Media News

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CBS Evening News in Freefall (Variety)
The network's 6.1 million average nightly viewers last week was its lowest total since record-keeping started in 1987. WSJ: More competition, weak audience flow from preceding programs, and changes in commuting, work patterns, and lifestyles are beyond CBS' control, writes Paul Friedman. USAT: CBS news anchor removes tie during broadcast, marking the end of an era, writes Peter Johnson.

Bravo Plans NYDN Documentary (AP via USAT)
The cable network said Tuesday it had agreed with Hearst Entertainment Inc. to produce six one-hour episodes of a series focused on the inner workings of the New York newspaper. NYDN: The series—six one-hour episodes—will offer an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look into the action-packed days of our reporters, photographers, and editors. NYO: The pilot crew accompanied reporter Chrisena Coleman to church on Sunday. "We want to understand what they do when they're not working," Hearst Entertainment vice president James Deutch said. (Maker's, rocks, please!)

Iraq Kidnappers Threaten to Kill Three Romanian Journos Today (Guardian)
A deadline of 1500 BST has been set by the abductors for the withdrawal of Romanian troops, according to a videotape broadcast by the Arabic satellite television channel Al-Jazeera.

MSO-No (NYP)
In her first financial report since her prison release, Martha Stewart's company suffered a $19.2 million loss, due in part to shrinking magazine ads.

Legal Parry to Idol Threat (NYDN)
Paula Abdul's American Idol colleagues—and her attorney—are rallying around the pint-size judge as ABC News is planning what's described as a look into "explosive claims" of wrongdoing behind the scenes.

CA Bill Would Override Limits on Inmate Interviews (AP via SFC)
The bill by Senate Majority Leader Gloria Romero, D-Los Angeles, would override Department of Corrections' limits on news media interviews that have been in place since 1996.

Qatar May Privatize Al-Jaz (Guardian)
The Gulf state of Qatar is considering privatizing its satellite TV channel, Al-Jazeera, because of pressure from the United States and a de facto advertising boycott by Arab countries offended by its critical coverage.

Turner Broadcasting Turns to Video Games (LAT)
The company plans to unveil an Internet-based video game service that will deliver hundreds of titles to a user's computer for a flat monthly fee.

HarperCollins to Publish Reagan Diary (WaPo)
President Ronald Reagan kept a diary—handwritten reflections on nearly every day of his eight years in the White House—and now it will be published as a book.

Justice To Be Served (NYP)
The legal mag's launch has a star-studded lineup of columnists, including Marcia Clark, Mark Geragos, Nancy Grace, and Joe Pistone.

Bomb Books Fizzle (Salon)
Laura Miller: Once again, a clutch of new books on the atomic bomb gets the history and intrigue right. But where's the guilt, dread, and helplessness of living under the cloud of nuclear annihilation?

Biz News Ethics Woes (Marketwatch)
Jon Friedman: Here is one story that I'd love to see explored in a daily paper sometime soon: Why are there so many ethical problems plaguing the newspaper industry these days?

Mag Ads Go Unconventional (NYT)
Just as TV networks seek to entice marketers with sales packages that go beyond running 30-second spots in shows, publishers are also developing elaborate offers that involve more than just running ad pages or advertorial sections in their magazines.

TV Blesses New Pope (VV)
Sydney Schanberg: Television news gave us wall-to-wall gushing for Benedict by reporters and anchors, some of it embarrassing for a reporter to watch, as soon as the cameras started to roll.

Rieff Trade (NYO)
Dubbed "Mr. Pessimism" by Time magazine in 2002, war journalist David Rieff, the son of the late Susan Sontag and the distinguished sociologist Philip Rieff, is a rare and at times maddening sort of public-intellectual aristocrat.

Knight Ridder's Baghdad Bureau Chief: Journos Still in Danger (E&P)
Hannah Allam says most journalists don't venture out of Baghdad, much less to a place where there's still a lot of unrest, anger, and resentment.

Alas, Poor Newspapers! We Knew Them, Rupe (NYO)
Richard Brookhiser: In his speech last week about the rise of the Internet, Rupert Murdoch was being polite. What he was telling his colleagues was: Newspapers are dead.

Thinking Outside the Idiot Box (Slate)
Dana Stevens: If watching TV really makes you smarter, as Steven Johnson argued in an article in The New York Times Magazine, then I guess I need to watch a lot more of it.

Playboy Tipple (Scottish News Service)
Glenfiddich has created a limited edition single malt whiskey, dubbed "Play Malt," for the German edition of the men's magazine.

—David S. Hirschman