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Brown Out (AP)
Aaron Brown, once one of CNN's most prominent anchors, is leaving the network after a shakeup that gives his prime-time slot to rising star Anderson Cooper and expands it to two hours. NYT: Jonathan Klein, the president of CNN/US, said the moves were made chiefly to elevate the profiles of Cooper and Wolf Blitzer. NYP: TV industry sources said Brown losing his job at CNN was far from unexpected. WaPo: Cooper became part of the Katrina story when, interviewing Sen. Mary Landrieu four days after the storm, he cut into her lavish praise of various politicos and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. LAT: With programming changes, Brown was in effect elbowed out.

Time Warner Unveils Profits, AOL Talks (London Times)
Time Warner yesterday posted an 80 percent increase in profits, boosted its share buyback plan to $12.5 billion from $5 billion, and confirmed it was in talks over its AOL Internet arm.

Going Global (Folio:)
Time Inc.'s Real Simple and Dennis Publishing's Maxim, two magazines that once were publishing wunderkinds, are prepping launches of international editions of their respective titles.

NBC Raids Universal Archives for New Cable Channel (Reuters)
The cable network Sleuth is launching in January with a full docket of series and movies, including Miami Vice, The A-Team and Scarface. B&C: The on-demand channel will offer at least 20 hours of content at any time.

Lender Tries to Take Control of Source (WWD)
Thomas Finn, an attorney for Textron Financial Corp., asked that Source Enterprises be placed into receivership to keep its executives from driving it into the ground; the mag owes Textron $18 million.

Comedy Central Renews Colbert Report (E!)
The cable network has given Stephen Colbert a full-year order, ensuring The Daily Show's new half-hour spinoff, which pokes fun of political punditry, will be around until at least 2007.

Dark Knight (BusinessWeek)
Jon Fine: Should it someday come down to a sale, I'd look for the buyer of Knight Ridder to be drawn from a small pool of potential suitors: Gannett, the privately-held Media News Group, and some private equity players to be named later. Reuters: A Knight Ridder investor said in a regulatory filing that it wants the flexibility to enter talks with management and other shareholders. E&P: Deutsche Bank Securities upgraded its rating on Knight Ridder from "sell" to "hold" yesterday. WSJ: K-R sale could spark industry-wide consolidation.

Legendary Editor Korda Steps Down (NYP)
Michael Korda, a Renaissance man who served as the editor-in-chief of Simon & Schuster since the late 1960s, while emerging as a best-selling author in his own right, will become editor-in-chief emeritus. WaPo: Asked to cite a highlight of his long career, Korda mentioned the publication of Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove.

Pilfering 'Lolita' (Gatecrasher)
Ben Widdicombe: A Chicago Tribune journalist is claiming Amy Fisher swiped his work for two columns she penned in the Long Island Press. AP via Yahoo!: Joey Buttafuoco is working on ABC's Desperate Housewives—at the show's concession stand.

FT Editor Quits in Dispute With Board (AFX via Forbes)
UK publishing conglomerate Pearson PLC said Andrew Gowers is leaving the newspaper after 22 years due to "strategic differences" with the management. Guardian: Under Gowers, the FT has continued to grow its presence worldwide, but its UK circulation has been in decline.

Merging With the Enemy (LA Weekly)
Marc Cooper: "Alternative journalism," at least as defined by the nostalgic vision of a lot of laid-back folks in earth shoes and turtlenecks working happily and lovingly late into the night to put out some eccentric tabloid full of futon ads and wandering narratives, died a long time ago.

Brit Press Full of Bark, Bite (WaPo)
Paul Farhi: The 50-strong pack of British journalists following Prince Charles and new wife Camilla around Washington yesterday certainly seemed like a respectable lot, but that was only if you didn't get too close.

Google Opens Online Library (NYT)
Google has completed the first major expansion of its Google Print database, adding the full text of more than 10,000 books that are no longer under copyright. NYP: Google nears PayPal model.

Investors Anxious About Big Media (NYT)
In general, Wall Street is still not buying the new story of large conglomerates like Time Warner, Viacom and News Corp. moving successfully into the digital era. OJR: Is bubble back in online media, asks Mark Glaser. CNN: Major media companies have had a rough 2005 but hopes are rising for a rebound in 2006.

Is MoDo Necessary? (Slate)
Katie Roiphe: Maureen Dowd is extremely fond of clever stereotyping. But this strategy is better-suited to satirizing a real person than it is to offering insights into the already cartoonish "war" between the sexes.

Beautiful Losers (AAN)
Washington City Paper's Michael Little is fairly clear on what he likes to write about: "Failure and futility—and losers. I'm very interested in people who don't survive the undertow, you know?"

Will Alito Nomination Bump Libby From Headlines? (USAT)
President Bush's nomination of Judge Samuel Alito for the Supreme Court has moved Scooter Libby and the CIA leak scandal off the front pages, for now. That's just what Bush wanted. [Low in column.]

The Flawed Kristof Column That Launched Plamegate (Slate)
Jack Shafer: What distinguishes Nicholas Kristof from the usual op-ed blowhard is his devotion to reporting. Why shouldn't Kristof's op-ed columns reflect the same standards of accountability as his news pieces?

Sulzberger Needs a Rove (Mugger)
Russ Smith: It's one thing to be a lousy president, but quite another to be the architect of a century-old institution's tumble from national prominence to an applause line for a second-rate comedian.

Anti-Terror TV in MidEast (CSM)
In addition to the fasting, feasting, and prayers, in most Egyptian households the Muslim holy month revolves around TV, and a handful of shows airing this month are challenging the view that Islam justifies terrorism.

The Faith-Based Journalism of 'Rathergate' (National Review)
Byron York: Mary Mapes presumably thinks Edward R. Murrow would be appalled at the sight of craven, cowardly executives buckling under pressure from right-wing activists. But it's also likely Murrow would think that CBS should not have aired the documents.

Chris Matthews and the Power of Repitition (Huffington Post)
Arianna Huffington: Over the last two weeks, Hardball's Chris Matthews has been relentless in repeatedly bringing the significance of Sept. 8, 2002 home to his audience. It's been crusading journalism at its best.

—David S. Hirschman

IN YESTERDAY'S MB BLOGS:

Aaron Brown Is Leaving CNN; "He Will Be Missed;" Was He Forced Out? [TVNewser]
CNN's Jon Klein: We have made some programming decisions which will impact our prime time schedule as well as our colleague Aaron Brown. Aaron will be leaving CNN and is very much looking forward to some well-deserved time off with his family.

A New Endeavor for Lesher, of Paramount Importance... [FishbowlLA]
FishbowlLA has learned that Endeavor partner and motion picture department co-head John Lesher is leaving the agency to become a motion picture production executive at Paramount Pictures.

Lunch at Michael's: Dominick Dunne and lit pals [FishbowlNY]
We sat so close to Dominick Dunne, we could almost taste his calamari.

Fun With LexisNexis [FishbowlDC]
Think Plame-gate has had an effect on journalism? Consider this little LexisNexis query...

The Chick Lit Wars Continue [Galleycat]
Monday, we observed a recent skirmish in the chick lit debate, and the heated rhetoric continued yesterday, as women critics online declared their allegiances.

What Could Be More Fun Than Looking At 25 Years Of Print Magazine Covers? That Was Rhetorical
Print Magazine's Regional Design Annual issue just came out and in it, or with it, is a nice piece by Martin Fox that includes the RDA covers for the last twenty-five years.

Somebody's Watching Me... [MBToolbox]
It's quite flattering when you're talking with an agent and they tell you you're talented and want to work with you. All your problems are solved!