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Jared Paul Stern Sues Billionaire Ron Burkle — Bill & Hillary Too (FishbowlNY)
In court papers filed yesterday in Manhattan State Supreme Court, Stern alleges Burkle and others — including the Daily News and Burkle friends Bill and Hillary Clinton — took part in a vast conspiracy against the New York Post that defamed him, caused him emotional distress and forced him out of his job at Page Six. NYO: Stern suit alleges that Burkle owns Radar. ETP: The complaint is filled with righteous indignation and salacious allegations. Gawker: Among the complaints mentioned in the suit, reporters allegedly disturbed Stern's dog.

Grazergate Kills LAT Sunday Opinion Section, Editorial Page Editor Quits (LAT)
Los Angeles Times publisher David D. Hiller's decision Thursday to scrap a special opinion section to avoid the appearance of an ethical breach triggered the resignation of editorial page editor Andrés Martinez, who accused the paper's editor and publisher of overreacting. LAT/OpinionLA: "David Hiller's decision to kill the Brian Grazer section this Sunday makes my continued tenure as Los Angeles Times editorial page editor untenable. The person in this job needs to have an unimpeachable integrity, and Hiller's decision amounts to a vote of no confidence in my continued leadership," wrote Martinez on the paper's blog. E&P: Conflict shows why full disclosure is needed. NYT: The special section, already organized by Grazer, included articles about fashion, psychotherapy and the paparazzi.

News Corp., NBC Video Venture to Depart From Network Formula (LAT)
A cornerstone of the new Internet venture is its willingness to send shows such as Heroes and The Simpsons to Yahoo and other Web sites where audiences already gather. It's also banking heavily on the ability of News Corp.'s MySpace social networking site to deliver viewers. That means TV fans might soon be able to watch their favorite shows on many places across the Web.

Politico Rushes to Crack Edwards Story And Ends Up With Egg on Its Face (WaPo)
Howard Kurtz: One hour and 4 minutes before John Edwards began a news conference yesterday on the recurrence of his wife's cancer, a two-month-old Web site blared what looked like a major exclusive: "Edwards to Suspend Campaign." In the this-just-in, get-it-out-now atmosphere of today's wired world, the posting by Politico.com was quickly picked up by television. It was also flat wrong. Politico: A single, confident source close to John Edwards told me this morning that Edwards was "suspending his campaign," and I posted it to the blog at 11:06 this morning. My source, and I, were wrong. E&P: Outlets falling for it ranged from MSNBC to the Washington Times. CJR Daily: Would this have passed muster in a newspaper or serious news broadcast?

Wired Offers Subscribers Facetime on Covers (Mediaweek)
Wired magazine is offering subscribers a chance to have their photo on the cover of the July issue. As part of a collaboration with Xerox, the magazine will invite subscribers to go to Wired.com and upload a photo and customize the headlines and color palette. The first 5,000 to do so will receive a customized July issue, whose cover story is on the future of personalization.

Top Editors Discuss Newspapers' Future, and Web, at Columbia Panel (E&P)
How can newspapers survive (and thrive) in the 21st Century? That was the $64,000 question at a panel at the Columbia University School of Journalism Wednesday night as some of the top names in journalism talked about different ways that newspapers can evolve to remain both relevant and economically viable in the Internet age. FishbowlNY: Our favorite quote of the evening, from Steve Rattner, referring to management of the New York Times and the Washington Post: "To have the fate of quasi-public trusts dependent on the gene pool of families is kind of spooky."

ABC News Okay With Blogger Amanda Congdon's Video Ads for DuPont (LAT)
ABC, like other news organizations, prohibits its freelancers and staffers from participating in commercials and other outside activities that could erode their journalistic independence. But Jeffrey Schneider, a spokesman for the news division, said Congdon is a contributing commentator, not a journalist. DISCUSS THIS STORY: Should ABC Allow Amanda Congdon's DuPont Ads?

Tricks Can Launch a Book to the Top (WSJ)
Online book-sales rankings are an object of obsession for authors because of their "democratic" potential. But if this is the democracy of bookselling, vote buying is an option — and public relations firm Ruder Finn says it's figured out how to do just that.

An Immigrant Segment by Radio's 'Jersey Guys' Draws Fire (NYT)
Two weeks ago, Craig Carton and Ray Rossi started "Operation Rat a Rat/La Cucha Gotcha," a listener-participation game that encourages people to turn in friends, neighbors and "anyone suspicious" to immigration authorities. They introduced the segment with mariachi music and set the campaign to end on May 5 (Cinco de Mayo), a well-known Mexican holiday.

French Editor Cleared in Muhammad Cartoons Case (Guardian)
The editor of a French satirical weekly was found not guilty of insulting Muslims, following his decision last year to publish cartoons of the prophet Muhammad that had attracted fury across the Muslim world. A court ruled that Philippe Val, editor-in-chief of Charlie Hebdo, was innocent of the charge of making "public insults against a group of people because they belong to a religion".

DC Chef Starts Blog to Critique Restaurant Critics (WaPo)
Bad reviews are an occupational hazard of the restaurant business, and most chefs just bellyache or cry in their soup. Not award-winning Roberto Donna, who's started a high-profile food fight with Washingtonian magazine dining editor Todd Kliman. Donna is so upset about the review in this month's issue that he's starting a blog to critique local restaurant critics.

Hollywood's Big Online Rival: The Little Guy (LAT)
Rick Wartzman: In the long term — which in Web time means, like, five years — amateur offerings could wind up playing their own significant role in squeezing profits of the leading TV and film studios. "I don't think there's any doubt," says Mike McGuire, an analyst at technology research firm Gartner Inc., that such material "is shaking things up."

Forbes.com CEO Spanfeller: 'Think Big' (Folio:)
Forbes.com is the number one business Web site in the world and is anxious to hold onto that spot, said Jim Spanfeller, the site's CEO, delivering a keynote address Wednesday morning at the Folio: Publishing Summit in Chicago. "But the Internet is a very fluid environment," he said. "So that could change at any moment."

Ex-Seattle P-I Reporter Aims to Open Up Closed-Door Negotiations That Could Close Her Former Paper (Seattle Weekly)
Now an attorney, Kathy George is hoping to save her old newspaper in the courtroom, acting as legal counsel for the Committee for a Two-Newspaper Town. In court papers, George wrote: "In light of the considerable body of case law that the Times and Hearst have developed in an open justice system, it is ethically and legally indefensible for them to insist upon secrecy in their own legal dispute."

Mansueto: Despite Online Competition, Magazines Still a Good Investment (Folio:)
When Joe Mansueto purchased Inc. and Fast Company for $32.5 million in 2005, they were two publications long-neglected by their publisher. "The previous owners [Gruner & Jahr] had disinvested in the magazines," said Mansueto. Mansueto's strategy was to create an independent publishing company and to invest in technology and online.