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ABC's McPherson Criticizes Silverman (Variety)
Forgoing the usually sedate bearing of network execs during the Television Critics Association press tour, ABC Entertainment president Steve McPherson — who prides himself on making unfiltered statements to the press — unleashed an unusually pointed assault Wednesday against new NBC Entertainment co-chair Ben Silverman. Mediaweek: McPherson pressed into divulging Lost news. Mediaweek: ABC unveils its 2007-08 premiere dates. B&C: Verbal blows. WaPo: Brutally honest, mercurial, great programming instincts, low hooey threshold — McPherson is the Practically Perfect Programming Executive. But critics don't seem to like him. It's inexplicable, writes Lisa de Moraes.

L.A. Mayor's Ties to NBC Questioned (LAT)
The extramarital affair between Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and a newscaster for Telemundo has created a new set of complications for the broadcaster's corporate parent, NBC Universal — and possibly the mayor himself. Even as its Spanish-language subsidiary is poised to decide the future of Mirthala Salinas, the now-suspended reporter who embarked on a romantic relationship with Villaraigosa while she reported on him, NBC Universal is proceeding with a massive $3 billion development plan that city officials must ultimately approve.

Gaspin to Head NBCU Television (Variety)
Jeff Gaspin has been named president and chief operating officer of Universal Television Group, a newly created division at NBCU that consolidates all non-NBC television assets under the Peacock's cable and online guru. Gaspin, who will continue to report to Jeff Zucker, adds Telemundo, including the Spanish-language net's 16 owned stations, as well as network and off-net syndication to his portfolio.

Disney Bans Smoking on Film (LAT)
In the most explicit announcement by a Hollywood studio, Chief Executive Robert A. Iger said Wednesday that the studio would snuff out depictions of smoking in Disney-label films. It also would discourage lighting up in the more adult fare released by its Touchstone Pictures and its specialty label, Miramax. "A villain can be bad without smoking," Iger said. "Heroes can be cool without smoking."

Oprah Tops List of Highest-Paid TV Stars (Reuters)
Oprah Winfrey earns an estimated $260 million a year according to a list in TV Guide magazine's July 23 issue. Music producer Simon Cowell, the blunt and often contentious British judge of American Idol, placed a distant second to Winfrey, with $45 million for his role on the Fox network's smash hit talent show and other projects.

But Is It Good for the Jews?: Looking at Gawker's 'Obsession' (Forward)
Gabriel Sanders: Just what is it about Gawker and Jews? Asked to explain the Gawker ethos and its seeming obsession with things Jewish, the site's managing editor, Choire Sicha, thought the explanation simple. "We live in New York," he said. "Doesn't that give us a right to talk about the Jews?" But does living in New York — or, for that matter, being Jewish (as the bulk of the Gawker staff is) — necessarily qualify one to speak with any authority on Jewish matters?

Redstone Brother Rips Newsweek (Page Six)
In a letter to the magazine, Sumner's brother, Edward Redstone, rants: "Newsweek's recent attempt at covering a legal dispute among family members flew well wide off the mark. Rather than focus on the matters in question, Newsweek chose sensationalism, drawing inside stories and innuendo from a host of irrelevant parties, relatives or not ... most of which is not true."

Shelley Ross May Return to Morning Television on CBS (B&C)
The hard-charging executive who transformed ABC's Good Morning America into a contender in the morning is in talks to take the reins at CBS' struggling Early Show, according to sources at the network and elsewhere. But CBS executives are contradicting each other about whether the network is serious about bringing Ross back to morning news.

Ad Weakness Brings Down NYT Co. Earnings (NYT)
The New York Times Company said yesterday that its second-quarter operating profit fell because of weakness in newspaper advertising but that net income doubled because of a gain from the sale of its television stations. The company also announced plans to cut operating costs by $230 million over the next two years. WaPo: The numbers mirror those throughout the industry, as readers flee the ink-on-paper product to find their news elsewhere. The change also is reflected in falling circulation and advertising revenue.

Oxygen Network Faces $100M Suit (TV Week)
Co-founder Oprah Winfrey's Oxygen network is being sued by American Youth Symphony, the producer of America's Hot Musician, over claims the cable network frustrated its attempts to air the paid program to the point where its production was cancelled by the producer. According to a release from AYS, Musician was cleared and scheduled to air on Oxygen in July in a paid-program format. However, after payment for the first episode, Oxygen sent AYS a cease-and-desist letter, ordering AYS to stop using the cable network's name in advertisements for the show.

Want to Try That Pricey Moisturizer? Pick Up Allure (AdAge)
The magazine has stepped up its effort to make the most of print and online at the same time, bringing back its August sampling issue after a successful dry run last year. Many products advertised in this year's version, which a cover line touts as "The Free Stuff Issue," are available as samples, either bound into the magazine or through the AllureAccess.com Web site.

Hungry for Younger Readers, Newspapers Should Embrace Their Voices (CSM)
Larry Atkins: For the past few years, many publishers have lamented that young adults tend not to read newspapers. If newspapers want younger people to read their papers, op-ed editors should actively reach out to college journalism programs and try to develop voices that have the perspective of younger people. One approach would be to have several editors of local college newspapers act as regular op-ed contributors. Newspapers also need to focus more on issues that young people are concerned about.

Mixed Results for 'Crowdsourcing' Tests (PR Week)
Hamilton Nolan: The masses of the Internet, always eager to improve or destroy a well-established practice, have deemed "crowdsourcing" the journalism technique of the future. The wisdom of crowds, the theory goes, will allow large numbers of disparate people working on different parts of various assignments to come together in quasi-journalistic fashion to produce material that is richer and more varied than what the mainstream media can turn out. The concept's first high-profile test wrapped up this month, with decidedly mixed results.

Different Takes on Mags' Upcoming LiLo Covers (WWD)
In just a few short weeks, Lindsay Lohan will be on the September covers of Maxim and Elle — and while the timing couldn't be better for Maxim, some argue Elle might not share the same fate. Maxim readers probably won't care that Lohan could be headed behind bars; in fact, that probably will only increase her appeal to its babe-hungry readers. But Elle readers seeking pages of fashion and style advice might be turned off by another Lohan arrest and pending court date, which will take place just days after the magazine hits newsstands.

Why the 'Fairness Doctrine' Falls Short (Boston Phoenix)
Editorial: The fairness doctrine is an old idea for a time now past. And despite the good intentions that prompted it, it was never a very good idea, anyway. It is best left dead and buried. Congress should more fruitfully spend its time coming to grips with the massive concentration of communication power in an ever-shrinking bucket. It's time to think about broadcast audiences as communities to be served, not audiences to be exploited.

— David S. Hirschman