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Journalists Dole Out Cash to Politicians (Quietly) (MSN)
Whether you sample your news feed from ABC or CBS (or, yes, even NBC and MSNBC), whether you prefer Fox News Channel or National Public Radio, The Wall Street Journal or The New Yorker, some of the journalists feeding you are also feeding cash to politicians, parties or political action committees. MSNBC.com identified 144 journalists who made political contributions from 2004 through the start of the 2008 campaign, according to the public records of the Federal Election Commission.

Chris Matthews, Burning Up (CJR)
Tuesday night, blissfully unaware that he had returned from commercial break, Matthews yelled at his producers: "We're all reacting here and we're putting on shit, we have nothing going." Matthews was referring to his program's breaking news coverage of New York mayor Bloomberg's departure from the Republican Party to "unaffiliated" status. BigHeadDC: Matthews wants his executive producer, the popular Tammy Haddad, fired for letting the 10-second outburst get on the air.

Dramatic Growth at USA Network (USAT)
A major rebranding effort, the return of WWE wrestling, the big series push and reliable reruns (House, Law & Order: SVU) helped USA regain its cable crown last year. The network averaged 2.6 million viewers in prime time last year, up 13% from 2005, and has held steady so far this year. B&C: USA greenlights companion series to wrestling hosted by Steve-O.

Gordon Ramsay Accused of Dirty Tricks on Reality Show (Guardian)
Papers have been filed at the U.S. district court in Manhattan which accuse Ramsay of playing dirty on the new series of his reality TV show, Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares. The legal action alleges that while he was shooting an episode in a Manhattan restaurant he faked sequences as part of the week's makeover to portray the eatery in a particularly bad light. Independent: The legal battle centers on an episode in which he was seen retching after being fed rancid scallops and caused some anxious hours when a chef keeled over with an apparent heart attack under the impact of his trademark abuse.

Claudia Cohen Went for the Jugular (Forbes)
James Brady: Cohen, the newspaper and TV gossip columnist and former wife of billionaire Ronald O. Perelman, died last Friday of ovarian cancer at age 56. She was once the pivotal figure in a full-fledged daily newspaper war in New York. She was especially ferocious about famous folk putting on the pounds.

Dead Reporters and the Information Gap (LAT)
When journalists die, we count the bodies. But how do we reckon the consequences in information forfeited? How do we know what we do not know? These are questions worth contemplating in the case of Iraq, where the statistics about journalists' deaths, like the rest of the daily carnage report, are so mind-numbing that we cease to process them. The Committee to Protect Journalists reports that 108 journalists and 39 media assistants have been killed in Iraq since the war began in March 2003.

Radar Investor Yusef Jackson: Great Media Property for the Money (Chicago Mag)
Jackson says that Radar attracted him because it offers a multimedia, multiplatform approach to publishing — a model in which a magazine is more than words and advertisements printed on shiny paper. In print, the magazine features long-form journalism in a distinctive voice; on the Internet, Radar's aggressive Web site breaks news and connects with viewers through videos and blogs.

A Web of 'Indecision' for Comedy Central (AP via WaPo)
Comedy Central is hitting the campaign trail online, expanding its long-running "InDecision" franchise into a Web site that promises "hastily-scribbled scat jokes, shameful punning and sophomoric Photoshopped images." Indecision2008 wasn't expected to launch for another year, said Erik Flannigan, executive vp digital media at Comedy Central, but intense early media interest in the presidential race spurred him to reconsider its timing.

Apple Suck-Up Watch (Slate)
Jack Shafer: The press corps' love for all things Apple routinely swells and bursts in a dewy explosion whenever the company readies a new gizmo for sale. Send me the most ridiculous examples of Apple polishing you encounter over the next two weeks, and I'll publish the results.

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