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Jane to Leave Jane (Folio:)
Jane Pratt, the founding editor of Jane magazine, announced today that she will leave the magazine at the end of September. A successor has yet to be named. NYP: Pratt has often had a far closer bond with readers than many other editors have had. Gawker: Under Pratt, Jane was the one women's magazine that didn't consistently inspire self-loathing.

Pay to Play (LAT)
Eliot Spitzer has given the Federal Communications Commission "an arsenal of smoking guns" which indicates that radio stations were paid to broadcast songs by J.Lo and others. NYP: Joel Klaiman, executive vice president for promotion at SonyBMG's Epic Records label, took the fall for the scandal and was axed yesterday. NYDN: Emails and documents from Sony show it paid up to $1,000 to get a new song played on a single radio station, gave contest prizes to deejays instead of listeners, and hired crews of callers to bombard stations' request lines.

TV Guide Announces Relaunch (AP via Newsday)
The TV listings digest is slashing its circulation guarantees by about two-thirds and relaunching itself as a large-format mag with far fewer TV listings and more emphasis on lifestyle and entertainment.

'Checkbook Journalism' Arrives in U.S. (Reuters via CNN)
Richard Desmond's nascent U.S. version of OK! will pay celebrities and give them control over exclusive interviews and photographs, a practice widely disparaged by U.S. media. Guardian: Desmond paid himself nearly 52 million pounds last year, making him one of the best paid media moguls in the U.K.

Kinsley Relocating at LAT (NYT)
Michael Kinsley, the provocative editorial and opinion-page editor of The Los Angeles Times, said yesterday that he would be changing jobs in the next few months.

All Eyes on Jacko, None on Darfur (NYT)
Nicholas Kristof: If journalists are to demand a legal privilege to protect sources, we need to show that we serve the public good—which means covering genocide as seriously as we cover Tom Cruise.

House Considering Legislation Against Leakers (AP via San Diego Union Tribune)
House Intelligence Chairman Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich., told an audience he wants to create a culture where "zero tolerance" for leaking classified information is the norm. WaPo: Congress will conduct a series of hearings on national security and espionage issues raised by the CIA-leak controversy surrounding senior Bush adviser Karl Rove. AP via Newsday: Democratic senators push for congressional investigation into Plame leak.

Judy No 'M.Diddy' (Newsday)
Dennis Duggan: 'This isn't a Martha Stewart situation," a spokesman for the Alexandria Detention Center said, referring to the intense media coverage of Stewart's jailing. "It's been pretty quiet here."

Two Source Mag Execs Charged With Attempted Murder (Vibe)
General manager Leroy Peeples and salesman Alvin Childs of hip-hop mag The Source were charged with attempted murder on Saturday after a shootout erupted outside a New York City bar.

Teen Journo Draws Fire for Army Sting (E&P)
A high school journalist wanted to see how far the Army would go to get another soldier, so he posed as a dropout with a marijuana habit and went down to his local recruitment station to enlist.

Former LHJ Staffer on Blog Firing (MSNBC)
Nadine Haobsh, a former assistant beauty editor at Ladies Home Journal and the writer behind "Jolie in NYC" discussed the circumstances behind losing her job.

Radio Host Calls Islam a 'Terrorist Organization' (WaPo)
D.C. talk-show host Michael Graham touched off complaints from an Islamic civil rights organization after repeatedly describing Islam on the air as "a terrorist organization" that is "at war with America."

Miramax Moves On (NYDN)
Daniel Battsek, the head of the Walt Disney Studios U.K. movie division, has been named president of specialty film company Miramax, formerly run by Harvey and Bob Weinstein.

Leaks as PR (AdAge)
Simon Dumenco: We forget that journalism is just part of the larger infotainment-marketing ecosystem, so an off-the-record source or leaker can be seen as nothing more than a viral marketer.

Media Companies Choosing Sides Over FAIR Act (Mediaweek)
More companies and organizations are lining up either for or against the FAIR Ratings Act that would mandate Media Ratings Council accreditation of TV ratings services before launch.

In Praise of Geico's 'Tiny House' Ad (Slate)
Seth Stevenson: Why are Geico ads all over your television? And why are some Geico spots so sharp and clever while others are disappointingly bland? The answer is more about the product than the marketing.

NYT Hottie Shortz 'Tickled' (WaPo)
Crossword editor Will Shortz, who won a recent Gawker poll of attractive Timesmen said: "I've never been called a hottie by anyone. It's a vote in favor of the crossword."

How-To for Citizen Journos (WaPo)
Art Buchwald: The Greensboro News & Record will permit readers to write their own editorials and contributions on the paper's website. Here's a handy fill-in-the-blanks guide to writing a column.

—David S. Hirschman

IN YESTERDAY'S MB BLOGS:

Greta Explains Her Aruba Fascination [TVNewser]
On Wednesday, the day after Bush's Supreme Court nominee was
announced, FNC's Greta Van Susteren did four Natalee Holloway segments 'On the Record' "and one—an interview with John McCain—on the court vacancy," Howard Kurtz says.

Flash: Novak Sells Access [FishbowlDC]
HURRY!!!!!! Only a few seats left!!!!! Bob Novak, the Prince of Darkness himself, is selling 85 seats to people willing to pay $595 for his access to Washington's top decision-makers. An email invite from Novak went out this morning to Human Events' mailing list offering a limited-time offer to sign up attend the three-decade-old "Evans-Novak Political Forum" and get access to "The Ultimate (Secret) Source."

The Magazine Will Now Be Called Help Wanted [FishbowlNY]
Jane editor and magazine namesake Jane Pratt is stepping down.(We're resisting the temptation to insinuate that Paris Hilton on the cover was the last straw.)

Judith Regan Watch [FishbowlLA]
She doesn't live here yet (our sources say) but she's starting to act like an Angeleno. The NYT reports that the winter 2006 ReganBooks catalog features a cover model. And who is this cover model? Why, it's Judith Regan!

Palatable Platables [UnBeige]
We have a dilemma. We, too, have known the horror living in bedrooms like this, where the mattress extends nearly wall to wall. Even now that we've upgraded, we still have a mere seven inches of bedside space to work with. We have a similar problem in the living room, where our rascally 71-inch futon constantly edges its way into the hallway. Even if we broke down and bought an extremely guest-unfriendly 65-inch loveseat, we've found that end tables rarely come fewer than 14 inches across. We know you feel our pain. So what do you do if you can't afford to go built-in?

Doubleteamed [mbToolbox]
Interviewing just one person can be a pain, but interviewing several at a time seems impossible. I spoke to a few writers who have led
roundtable discussions on how to best deal with the situation when
you're rounding up the quotes.