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CBS News “60 Minutes Sports” correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi gave the commencement address at Meek School of Journalism and New Media at Ole Miss. It’s being called inspiring, hilarious and a brutally honest look at the TV news business.

Alfonsi, a 1994 Ole Miss grad, began with a joke about another alum. “I know the one and only reason I am here is because Shepard Smith was clearly not available.”

With changes all around for journalism and what it means to be a journalist, Alfonsi’s thesis was this: “Do NOT take no for an answer.”

You are applying for work in journalism, not trying to get hired as a social secretary. The people who may hire you respect grit. They respect tenacity, and in my experience, I have found they are generally unlikely to issue a restraining order. Prove that you want it. The food court at the mall is littered with journalism students who didn’t fight for it. Fight for it.

Watch after the jump…

> Related: TVNewser’s 2013 Guide to Commencement Speakers

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If you watch “Morning Joe” you may already know this, but Mika Brzezinski is obsessed. Now she’s written a book — her third — about one particular obsession: America’s food addiction, and her own.

Brzezinski was feted at a book launch event last evening overlooking Central Park, where her morning partner Joe Scarborough described the root of Mika’s obsession: “If you know the Brzezinski family, you know why she has the issues she has,” Scarborough joked. “They are crazy, brilliant, and always striving for perfection.”

In “Obsessed” Brzezinski describes her history of food obsession, distorted body image and her struggle to be thin. It is dedicated to her two teenage daughters, Emilie and Carlie. “Girls, this book is for you,” Brzezinski said in her remarks as she asked them to “get off Snapchat and come forward.”

“I don’t want it to take 30 years for you to realize what it has taken me to realize.”

In the crowed, we spotted NBC’s Willie Geist, iVillage’s Kelly Wallace, CBS’s Leslie Stahl, MSNBC President Phil Griffin and CBS News chairman Jeff Fager. The “Morning Joe” crew was there including EP Alex Korson and former EP, now CBS News VP of programming Chris Licht. Also, Donny Deutsch, Joy Behar, Tina Brown and Sir Harold Evans.

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Last night the media elite gathered at the rooftop of The Park in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood to toast New York Times media reporter Brian Stelter‘s book Top of the Morning.

As the sun set over the Hudson River and the High Line park, guests sipped wine and nibbled on hummus, cheese and skewers of shrimp and scallops. NY1 traffic anchor Jamie Shupak, Stelter’s girlfriend, organized the affair.

“Matt Lauer and Ann Curry send their regrets,” Stelter quipped in his remarks. Indeed, NBC’s “Today” was not represented at the party, though there were plenty of notable TV news attendees.

ABC News seemed to have the largest contingent, led by president Ben Sherwood, and joined by senior VP of content and development James Goldston, and senior VP of communications Jeffrey Schneider. CBS News was represented by chairman Jeff Fager and “CBS This Morning” co-host Charlie Rose (pictured below). NY1′s morning news anchor Pat Kiernan was there, as was CNN “Piers Morgan Live” EP (and former “Today” EP) Jonathan Wald. Foursquare CEO Dennis Crowley, New York Post publisher Jesse Angelo and Gawker founder Nick Denton were all spotted in the crowd.
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The “Today” show had a backstage pass for last night’s TIME 100 gala in New York. Matt Lauer conducted interviews with the honorees and a segment aired this morning. Joining Vice President Joe Biden, Marissa Mayer, Jimmy Fallon, Claire Danes, Jimmy Kimmel, Sen. Rand Paul, Lena Dunham and Daniel Day-Lewis a the event were tvnewsers including CNN honcho Jeff Zucker, MSNBC boss Phil Griffin, Barbara Walters, Gayle King, Norah O’Donnell, Alex Wagner, Willie Geist and Alina Cho. By next year’s TIME 100, the magazine will likely be part of a new company, spun off from Time Warner, which Managing Editor Rick Stengel acknowledged in his speech, “An independent Time Inc. will show the power of great journalism, the power of great content to pay for itself.”

Today New York Women in Communications held their annual Matrix Awards, and Vicki Salemi, editor of MediaJobsDaily and host of MediabistroTV series “Score that Job” was there. Salemi caught up with “Morning Joe” co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski as well as comedienne Joan Rivers among other attendees, who shared their best advice for those trying to make it in the media business.

WATCH:

Calling it a “huge part of what CNN is going to to be,” CNN Worldwide president Jeff Zucker welcomed hundreds of guests to Porter House at Time Warner Center for a launch event for the network’s newest show hosted by Anthony Bourdain. “Parts Unknown” debuts Sunday night at 9pmET/PT.

CNN is, in fact, venturing into parts unknown with what Bourdain is cooking up. Bringing in a well-known non-news talent for a weekly one-hour travel/food/cultural awareness show is a departure for the network. Still, Zucker calls “Parts Unknown,” “the true measure of what we want this network to be.”

“We have a true television star in our midst,” said Zucker, who was quickly reminded of the dozen other on air talent in the room. “Not that we don’t have great television stars at CNN …Brooke Baldwin,” said Zucker, noticing the daytime anchor in the crowd, “You’re a television star.” We also spotted Anderson Cooper, (who dropped in before his show) Piers Morgan, Ashleigh Banfield, A.J. Hammer, Christine Romans (above with Bourdain and Baldwin) and John Berman.

Zucker heaped praise on CNN’s SVP of talent and content development Amy Entellis and Vinnie Malhotra, SVP of development and acquisitions, who began courting Bourdain a year ago. Bourdain had hosted “No Reservations” on Travel Channel since 2005.

“I’m grateful to be with CNN,” Bourdain told the crowd. “I got my official CNN ID today so I guess the cavity searches are over.”

The first of 8 original episodes airs Sunday. A second season is set for the Fall. The network is also developing a show with documentarian Morgan Spurlock, and this week announced it would add a Friday night studio audience talk show with CBC host George Stroumboulopoulos.

More pictures from last night after the jump…

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As we told you yesterday, The Hollywood Reporter is out with its annual “35 Most Powerful People in Media” list. The honorees were feted at a “power-soaked New York party” at the Four Seasons restaurant Wednesday night.

From CBS News, chairman Jeff Fager was there, along with “CBS This Morning” co-hosts Gayle King and Norah O’Donnell, “60 Minutes” correspondent Morley Safer, “Evening News” anchor Scott Pelley and “Sunday Morning” correspondent Mo Rocca. CNN’s Piers Morgan was there, as was Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly. The “Today” show’s Willie Geist and “Live!” co-hosts Michael Strahan and Kelly Ripa attended, along with talk show hosts Wendy Williams and Katie Couric. And from ABC News, president Ben Sherwood, “The View” anchor Barbara Walters, senior VP for content and development James Goldston and “Good Morning America” anchors Lara Spencer and  George Stephanopoulos, who was with his wife, Ali Wentworth.

More pictures of the event in THR’s gallery.

Greta Van Susteren’s husband John P. Coale sitting between Lindsay Lohan and Kim Kardashian at the 2012 White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

She was famous for escorting the famous around Washington, DC during White House Correspondents’ weekend. But this year, Fox News host Greta Van Susteren is taking a pass on the dinner April 27. “I made another commitment out of town that weekend,” she writes on GretaWire.

I am sure everyone will have fun – it is the one day of the year that the media, politicians, entertainers etc. socialize together – but it can also be a bit exhausting as it is a 2 1/2 day affair.

In recent years Van Susteren has played host to Kim Kardashian, Ozzie Osborn, and last year, Lindsay Lohan

But there was a backlash following last year’s star-studded dinner, by none other than NBC’s Tom Brokaw on “Meet the Press.”

“I think George Clooney is a great guy,” said Brokaw. “I’d like to meet Charlize Theron. But I don’t think the big press event in Washington should be that kind of glittering event where all the talk is about Cristal champagne, taking over the Italian Embassy, who had the best party. That’s another separation between what we’re supposed to be doing and what the people expect us to be doing.”

Greta tells Politico she will likely attend the annual brunch put on by Tammy Haddad on the day of the dinner.

Mika Brzezinski, MSNBC president Phil Griffin and the UAE’s Ambassador to the U.S. Yousef Al Otaiba threw a 50th birthday bash for Joe Scarborough last night in Washington, DC.

According to Politico, Scarborough thought they were coming to D.C. for a speech, instead, on the rooftop of 101 Constitution Ave., Scarborough was treated to a “this is your life” with friends and family. “We have your life covered here completely, from Boston to Los Angeles to Florida to New York to Washington. Everybody is here,” said Brzezinski.

“You can sit back and relax and just hang with your family because, actually, we are going to talk tonight — and you’re not going to say a word.”

Among the guests: NBC/MSNBC’s Willie Geist, David Gregory, Luke Russert, Mike Barnicle, Andrea Mitchell, Kelly O’Donnell and Lawrence O’Donnell. “Morning Joe” EP Alex Korson and former EP Chris Licht and Licht’s boss’s boss at CBS, Jeff Fager. Also, Walter Isaacson, Dan Senor, Nicolle Wallace, Bob Woodward and more.

(h/t Playbook)

NBC News special correspondent Chelsea Clinton was among the tvnewsers leading panels at today’s Women in the World conference. But it was her mother who got a thunderous applause and shouts of “2016!” when she took the stage at the fourth annual event. Hillary Clinton called women’s rights “a core imperative for every society.”

Clinton’s speech kicked off the day’s events, which featured an impressive roster of women from the television news industry: ABC’s Cynthia McFadden, Deborah Roberts and JuJu Chang and CBS’s Norah O’Donnell all moderated panel discussions on topics ranging from women in the tech industry to fostering female leaders.

Before moderating a spirited panel discussion about the epidemic of sexual abuse in India, McFadden (pictured above) talked with an Indian woman who was the victim of a rape. She sat with her back to the audience in order to conceal her identity. The woman, whose case is still pending in the Indian high court, described how she was raped by a male friend of hers four

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