Rules Change Reversal
The move by the Bush administration to back off relaxing rules for big media was a setback for companies hoping to own both TV stations and newspapers in the same markets. Newsday: Media companies to appeal ownership rules Salon: The way a right-wing "parents" group is wasting the FCC's time might just make you (dare we say it?) "pissed."

Critics Weigh in on Pundit Payola
E&P asks a dozen columnists if they have any ghosts in their pasts and what ethics rules they believe should be set for columnists. Salon: A third columnist caught with his hand in the Bush till. Counterpunch: The disclosure that two syndicated right-wing columnists were paid shills of the Bush administration posing as journalists is really just the tip of a grimy iceberg.

Nipple-Free Halftime Show Planned
After producing the infamous Janet Jackson halftime show last year, MTV will launch a new look to its sister station, MTV2, during the Feb. 6 game break. AP (via FoxNews): Janet Jackson to attend Super Bowl.

How CBS Can Save Evening News
Jon Friedman: The new anchor isn't going to be the key to success. A new format would make a difference, though.

Mouse Trap
Disney's management is so distraught over damaging revelations in a book on CEO Michael Eisner that the public relations head has offered to resign.

OK! Crossing the Pond
Billionaire British publisher Richard Desmond announced yesterday the former editor of British OK! will head a U.S. edition of Britain's glossy,large, and popular celebrity weekly.

Times's Big, Fat Error
Accompanying an article about the "fat epidemic" spreading to other parts of the world, Brazilians depicted in the photos weren't Brazilians at all, but were visiting European tourists.

Sitcom Format Due for Retooling?
The traditional situation comedy is "a dead format whose time has come and gone," says Portia de Rossi, star of the quirky comedy Arrested Development.

Ad Drop Trims Profits at Dow Jones
Dow Jones & Company said yesterday that its fourth-quarter profit fell 19 percent as technology and financial advertising plunged at The Wall Street Journal.

Brit Ex-CNNer Claiming Unfair Dismissal
Elena Cosentino, who worked for CNN as a producer and reporter for six years will give evidence today to support her claim for £200,000 for allegedly being unfairly dismissed.

Report: Beeb Europe Coverage Lacking
According to an independent report, BBC's coverage of the European Union is not deliberately biased, but "needs to be improved and to be made more demonstrably impartial."

Fox Deadline Extended
The News Corporation said yesterday that it was extending by two weeks the deadline for its offer to buy the 18 percent of the Fox Entertainment Group that is held by the public.

Newsday's Freebies
Nearly a year after its huge circulation scandal came to light, the paper admitted it paid other companies to give copies of the paper away for free.

RNC Seeks to Bypass 'Liberal Media'
The Republican Party is following up record fund raising for the president's re-election by asking donors to help get Bush's message "past the liberal media filter" to the public.

Group: Critics Should Protest Film Ending
Disability-rights advocates think film critics should have made an exception and given away the ending to Million Dollar Baby.

Defending Sy
Ari Berman: Last week Seymour Hersh broke one of his most revelatory stories to date.

The New Reality
Sarah Rodman: Reality television has received its reality check this season, with many new series failing.

Covering the Governator
Gary Delsohn and Margaret Talev: Covering Arnold Schwarzenegger can be fascinating—and frustrating. The actor-turned-governor is a phenomenon, not simply a political figure.

—David S. Hirschman