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Newsweek Backs Down On Quran Story (AP via Yahoo)
Following intense pressure from the Pentagon, the magazine says it will look into suggestions that copies of the Quran may not have been flushed down toilets in front of inmates after all. The revelations sparked deadly anti-American protests in Afghanistan last week. Newsweek: Mark Whitaker's editor's letter addresses the growing scandal.

NBC's Zucker Gets an Earful (NYT)
Everyone from Donald Trump to NBC Universal CEO Bob Wright is asking NBC TV president Jeff Zucker why the network has dropped from first to last place in the course of one season.

Strike Two for Tina (NYT)
Topic A with Tina Brown airs its final edition on CNBC on May 29, following dismal ratings. Coming soon after the high-profile flop of Talk magazine, Brown's losing streak is making some wonder if her time in the limelight is over.

Behind-Scenes Battle Over NPR Coverage (NYT)
A conservative Bush appointee at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is considering a plan put forward by pro-Israeli groups to monitor Middle East coverage on NPR news programs for evidence of bias.

Probe Delivers Mixed Verdict on Albom (E&P)
A much-awaited review of more than 600 columns by Mitch Albom by his home newspaper, The Detroit Free Press, has found no evidence of other cases similar to Albom's column in question, but it did find instances of Albom in violation of Free Press rules on crediting sources.

Nancy Not So Full of Grace (LAT)
Tim Rutten delivers a devastating verdict on new CNN Headline News personality Nancy Grace, describing her as the love child of Scarlett O'Hara and Torquemada.

DC Press Corps to McClellan: Let Us Name Names (LAT)
Bureau chiefs from AP, The New York Times, and the LA Times have urged the White House press secretary to help them put an end to background briefings and anonymous attributions.

Can Kung Fu Cross Over? (WaPo)
TV networks struggle to create programs for Asian audiences that will also attract a wider audience.

Newspapers Try Out Podcasting (WSJ)
In a bid to lure younger readers, more than a dozen U.S. newspapers and magazines have begun to embrace the idea of broadcasting their content and sending it out as audio files.

Diaz to Sue Sun (Guardian)
Actress Cameron Diaz plans legal action against Britain's best-selling newspaper, following front-page allegations that she had an affair with a married man.

Weinsteins Thrive at Cannes (Yahoo! News)
The former Miramax execs Bob and Harvey Weinstein prove that there is life after Disney.

Poll Shows Wide Gap Between Journos and Public (E&P)
A survey released today reveals that attitudes to journalism among the press and the public diverge widely. Perhaps most striking: 22 percent of Americans say the government should be allowed to censor the press.

Gizbert Issue Highlights Growing Iraq Problem (Independent)
The case of the ABC journalist who is suing the network for unfair dismissal following his refusal to go to Iraq is symptomatic of a troubling picture for foreign editors. Says the Daily Telegraph, "We're not seeing a shortage of people willing to go, but if it drags on there may be a shortage of people with the experience to take it on."

Death of the Rate Base? (Folio:)
With fewer magazines claiming a circulation rate base, analysts ask if the concept is on its way out. "All it will take is a handful of major titles moving to not claiming a rate base, and the rest of the industry will follow," says Dan Capell.

Free Papers Begin to Win Over the Sceptics (MarketWatch)
Jon Friedman suggests big-city tabloid editors might want to "watch their backs."

Rosen: All Hail Okrent (PressThink)
Jay Rosen: Okrent was the reader with total access, the writer weighing every word, a thinker willing to go outside the Times for better ways to understand it. The experiment has, I think, been a success.

Time Inc Launches New Racing Mag (NYDN)
Racing Fan will try to tap into Nascar mania.

Chappelle Exit No Laughing Matter (LAT)
Bosses at Comedy Central have been left scrambling to fill air time following the unexpected departure of comedian Dave Chappelle to South Africa on April 29.

Schroeder's Exit Prompts Query: Whither Newspaper Gossip? (Washingtonian)
Harry Jaffe: Of all the information now on the Internet, instant gossip is perhaps the Web's most plentiful and natural product. Is there still a place for gossip in newspaper form?

—John Ghazvinian