times‘ hemorrhaging money (losing $35 million in the third quarter alone), and speculation that the paper wouldn’t make it to 2010.

Thankfully, Carlos Slim stepped in last year, but it still remains to be seen how the Grey Lady will make it back into the black. While alienating some readers, the metered system of content-charging that Sulzberger is planning may actually be the best compromise between giving away your product for free and going on almost total lock-down mode like the The Wall Street Journal. Under this plan, The New York Times will eventually allow you to read only a certain number of articles per month before asking you to subscribe, much like Variety or The Financial Times (although some have pointed out that the FT‘s model is looking more and more like the Journal‘s).

But even before today’s not completely unexpected announcement, media critics were chomping at the bit to react to the Times‘ possible pay plans. After the jump, a look at what some of them are saying.

Read more

On today’s mediabistro.com Morning Media Menu, FishbowlNY editor Amanda Ernst got the ball rolling on this Tuesday with a discussion on this week’s massive layoffs at AOL. Amanda talked with hosts Jason Boog from GalleyCat and AgencySpy‘s Matt Van Hoven about what the future of AOL might look like.

The group would also have been remiss if it didn’t talk about the biggest media story of the week: the Jay Leno-Conan O’Brien late night shake-up at NBC. After revealing what she thought Conan should do, Amanda went on to offer up some predictions for the magazine and newspaper industry in 2010, which included a focus on e-readers and tablets, citizen journalism and non-profit journalism organizations.

You can listen to all the past podcasts at BlogTalkRadio.com/mediabistro and call in at 646-929-0321.

FishbowlNY editor Amanda Ernst visited the mediabistro.com Morning Media Menu podcast today, joining hosts Jason Boog of GalleyCat and AgencySpy‘s Matt Van Hoven to discuss the biggest media stories of 2009.

On Amanda’s list: stories about layoffs and magazine closings, but good news of circulation revenues climbing at places like The New York Times. Also, announcements of new magazine launches, like Afar and new Web sites, including Atlantic Wire, Mediaite and HollywoodLife.

Also discussed: the biggest stories of the year covered by the media — Balloon Boy, Michael Jackson and Tiger Woods among them — and how the media’s coverage has changed.

You can listen to all the past podcasts at BlogTalkRadio.com/mediabistro and call in at 646-929-0321.

FishbowlNY editor Amanda Ernst joined host Jason Boog on the mediabistro.com Morning Media Menu podcast this morning to talk quickly about the biggest New York media story this week: the ongoing rivalry and back-and-forth spat between The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

“The Journal is planning to launch a New York section that is going to compete very directly with the Times, and [Journal owner] Rupert Murdoch over the years has shown no love…for the Times,” Amanda said. “So any chance they have to take a dig at them, they’re going to take it.”

Amanda and Jason also spoke with Robin F. Whitten, editor and publisher of AudioFile magazine, a publication about audiobooks, who made some great suggestions for holiday gifts.

You can listen to all the past podcasts at BlogTalkRadio.com/mediabistro and call in at 646-929-0321.

This morning, host Jason Boog of GalleyCat was joined by special co-host Amanda Ernst, editor of FishbowlNY, on the mediabistro.com Morning Media Menu. The two welcomed Kat Meyer, chief content wrangler for Next Chapter Communications, moderator for the #followreader Twitter chat and a blogger at Follow The Reader.

The biggest news of the day was Nielsen Co.‘s decision to shutter book review journal Kirkus Reviews and newspaper industry trade Editor & Publisher. All three lamented the closings, but Amanda pointed out that E&P might have had a chance to be saved. Kat talked about what might possibly replace the reviews that Kirkus provided. Social media might provide a solution.

Also discussed: Kat’s optimistic wrap-up of 2009 and predictions about 2010, including a future with new e-readers like the much anticipated tablet.

You can listen to all the past podcasts at BlogTalkRadio.com/mediabistro and call in at 646-929-0321.

If you’re among the hundreds of people cut from media jobs this fall, take inspiration from the story of Isobella Jade. The petite model wrote a memoir while standing in heels in the Apple store in SoHo, then self-promoted the heck out of it until she got an agent, dumped her, and self-published the book herself. As she’s continued to model, she’s launched a successful brand, parlaying her fame into a popular podcast, an advice blog and a new graphic novel. If you’re looking for a second career, following Isobella’s advice might not be such a bad idea.

Isobella joined the mediabistro.com Morning Media Menu podcast this morning, where she spoke to host Jason Boog of GalleyCat and special guest host FishbowlNY editor Amanda Ernst about her self-promotion techniques and advice for aspiring writers.

“Writing is not enough,” she said. “You can be a great writer, you can have a wonderful story…but it really comes down to marketing these days.”

Also discussed: this week’s sad layoff news from Time Inc. and The Washington Post.

You can listen to all the past podcasts at BlogTalkRadio.com/mediabistro and call in at 646-929-0321.