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Obama and the 'A Word' (Boston Phoenix)
Adam Reilly: How can the media cover a subject that nearly everyone's thinking about, but is almost too abhorrent to discuss? Even discussing the possibility of someone harming Sen. Barack Obama feels wrong for several reasons. But giving the subject the silent treatment won't go make it go away.

Interpreter Freed, but CBS Journalist Still Held in Iraq (NYT)
An Iraqi interpreter kidnapped in the southern city of Basra was freed Wednesday, but the CBS journalist seized with him this week was still being held. Amid reports of a deal to free both men, however, the American military and Iraqi officials both said they hoped that the journalist would be released shortly.

Justice Department OKs Clear Channel Deal (AP)
The Justice Department on Wednesday approved the $19.5 billion sale of Clear Channel Communications Inc., the largest U.S. operator of radio stations and the world's largest billboard company. The approval of the sale to a group of investors led by private equity firms Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners is the final regulatory hurdle for a deal that initially struggled to get shareholder approval.

Do Newspapers and AP Still Need Each Other? (Forbes)
Louis Hau: Long joined at the hip, AP and the member newspapers that own it are seeing their relationship tested like never before. On the one hand, AP copy accounts for up to 40 percent or more of many a daily paper's news content. On the other, the not-for-profit collective is also part of an online news revolution that's killing the newspaper business.

Report: Traffic to Mag Web Sites Grew 8.1 Percent in Q4 (Folio:)
Traffic to consumer magazine Web sites grew 8.1 percent during the fourth quarter of 2007, according to a new data released by the Magazine Publishers of America released yesterday. According to the MPA, the growth of these sites is "more than three times" the growth rate of the overall U.S. Internet audience, which increased 2.4 percent during the same period.

NECN Founder Starting News Site (Boston Globe)
Veteran journalist Philip S. Balboni, who built New England Cable News into the nation's largest regional news network, is leaving the station next month to start the first US-based website devoted exclusively to international news. The site is expected to launch early next year with correspondents in nearly 70 countries.

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