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Novak Leaks Barnyard Epithet (AP via WaPo)
CNN suspended Robert Novak indefinitely yesterday after he swore and walked off the set during a debate with James Carville. A spokeswoman called Novak's behavior "inexcusable and unacceptable." NYT: Carville had accused Novak of trying to make a particular point "to show these right wingers" that he had "backbone" and was "tough." New Hampshire Union Leader: Novak's column was a malicious attack on a "revered" staffer, writes Arlen Specter.

Sumner's Tale (AP via Yahoo!)
Viacom Inc.'s Sumner Redstone said he planned to step down as chief executive from the global media conglomerate by next year when it is expected to split in two, but remain as chairman. Variety: Les Moonves already rules his post-split empire.

Rupert Agonistes (The Economist)
Executives at News Corp. say Lachlan was not as obsessively interested in running the business as his father would have liked. Senior people had complained to Rupe that his son was not co-operative. Guardian: Fox Interactive Media has bought online and magazine sports publisher Scout Media, and, in a separate deal, News Corp. is forming a joint venture with AP to produce sports data and content. Business 2.0: What good was it for Lachlan to be the Prince of Print when his father was lecturing newspaper editors on the death of newsprint and its digital rebirth, asks Greg Lindsay.

Longtime Hollywood Gossip To Bow Out (NYT)
Army Archerd, the genteel Variety columnist whose three-dot dispatches helped make Hollywood gossip an art form, will soon be retiring the column he has written for 52 years. WaPo: Archerd said he will "still be fully employed" and expects to continue covering major events.

Russell Out of Shape (Mediaweek)
David Pecker, chairman, president/CEO of American Media Inc., lost yet another top editor, Anne Russell, in what has become a conga line of staffers out the door. WWD: Russell was fired, and her remaining editorial staffers are expecting to be told any moment now that they'll be asked to choose between relocating and finding new jobs.

Time's Up for Flack (NYP)
Veteran PR exec Peter Costiglio is leaving his job as vice president, communications, at Time Inc. after Labor Day, while insiders are already bracing for more changes at the magazine publisher.

Freep Vet Knew About Pending Sale for Months (E&P)
Carole Leigh Hutton knew that she might lose her job as editor and publisher of the Detroit Free Press while negotiations between Knight Ridder and Gannett were taking place behind the scenes.

'Korangate' Lessons for Newsweek (Marketwatch)
Jon Friedman: Editor Mark Whitaker, reflecting on the crisis, said he is satisfied that Newsweek acted quickly and decisively to make its case.

Breaking Down the Media's Celeb Pregnancy Coverage (Radar)
Brenda You: It's hard to remember that there was a time when mags did not report a pregnancy until it was officially confirmed, out of consideration for the high risk of miscarriage in the first trimester.

Coulter: Plagio Ergo Sum? (Tucson Weekly)
Walt Nett: The media still hasn't picked up on the credibility flap surrounding Ann Coulter—that several chunks of her June 29 column appear to be lifted from sources as much as 20 years old.

Shaw Was Media's 'Good Cop' (WaPo)
E. J. Dionne: All who are engaged in writing about the press should acknowledge their debt to David Shaw, a Los Angeles Times writer who was a pioneer in the business of media self-criticism

Aging Gore's Network Not So Current? (Slate)
Dana Stevens: Current TV feels strangely stranded in the '90s. It's as '90s as a Tracy Chapman ballad, as '90s as the debate over political correctness, as '90s as an asymmetrical bob.

Does War Journalism Reinforce Some Conflicts? (AJR)
Leslie Whitaker: If the stories journalists tell about conflict focus primarily on the dissent between extremes, are we actually fostering polarization? And if we are, should we do anything to change that?

Times Names Editor for Web Publishing (NYT)
PR-ticle: The New York Times has appointed Richard J. Meislin to the new position of associate managing editor for Internet publishing.

Big Media's Shift to E-Media 'Seismic' (Folio:)
The shift to e-media has been major, according to ABM "E-Media et al." panelists. And for business publications that means leveraging their content—and their newsrooms—for the end user.

'Citizen Journalists' Taking Risks in Disaster Coverage (USAT)
At issue: Whether as camera phones and digital cameras multiply, so do the odds that victims will put themselves and others at risk by pausing to snap pictures.

What Plame Case Says About Media's Presidential Coverage (The Nation)
Frances Cerra Whittelsey: The leak scandal has also exposed to the public the corrupt relationship between the White House and leading members of the national press corps.

Will ManiaTV! Be 'Viacom of the Internet?' (Denver Westword)
Drew Massey believes the web-based television network he founded last September is more than capable of becoming a billion-dollar business.

Major German Media Buy (AFX via Forbes)
Axel Springer AG is acquiring a majority stake in ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG from the group of investors led by US media baron Haim Saban in deal to make television Springer's second strategic pillar.

—David S. Hirschman

IN YESTERDAY'S MB BLOGS:

Robert Novak Says "Bullshit" And Walks Off The Set Of Inside Politics [TVNewser]
Robert Novak walked off the set during the "Strategy Session" on the second-to-last day of Inside Politics. It happened at 4:50pm, during a debate with James Carville. The two argued, and Carville said: "He's gotta show these right-wingers that he's got backbone."

'Time Off' For Novak After 'Bullshit' [FishbowlDC]
CNN's not happy about the bullshit Bob Novak just pulled: "Bob Novak's behavior on CNN today was inexcusable and unacceptable. Mr. Novak has apologized to CNN, and CNN apologizes to its viewers for his language and actions. We've asked Mr. Novak to take some time off," a CNN spokeswoman told us.

Air America Scandal gives Fox another reason to decry Liberal bias [FishbowlNY]
If you haven't heard - and it's not unlikely, though the story is now starting to swell - Air America's former development director Evan Cohen received approximately $875,000 in loans for himself and for the network from the Bronx-based nonprofit Gloria Wise Boys & Girls Club.

Arianna sells a book [FishbowlLA]
Little, Brown has acquired internet hobbyist Arianna Huffington's upcoming book, which is billed as "a straight-to-the-point manifesto for women on how to be bold, how to make yourself bulletproof, and how to say what you need to say and do what you need to do while embracing, not dreading, the reactions of others."

You Want It, You Got It, If By It We Mean Meier [UnBeige]
As little materialistic as we like to think ourselves, we have to confess that our tour of the Perry Street Meier buildings made us think it might not be so bad to sell out and marry rich after all.

The Zoo: Week Five [mbToolbox]
Today is the fifth in a series of posts by San-Diego-based writer Thomas Shess who has decided to keep a journal on his journey to find a publisher for his novel.