"Kitchen Nightmares" Cooks Up Unbelievable Stew

Fox Edition of Gordon Ramsay Screamfest Should Take A Lesson From Its BBC Cousin and Give Viewers A Little Credit

The Americanized version of "Kitchen Nightmares" on Fox last night was alternately entertaining and annoying, not to mention sloppy.

The show is chef/demigod Gordon Ramsay's latest incursion on this side of the pond, adapting another one of his wildly successful program -- available on these shores on BBC America -- for a U.S. audience eager to see him snarling at hapless victims of their own ineptitude.

The premise is that Ramsay visits a restaurant failing on its own merits, be they bad food, decor, managerial incompetence or all of the above, and spends a week trying to take it off life support.

Through cajoling, bullying and artful editing, Ramsay is almost always able to reverse the restaurant's fortunes (there was the occasional unhappy ending) after a massive overhaul of food and attitude.

The British version largely leaves Ramsay to his own devices, with the cameras rolling, of course. He even does his own voiceovers. But Fox is having none of that.

Anonymous announcer lets us know what's happening, on the assumption that we're too stupid to figure it out. Then the show ladles on portentous music underneath to reinforce that notion.

Still, the show manages to keep you watching, if only because Ramsay makes for a delicious juxtaposition with the clueless owners, in this case a family that is running its Italian joint out on Long Island into the ground.

But if ever there was a show to dispel the notion that so-called reality TV is meant to give you a fly-on-the-wall look at its subjects, "Kitchen Nightmares" blithely disposes of such illusions.

Item: Most of the kitchen equipment is broken, which is why the chef often resorts to serving pre-cooked frozen dishes. One night, Ramsay's elves gut the kitchen and replace it with brand-new equipment that must have cost six figures.

Item: The show opens with Ramsay descending the steps at the Babylon train station to be picked up by one of the owners, who's 45 minutes late. Yeah, one of the world's leading chefs took the Long Island Railroad. Right.

Item: How does a restaurant devoid of reservations all of a sudden have people pouring in the door? They don't, at least not without a little help. Through the wonders of TiVo, you can read a disclaimer at the end, that the show "may" have helped some patrons pay for a portion of their meals. May?

Item: Another disclaimer says that scenes may have been shown out of the order in which they were filmed. Which would explain a lot.

Item: "Bill collectors" keep showing up while cameras are rolling. Is that a euphemism for something more knee-cappingly sinister? Or is it some of the owner's goomba buddies looking for their 15 minutes. Just asking.

And the producers were asleep at the switch during post-production. At one point, announcer guy tells us it's 11:45, just before lunch service, yet the caption at the bottom of the screen tells us it's 11:45 p.m. Later on, we're told it's 5:30 p.m., 30 minutes before the restaurant opens for dinner. But a few minutes later it's 6:55 p.m., five minutes before it opens. Which means it's time to be terribly confused.

Still, we should be long since past the point where we should be shocked, SHOCKED! that reality-TV shows are not what they appear to be. Which is why you can still enjoy "Kitchen Nightmares" on its own dubious terms.

Ramsay, for all his bombast, is still an immensely watchable guide through a restaurant's seamy underbelly.

Just don't necessarily take what you see at face value, especially next week's episode, which has spawned a lawsuit by the former general manager of the restaurant in question, who claims Ramsay faked scenes and hired actors as customers.

It's not the first time Ramsay has been accused of this, but it should be noted he won a libel suit against the British paper that made the allegation.

Whatever. All you have to is watch the show and be glad you're not on the receiving end of his spit as he gets in someone else's face.

New York Tabloids Juiced About O.J.

He's Baaack! Brilliant Minds Think Alike on the Copy Desk

They hate each other's guts, but you just love it when the Post and the News arrive at the same headline (OK, never mind the pronouns) and even -- in some editions -- the same photos.

Just when things were starting to get a little quiet in the Big Apple, O.J. came through big time. Circulation managers are privately rejoicing.

Dave Anderson Retiring as N.Y. Times Sports Columnist; Will Anyone Notice?

Word in today's New York Times sports section is that Dave Anderson is finally calling it quits as a full-time sports columnist after 36 years, and will pop up in an emeritus role from time to time, mostly on Sundays.
Good for him that he's lasted this long. While it might not be fashionable to knock a guy on his way out the door, allow me a few raps nonetheless.
Anderson was the nice-guy columnist, the glass-half-full writer whose space was filled with gentle observations rather than pointed comments that brought another dimension to a game story. You know, sort of like sports columnists are supposed to do.
I read Anderson regularly because, well, the Times is the one paper in the morning delivered to my door with a regular sports section. But rarely did I get any added perspective, even less seldom was I entertained, or did I get a sense of genuine reportage.
Part of the problem is that Anderson was more fixated in later years by golf, the sport that dominated his column in recent months. Paint-drying play and another anti-climactic win by Tiger begets similar prose.
You kept hoping for the big zing, the lingering food-for-thought moment. Too often, though, Anderson left you hungry.
Fortunately, the Times' other columnists, Harvey Araton, Selena Roberts and Bill Rhoden (who deserves a hustle award for banging out a short column despite being hospitalized yesterday during the Jets' game with vertigo) are not as meek with their views.
With the Times' penny-pinching that has compromised and diminished its sports coverage, it remains to be seen whether Anderson would even be replaced, and, if so, is there an in-house candidate at the ready. Joe Drape? Bill Pennington?
Also, look to see whether the Times will replace Lee Jenkins as its West Coast sports correspondent, now that he has decamped to Sports Illustrated.

Boston Globe Circulation Staff's New Round of Desperation

It Doesn't Matter Where You Live, Just Buy The Damn Paper

About two years ago, my wife took a call from a telemarketer hawking the Sunday Boston Globe for just 88 cents a week for 16 weeks, if you pay be credit card.
Fine and dandy (that's half what I'd pay for a new subscription in Boston), except for the fact that we live 20 miles from Yankee Stadium and 200 miles from the Globe's HQ on Morrissey Blvd., not exactly the demographic New England advertisers are thirsting for.
We politely declined.
But give the Globies credit for persistence. This week they mailed to both my wife and me the same offer, which includes the additional come-on of $2 a week for 7-day delivery.
Yes, the Globe has seen its circulation dip precipitously over the years. And I guess it's easy enough to glom onto the distribution network of its sister paper, The New York Times, which may even be printing Globes for those exiled to the Big Apple from Beacon Hill.
But still.

iPod Takes First Cautious Steps Toward a Radio Hook-Up

Sure, the iPhone's Nabbed The Headlines, but the Device that Started All The Hoopla Gets Better and Cheaper


When you listen to your iPods, the only thing that might get you nostalgic about your Walkman is the inability to take a break from your downloads and listen to the radio.
That's still the case, but now only to a point.
The nascent HD Radio industry (see two posts below) got a big-time boost this week when receivers were unveiled with what's being called iTunes Tagging.
People who own special HD Radio receivers by JBL and Polk Audio ($499), which have a docking station at the top of the receiver for the iPod. If you hear a song you like, you then push a button that "tags" it on the iPod.
The next time you log onto iTunes, you can then preview the song and buy it if you like.

It's expected that hundreds of stations will have upgraded their HD Radio software to enable the tagging.

No word on whether the stations will get a cut of the iTunes kitty from the tagged songs. Either way, it's a win-win for the radio industry, which is getting ready to mount a multi-million dollar ad campaign touting the receivers and the tagging.
Radio companies are starting to place bigger bets on HD, despite the fact that the current listenership is miniscule, consumer awareness is at a very low ebb, and no clues about whether HD will ever be profitable, unlike satellite radio.
But hooking up to iTunes is a great way to find out.

"Damages" Gets Creepier, More Profane

And What The Hell's Up With Zeljko Ivanek's Accent?



Through the miracle of TiVo, I'm now caught up with "Damages," the delightfully demented legal thriller that took up Tuesday nights on FX, where "The Shield" left off.
Week by week the series gets more addictive. So what if Patty Hewes, the lawyer/queen bitch played by Glenn Close is a character who could only be concocted by a sleep-deprived and no one you'd ever meet in real life?
That's the point. She's someone who we'd want our lawyer to be, if only we could find one who is both amoral and charming in one fell swoop. Friends and enemies alike know to be afraid of her. Very afraid. This is a woman with the singular goal of winning at all costs, which often leaves her devoid of human feeling. On the last episode she talked about her first love in college, who worked two jobs to help put her through law school "I dumped him as soon as I got my J.D. He had no ambition."
Ouch.
Hewes is not just frigid, she's frozen to the bone. And like Close's character in "Fatal Attraction," she won't be ignored, and not above killing pets either. We'll see about the rest as the series unfolds.
Speaking of which, by virtue of its late-night slot on FX, the network lets it stretch a bit and allows shows like "Damages" to stretch the envelope, by allowing characters to utter medium-grade profanities like "shit" and "asshole."
Too often, though, as is also the case on "The Shield," writers on "Damages" have a bad case of the shits. Just because you can say it, doesn't mean you always have to. It then becomes a lazy writer's device. Which is bullshit for an otherwise high-quality drama.
"Damages" also benefits from a top-flight cast, including supporting players like Peter Riegert, Casey Siemaszko, Philip Bosco, and Peter Facinelli.
The only annoyance is Zeljko Ivanek's portrayal of Ray Fiske, the lawyer for evil defendant Arthur Frobisher (Ted Danson). The normally reliable Ivanek's invested Fiske with a deep South drawl, which might be fine for a community theater production of "To Kill A Mockingbird," but totally out of place for a show that takes place in New York.
Ivanek has more than enough acting jobs to hide behind a bad accent. It's supposed to be a counterpoint to the hard-charging city slickers he's up against. Instead, it's just distracting, a rare misstep for a show that demands and deserves your attention.

Ghouls Masquerading As Reporters: When Pushing For a Quote From The Grieving Goes Too Far

Romenesko today featured an Aug. 29 column from the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle from Mary Jane Milano, whose 14-year-old son Jeff Milano-Johnson collapsed after being struck by a ball while warming up for a lacrosse game.
As the family dealt with the pain from this unspeakable loss and kept vigil before Jeff's organs were donated two days later, Milano says she, her family and Jeff's friends and coach were set upon by media looking for interviews.

Early Thursday morning less than 15 hours after learning of my son's death, the phone rang in his hospital room. I picked it up to hear a TV reporter on the other end of the line. I almost ripped the phone out of the wall.
Later that same morning, completely emotionally and physically exhausted, barely able to remember to put one foot in front of the other and constantly having to remind ourselves of the need to breathe, we went home for showers. As we did, we were approached by a reporter holding a steno pad. That I did not physically assault him the moment I saw him was a miracle.

Milano doesn't say whether one of the reporters was from the D&C was among the scrum, nor does she identify any of the other prying media outlets, which is too bad.
This media assault came, despite the fact that the family released a statement through the hospital where Jeff was taken, and that was followed by statements from the school district and its athletic director.
Look, most reporters desperately want to avoid making these kind of calls, especially when it's assigned by an editor snug with the knowledge that he's not the one having to do it.
Sometimes you get lucky, and it's a person on the other end who needs a release and is happy to talk about the deceased and their legacy. But most of the time, it's an intrusion, and one that does nothing to enhance the story.
Your sympathy may be sincere, but your motives are anything but pure. That especially goes for the TV reporters who often don't have the foresight to go beyond the "how do you feel" line of questions.
There's nothing worse than the death of a child, except, perhaps, when reporters exploit your grief to make themselves look good.
It's a shame when reporters are so consumed with doing their jobs that they forget to feel ashamed when they cross the line. Milano and others like her are a source of sorrow, not a scoop.

This HD Radio Thing Might Be A Good Idea, After All

More Than Just A Repository For Failed Formats, Side Channels May Be A Viable Source for Inspired Programming, Big Bucks
You can be forgiven if you haven't heard much about HD Radio, or if you've heard about it, you still don't have the foggiest notion of what it's all about.
At its most basic, as radio stations begin sending out their signals digitally as well as analog. By splitting the signal, a station can send out its regular programming, and use the digital side channel for something else.
That something else can be a niche format that is perceived to not have enough legs to generate a commercially viable audience -- like country music in New York -- or to preserve a format that flamed out -- like when the Jack format flamed out on WCBS-FM, which returned to its signature oldies sound.
Oh, and when it works right there's CD-quality sound, few, if any commercials, and no subscription fees (take that XM and Sirius).
Only problem is, HD Radio is one of those things broadcasters like to tout, but nobody can figure out how to exploit, especially since consumers have not exactly rushed to spend $200-$300 on an HD receiver.
Washington public-radio powerhouse WAMU is aiming to change that. It's been running its popular bluegrass programming on one of its HD channels (yes, it has two), and it will now include that rarity of HD rarities, live hosts.
That puts HD Radio into the realm of serious, well-thought-out programming rather than an afterthought. Hard to say whether this can be a harbinger of things to come. WAMU has long cultivated an audience, not to mention eager donors, with its bluegrass shows, and it's not hard to get those dedicated listeners to follow wherever the music takes them.
By contrast, a run-of-the-mill rock station that puts, say, heavy metal on a side channel, might not want to shell out salaries for live DJs who would be heard by an initially puny audience, to put it charitably. That's why virtually all HD jocks are voice-tracked. And even those are small in number.
Building an HD Radio audience will take time and money. But so far, not even broadcasters are convinced it's worth the investment. Until they are, audiences will likely feel much the same.

Myers Sorry He Called Reporter A "Retard"; Meant To Say "Idiot" Instead

Philadelphia Inquirer Finally Weighs In On Lockeroom Shoutfest With Phillies Closer
A day after the insults, pointed fingers and bleeps, Phillies relief pitcher Brett Myers was calm, to a point, in discussing his Saturday night smackdown with Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Sam Carchidi (see below post for more).
That may have been due to the fact that Carchidi, one of the Inky's backup Phillies writers, was not in attendance, replaced yesterday by Jim Salisbury. Suffice to say, though, the bad blood still flows.
Myers said he was sorry to have called Carchidi a retard, after Carchidi questioned
Myers' assessment of two home runs that he gave up to lose the game as looking like "pop-ups." Myers said he simply should have called Carchidi an "idiot" and moved on.
As for an apology to Carchidi, Myers says don't hold your breath. But Salisbury reports Carchidi isn't backing down.

"I stuck my finger in his face because he called me a retard. If asking tough questions is stirring things up, I'm guilty as charged."

A little context is warranted. This isn't the first time Carchidi has gotten under Myers' skin, apparently. While his primary beat is high school sports, Carchidi has worked as a backup Phillies writer since the 1980s. From Myers' vantage point, that only qualifies Carchidi to lap up whatever bromides and lame excuses Myers throws his way.

"He covers high school sports and comes in here and tries to stir things up, and we definitely didn't need it after a tough loss."

Randy Miller, who covers the Phillies for several suburban Philadelphia papers, noted that Myers returned a few minutes after the confrontation and apologized to the remaining reporters.
As we discussed yesterday, Carchidi could have very easily ignored Myers' insult and not instigated a further exchange and risk becoming part of the story. But there's nothing in the journalistic canon that says reporters should remain mute while being verbally abused.
It was easy for Carchidi to be incredulous over Myers' assessment of the homers, just as easily as it was for Myers to be pissed off. But if that was the case, you walk away, you don't comment, you say something else that doesn't make a bad situation worse. And for that, Myers should be sorry.

Phillies Closer and "Retard" Philadelphia Inquirer Reporter In Locker-Room Smackdown

Sam Carchidi May Have Asked Brett Myers a Fair Question, But Did He Step Over the Line Afterwards?

Look, it's ugly enough watching the Philadelphia Phillies' chances at the playoffs melt away, especially when the bullpen coughs up yet another loss.

It's hard for the fans, harder on the players, and maybe hardest for those in the press box who have to think of another way to describe the gruesome spectacle of another late-inning loss.

And apparently the reporters are mad as hell, and they're not going to take it anymore.

Such was the case after last night's 4-3 Phillies loss to the San Diego Padres. Chief culprit was closer Brett Myers, who gave up two solo homers.

Myers, according to Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Sam Carchidi's dispatch that appears online, said he first believed both shots were initially pop-ups when they left the bat.

But Carchidi and the Inky then chose to ignore the sideshow that followed, namely because Carchidi became part of the story.

According to the Associated Press, Carchidi rightly questioned Myers's characterization of the hits as pop-ups. Myers was not pleased, as you can hear, calling Carchidi a "retard" and further slagged him for being a "fill-in reporter" who "didn't know shit about baseball."

Carchidi then asked Myers to spell "retard," and the verbal fisticuffs ensued. Myers calls Carchidi a "fucking idiot." Carchidi calls him a "piece of shit" and "stupid ass" while players restrained the two and pulled them away.

Carchidi makes no mention of the exchange, which was dutifully reported in other papers, including the Bucks County Courier-Times and the Trentionian, whose reporters each write for several suburban Philly papers.

It was left to Inquirer sports columnist Phil Sheridan to discuss the incident in his blog, where he tries to provide some context, while chiding Carchidi, whom he calls a "friend and longtime colleague."

If Myers says he thought the two home runs were outs in most parks, then fine. That's his opinion. Probably I would have just written that down and quoted him accurately. Once the name-calling begins, no one is going to look or sound good the next day.

True enough. Same goes for reporters not wanting to become part of the story. But on the other hand, I can understand Carchidi trying to get an honest answer out of Myers. Locker rooms are the place where bromides and platitudes openly thrive.

Players and coaches, especially after a tough loss, have precious little to say, if they say it at all. If they utter something that defies logic, then they should be called out. Just because you're a reporter means you should remain mute while you're called names by some underachieving relief pitcher -- especially one who took a leave of absence from the team last year after being accused of smacking his wife in public.

Carchidi may have gone a little far in asking Myers to spell "retard," but he gets props for not being cowed by a guy who wants to cover up his own mistakes by being verbally abusive.

However, Carchidi and the Inky could have been at least a little more forthright in his game story and made some reference to the incident, or at least mentioning Myers' reaction to the questions. It was part of the story, and it shouldn't have been left to other media outlets to tell it.

Phil Rizzuto: The Accidental Poet

The Passing of The Scooter at age 89 (or was it 90?) Truly the End of a Broadcasting Era

Whatever you thought of Phil Rizzuto as a broadcaster (as a player his bona fides are undisputed), he was unforgettable. And funny. And maddening. And never boring.
So much of what he said would have been regarded as apocryphal had it come from anyone else. After hearing that Pope Paul VI died, Rizzuto remarked. "Well, that puts a damper on even a Yankee win."

Indeed.

Rizzuto started in 1957, back when it was still OK for ex-jocks who ventured up to the broadcast booth to learn on the job.
There was no polish, no panache, to his delivery. But there was passion. Even if the game was really boring.
But that's when things could get really interesting, as he'd launch into some baffling yet compelling digressions. Their essence was deftly captured by Hart Seely and Tom Peyer in O Holy Cow! The Selected Verse of Phil Rizzuto," in which they turned some of Rizzuto's ramblings and free associations into poetry.
Keats and Frost had nothing to worry about. But for Yankee fans, they are golden words. A few nibbles:

Two balls and a strike. You know what they had on TV today, White? "Bridge on the River Kwai." Everybody should have gotten an Academy Award for that movie. I don't know how many times I've seen it. About forty times. Alec Guinness! William Holden! Three and one the count. I just heard somebody whistle. You know that song? That's what they whistle. Nobody out. And he pops it up.

Or this classic:

And he hits one in the hole They're gonna have to hurry. THEY'LL NEVER GET HIM! They got him. How do you like that. Holy cow. I changed my mind before he got there. So that doesn't count as an error.

And somehow it really didn't.

Howard Cosell told Rizzuto his broadcasting career would be short. "You look like George Burns and you sound like Groucho Marx," he intoned.

True, maybe, but he lasted 40 years in the booth nonetheless.

If you never heard him do a Yankee game, you can get a good taste of who Rizzuto was as a man and broadcaster, and the esteem in which he was held by generations of fans, by listening to the speech at his too-belated induction to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994. The half-hour address sounded more like one of his game calls minus the balls and strikes.

He told the Cooperstown hordes what happened after he incurred the wrath of a captain while serving in the Navy during World War II.

"They put me off the ship. But unfortunately, it was in New Guinea. I thought I'd see a lot of Italians there."

Cannolis just won't taste the same now. Go in peace, you huckleberry.

NBC Plays It Safe for Fourth Hour of "Today"

It won't be official until tomorrow, but The Hollywood Reporter has word that NBC has tapped a few of its regulars on the shoulder to host the fourth, yes, fourth, hour of "Today," which will bow on Sept. 11.
Come on down, Ann Curry, Natalie Morales and Hoda Kotb, along with a rotating cast of guest hosts that will include Giada DiLaurentis and Tiki Barber, among others.
The first two are already in residence in the third hour-- already laden with the cooking, fashion, entertainment and home-improvement segments that will rule the roost at 10, after Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira have high-tailed it out of Rockefeller Center.
Still not known if Curry will remain newsreader between 7-9 a.m. That's a long haul on camera, especially if she has to also double up on prep for "Dateline." And will Al Roker also linger for the full four?
Exactly why is there a need for a fourth hour of "Today," especially when the third hour has seen its ratings drop for the last three years? Just follow the money, specifically the greenbacks doled out by affiliates, who would otherwise fill the hour with syndicated programming that, lately, has either tanked or eked out middling ratings.
Instead, Jeff Zucker & Co. want to further milk the franchise that already earns an estimated $250 million a year in profits, help affiliates avoid paying for lousy shows and still give them enough local commerical slots to make it worth their while.
And it appears the affiliates are on board. The Reporter says the 10 a.m. hour is cleared in 96 percent of the U.S.

Wall Street Journal Rove Scoop Hidden Behind Soon-to-Crumble Chinese Wall

Will Murdoch Find His Way Around Editorial Overseers to Break Big News on A-1 instead of A-15?

The Wall Street Journal is vaunted for its rigid separation of its news coverage from its editorial page, and for good reason.
The paper's turgidly conservative Republican viewpoints on anything and everything sometimes verge on self-parody. But they're nothing if not consistent, which can be a good thing, as today's scoop on Karl Rove high-tailing it out of the White House by Aug. 31 shows.
Under editorial page editor Paul Gigot, the editorials and columns have been unapologetically pro-Bush regardless of how untenable such a stance might be.
Which means Gigot gets his calls returned, or doesn't have to wait to make a call, when he needs the latest neocon talking points.
To wit, Gigot's article on his chat with Rove, where Rove revealed his plans. A scoop for a kindred spirit. Still, Gigot is vexed that he nonetheless falls short of BFF status.

"I've known Mr. Rove for 19 years and spoken to him hundreds of times. Yet I can't recall a single instance where he disclosed how his views differed from Mr. Bush's."

Sigh.

So, while this is arguably the lead story of the day, Gigot's piece appeared on the Opinion page, with a refer at the top of A-1 (the online version is labeled Commentary, which is absent in the print version, probably because it's below an Opinion banner. Actually, there's very little in the way of commentary in the piece).
Under the Journal's strict line of demarcation, he could not have transformed his story to make it suitable for the news report, which rang in with its own Rove article after he and Bush did the hug thing on the White House lawn.
Which is how it should be, given Gigot's usual role as reactionary Bush lap dog.
Of course, that might no longer be the case, once Rupert Murdoch gets his mitts on the Journal. Sure, he has alleged editorial overseers to ensure he doesn't trample over the Journal's standards and traditions. But whatever you may think of him, the guy is a newshound.
It's hard to fathom he'd let a story of this nature linger on a back page, Gigot or no, especially when he can leave The New York Times, The Washington Post and the other Beltway media elite eating their dust playing catch-up.

TimesSelect Obit Won't Sound Death Knell for Paid Content (At Least Not Yet)

With word yesterday, courtesy of the gleeful New York Post, that the slimmed-down gray lady was dumping subscription-based TimesSelect, came the wagging that the Internet would now be forever liberated from the tyranny of publishers who have the temerity to charge us for online content.
Not so fast.
True, none other than Rupert Murdoch has been mulling the prospect of abandoning the paid model that has served the online version of The Wall Street Journal so well. Never mind that wsj.com actually makes a healthy sum, compared to the rest of Dow Jones.
Scott Karp, on his Publishing 2.0 blog, is eager to add fuel to that fire:

Even if it’s true that the WSJ has the highest quality business content bar none, the web is so awash in good, great, and utterly crappy business content, all free, that WSJ is holding onto its paid subscribers through sheer brand strength alone.

And why is that such a bad thing?

If the Journal can pull off that feat, then no need, for now, to tinker with that formula, which is the envy of the beleaguered newspaper industry.
Karp is more on target with newspapers that believe a critical mass are happy to read the paper online, don't want to be bothered with the print version, and will happily pay for that privilege.
The Daily Gazette in Schenectady, N.Y. and the Albuquerque Journal are among those that keep their product behind a pay wall.
The Journal justifies that decision by proclaiming it delivers "extra news and value" to print subscribers, who actually get it for free with their subscription.
Of course, most newspaper sites provide a lot more, including video, podcasts and chat, on the Web than what's found in print.
And that's all free.
Expect the Gazette and Journal to follow suit before long. There's simply more to be made from advertising linked to content open to all than subscription fees.
As for wsj.com, it's not broke and Murdoch sure as hell won't have to fix it.

When Kurt Met Justin Redux

Eichenwald Saga Keeps Getting Curiouser and Curiouser

Kurt Eichenwald didn't play by the book when he wrote for The New York Times in 2005 about efforts to save a boy who was being victimized by pedophiles who paid to watch him commit sex acts online.
The searing, expose ran nearly 7,000 words, and included a chronicle of Eichenwald's efforts to help Justin Berry find a lawyer, meet with prosecutors and get him badly needed counseling.
Eichenwald was criticized in some quarters for stepping over that imaginary line of involvement with a source that reporters dare not cross. But this was a special circumstance, the Times recognized it as such. Thus emerged a remarkable and troubling story.
The real trouble, though, emerged when it was revealed Eichenwald actually paid Berry $2,000 -- which he said was actually a loan that he demanded be repaid and was by Berry's grandmother.
Still, it gave the appearance of paying a source -- a big-time no-no, though Eichenwald has vehemently denied he did anything wrong.
Now comes word that Eichenwald may have paid additional money to Berry and a man who ran the Web site where Berry appeared.
Richard Perez-Pena reports in today's Times that as much as $1,100 more was put into a PayPal account controlled by Berry.

“I have no independent memory of any payments I am alleged to have made in June 2005 through PayPal,” he said in a statement yesterday. “If these PayPal payments did occur in June 2005, I am deeply sorry that my inability to remember them has resulted in permitting a series of convicted felons to cast doubt on the nature of my wife’s and my efforts to save a young man who was caught in the grip of a cycle of drugs and abuse.”

Eichenwald, who now works at Portfolio, is referring to his contention that the initial $2,000 payment was made not as a reporter but as a person worried that Berry was in danger.

The statement to the Times is all well and good. What's more troubling is the weasel words "independent memory."
What the hell is that, anyway?
In any event, why would it be so hard to remember making an additional payment to Berry. Giving the boy cash was ostensibly not a regular occurrence, so you'd think it'd be pretty easy to recall that happening.
You want to root for Eichenwald because he wrote such a good story that, ethical lapses aside, was a gripping yarn that deserves acclaim. But he just doesn't make it easy.

Marvin Zindler Has Left The Building

The Wigged-Out Wonder of Houston Signs Off For The Last Time -- Who's Gonna Find the Slime in the Ice Machine Now?

One of the few times I got to see Marvin Zindler was when he appeared on a network morning show, or an occasional appearance with Leno.
But the fact that I saw him rarely yet still had that shocking white wig or his indelible sign-off seared into my brain says a lot.

Which is why his passing yesterday at age 85 is an especially big deal in Houston, where he was a star attraction at KTRK, the ABC affiliate, for 34 years.
"Maaarvin Zindler, Eyewitness News" is how he'd finish one of his consumer reports that made him a hero to Houston's middle- and working classes. Indeed, he was much more than a self-made caricacture.
The bombast, big wig and brash suits concealed a heart of gold that armed him to fight injustice, roaches in restaurants and Houston's last bordello, a campaign that inspired "The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas."
In other words, a TV icon.
The station's Web site has quite the tribute to Zindler, with choice clips from his checkered career. Kudos to the Houston Chronicle for a great obit, which also includes an ample photo spread and a video tribute from ordinary Houstonians -- the ones Zindler cared about most --saying their goodbyes.

A BANG That Will Turn Into A Journalistic Whimper

Newsroom Consolidation Will Make East Bay Papers Irrelevant. But, Hey, At Least Dean Singleton Will Have Busted The Unions

In case you missed it, MediaNews Group announced last week it would attempt to suck what little life blood there is left out of the Bay Area News Group-East Bay by consolidating news rooms.
Most significantly, that means the Contra Costa Times, which MediaNews bought from McClatchy last year, will have its news operations merged with the Oakland Tribune. Five smaller newspapers in the East Bay, which have already seen their staffs desiccated since "Lean Dean" Singleton and the MediaNewsies took them over are also affected.
No shocker that one way the papers will be saving money is by reducing staff even further. Which is scary enough given current levels. Former San Mateo County Times managing editor John Bowman notes in his SpinDitties blog that when he came to the paper in 2002, he had 12 reporters. When he quit in disgust in May, he was down to eight.
And while Singleton's reducing staff, he'll also be trying to bust unions as well. The East Bay Express says it could well happen. Reporters at the Tribune and its sister papers are unionized, but not at the Contra Costa Times and its brethren.
By combining newsroom staffs, if MediaNews can show that among those left, there are more left from the Times side, it can conceivably push to decertify the union because it no longer represents the majority of employees.
Not a slam dunk, of course, but Singleton's got nothing but time, and apparently a lot of money to pay labor lawyers.
Actually, to say Singleton could "conceivably" make that move may benaive, at least in Bowman's view, which has been bitterly tinged by first-hand knowledge.

[E]verything in my experience as an ANG manager for nearly five years --including attending a couple of long meetings with the company's labor attorneys earlier this year -- tells me that's exactly what Singleton and his Bay Area waterboy, Kevin Keane, have in mind.

At those meetings, held in Pleasanton with all other ANG editors including Mr. Keane, the main topic of discussion was this: What could managers say, and how far could we go, to encourage Guild employees to demand a vote to decertify the Guild, while not breaking any labor laws.

The writing may not be on the wall, but the pens are being procured forthwith.

Bancrofts Could Be Looking To Uphold Integrity of Wall Street Journal By Trying To Squeeze More Bucks Out of Murdoch

Which Ol' Rupe Says Is A Non-Starter; Could Be A Case of Seller's Remorse

Wall Street Journal says a bunch of the Bancrofts are turning thumbs-down, for now, on the News Corp. attempted $5 billion grab of Dow Jones and the WSJ.
Could be beginning of a way to weasel out of deal without ticking off too many DJ shareholders, and mollify cousins who want to keep the franchise in family hands.
Then again, it could just be a game of financial chicken, now that Murdoch has been salivating over getting his hands on the Journal.
Stay tuned.

Paula Zahn Makes It Official; Campbell Brown To Take Up Residence in the 8 p.m. Lion's Den

After rampant speculation fueled by poorly kept secrets, Paula Zahn has resigned from her 8 p.m. ET show on CNN, and will depart the airwaves next week, though her contract with the net runs through the end of the year.

New arrival Campbell Brown will take over Zahn's slot. CNN is trying something, anything, to buck up its fourth-place showing among the cable newsers in that hour. As we've opined in some of the posts just below, putting Brown there once she finally settles in post-maternity leave, is not the best place for her.

As Zahn told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, people watching at 8 p.m. are "drawn to opinion, and that's not what I do."

And good for her, given that Nancy Grace, Bill O'Reilly and Keith Olbermann were picking up that slack. Still, however noble counter-programming might be, the Nielesens didn't give Zahn -- a kind soul in TV land whom I met during my days at CBS -- her proper due.

A shoutfest will also undoubtedly not be in Brown's cards, as that's not where her strengths lie. But the dilemma remains: if people don't want a more-traditional news and analysis program at 8, why prime her for another fourth-place finish for CNN?

Why not put her on earlier, say 4 p.m. or 7 p.m. ET and let Lou Dobbs bark up a storm at 8, while rearranging the slot for "The Situation Room?"

That could still happen, of course, but at the expense of what are likely to be arduous attempts by Brown to first build an audience, only to hope they move with her if Dobbs changes slots.

For the conspiracy theorists out there, it sounds like this was actually a mutual decision for a change, rather than "resign" being a euphemism for "don't let the door hit you on the way out."

Zahn was asked by the New York Daily News if she could have stayed. Her reply:

"The truth is, [CNN President Jonathan Klein] and I have been talking about this for many, many months, and when we started discussions on what the options would be, I'd done them all in a 30-year career," Zahn said. "It was best for both of us to move on."

Campbell Brown Departure Could Slide Natalie Morales Closer to Lester Holt

"Today" Everywoman Should Be Big Favorite to Become New "Weekend Today" Co-Host

Natalie Morales has spent a lot of time sitting in different chairs on "Today" without having enough time to get fully comfortable.

Campbell Brown's departure from "Weekend Today" to CNN should change that.

Morales has filled in for Katie Couric and Meredith Vieira, done time as a news reader for Ann Curry and now pops up a lot hosting in the fluffier 9 a.m. hour, when Vieira is not allowed to appear because of her "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" contract.

But Morales has shown herself to be about more than cooking and fashion segments, and has helped cover such stories as the tsunami, Katrina and the 2004 election.

That and the fact that she's dutifully done her time on the dawn patrol for The Peacock merits a shot next to Lester Holt for "Weekend Today."

Should be a no-brainer, but then again I said that about Brown replacing Couric on "Today." Because that didn't happen is why Brown will next be seen on CNN in November.

Still, I like her chances, with Amy Robach sliding over to take over Morales' duties during the week.

Longer shots: Dateline's Hoda Kotb and Darlene Rodriguez, morning anchor on WNBC-TV.

Mmm, Good-Bye Campbell, Says NBC

Handicapping Where Brown Will Wind Up On CNN Sked

Now that Campbell Brown has finally made it official that she's bolting from NBC News this week to host her own program on CNN come November, this could be an opportunity for the House That Turner Built to shake up its schedule and bolster its Nielsens without trying to necessarily outfox Fox.
But first things first. November is a month before she's due to deliver her first baby. Does CNN really want to introduce one of its franchise players only to see her disappear for three months? Instead, look for Brown to have her coming-out party sometime next spring, although she told the A.P. she hopes to be back for the big presidential primaries in February.
Whenever she takes up residence in the Time Warner Center, the larger question is where she's parked in the lineup.
CNN could put her on at 4 p.m. and let "The Situation Room" run two hours instead of three, which would mean a lot less padding, punditry and Jack Cafferty.
Or, they could stick Brown at 7 p.m., and have "Situation Room" run continuously 4-7 p.m., while "Lou Dobbs Tonight" goes to 8 p.m., booting Paula Zahn and giving CNN perhaps its best chance to take a run at Bill O'Reilly, while making Nancy Grace and Keith Olbermann chase tail.
Tempting as that may seem, Dobbs is a formidable player at 6 p.m. and has seen his audience continue to grow. CNN may not want to disturb that tentpole and risk losing a chunk of that audience, especially during election season.
Still, merely replacing Brown -- appealing as she might be -- with Zahn is unlikely to be the kick in the ratings butt CNN so badly needs in primetime. "LDT" may be ready for its closeup, and O'Reilly may already be getting a bad case of flopsweat.

New York Times Shows How To Do Less With More With Steam Pipe Explosion Coverage

A Time To Put the New York Back Into The Times

Thankfully, it was only an explosion of an ancient steam pipe near Grand Central Terminal and not a blast that would have led us to call yesterday 7/18, or something like that.
Still, when a massive pipe bursts in midtown Manhattan during the height of rush hour, sending plumes of brown steam containing who knows what as high as the nearby Chrysler Building, it's a big deal.
The New York Times metro staff realized that -- up to a point.
A large photo ran above the fold, along with a story that jumped to the Metro section, which was entirely fronted with some graphic photos from the scene.
Inside, there was a full inside page and half of another. All told, 20 reporters and photographers were credited with working on the coverage.
So, how come then, there were only three stories on the blast?
Yes, it was an explosion. No, terrorism was not to blame. Still, one person died and at least 30 were injured. Not only that, but subway service was disrupted for hundreds of thousands of riders, while midtown streets and avenues were put in a "frozen zone" that made already-lousy traffic a miasma to unnerve even the most grizzled of city drivers.
The three articles are decent enough, but with so many people on the story, you can't help but wonder if they could have fleshed out more stories instead of combining so many snippets.
It is for times like these that the Times needs to remember the New York in its title is not just a holdover from some bygone era when the paper actually sold more copies inside the city limits.
Three articles also mean that's one less piece than was devoted to preview coverage of the British Open.
Priorities, anyone?

New York Times Economics Coverage Gets More Economical

Using "Change" As A Euphemism

Tucked into today's Business Day section of The New York Times is a note that there are "some changes" in the paper's economics coverage. Translation: there'll be less of it.
The Economic Scene column, a bastion on Thursdays, is now moving to Wednesday, where it'll be written by the always-interesting-to-read David Leonhardt (above) who penned the Economix column.
The rotating panel of columnists who were doing Economic Scene will write the already-existing Economic View column that appears in the Sunday business section.
So, if my math is correct, that means one less economics column in a paper that for decades, going back to Leonard Silk, has a long and impressive legacy in guiding economics coverage.
Then again, the paper itself is getting more economical. The Times will shrink to a now-industry-standard 12-inch width on Aug. 6, which will also trim the newshole by 5 percent, maybe more once you factor in the ads that are now being sold on some section fronts, including the business section.

Muggle Michiko Kakutani Conjures Up An Early Review of "Deathly Hallows"

Everyone's Wild About Harry, But Real Mystery is Who Sold N.Y. Times Book Critic A Copy of "Potter" Yesterday

Notoriously picky New York Times book critic Michiko Kakutani has proven herself to be an ardent fan of the "Harry Potter" series , no more so than with her thumbs-up review of 2005's "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince."

So, it would have been a safe assumption that the Times would have her evaluating "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," presumably on Saturday when the book, which has an initial printing of 40 quadrillion copies, will be officially released at 12:01 a.m.

Except Kakutani had a few tricks up her sleeves. Her review of "Deathly Hallows is in today's paper, not because Scholastic wanted to do a favor for an important critic who had been kind to Harry.

Rather, she admits, a copy was purchased at a "New York City store," even though Scholastic has been pulling out all the stops, with middling success, to keep the book under wraps until Saturday.

Those pesky Muggle book-store people, always spoiling the magic for everyone else. But Kakutani was not through.

Somehow, she not only procured the book, but was able to get through its 759 pages in time to write a review, which apparently took long enough to write because it appeared in the A section rather than the earlier-to-bed arts pages.

Somewhere, Evelyn Wood must be smiling.

Or, maybe the dirty secret of book critics -- that they don't actually read every word between the covers -- just got a little filthier.

UPDATE: J.K. Rowling and her publisher are big-time P.O.'ed at Kakutani for being a Potter party-pooper. Also, the Baltimore Sun gets its paws on a copy too, through which it calls "legal and ordinary means," which The Guardian elaborates was reporter Mary Carole McCauley "getting a a copy from a relative ... who had received it prematurely."

Just In Time for Heat Wave, New York Times Gives Readers The Big Chill

Sure, Features Are Supposed to Be Evergreen, But.....

It's standard practice for reporters, especially at larger newspapers, to write features that don't have any time element, which allows them to be used when needed --- say on a slow news day when you need to fill space.
Which means that some worthy stories can get lost in the shuffle or forgotten. Case in point today: The New York Times published on A4 a story about the legion of "replacement drivers" in Seoul, those who drive inebriated people and their cars home. Then they use public transportation or hitch a ride to get back to the city and start over again.
It was an intriguing slice of life from Choe Sang-Hun, who followed one Hur Rak as he worked a shift. Only thing: in the two photos that accompany the story, Hur and others are huddled wearing heavy jackets and hats.
A quick weather check reveals Seoul is enjoying summer temperatures in the mid-80s, so Choe's story has been on ice for quite a while. It's nice to be wanted -- even if it takes a while -- but you'd think the Times could have cranked this one out a few months ago.

A Mighty Pen Is Stilled: Remembering Doug Marlette

Doug Marlette was one of the finest of one of the misunderstood and endangered newsroom species, the editorial cartoonist.

Now comes word that Marlette was killed today in a one-car crash on a rain-slicked road in Mississippi. He was 57.

Beyond being consistently funny, what made him a must-read was that he was an equal-opportunity offender, as he was happy to define himself.

"Cartoons are windows into the human condition," he told the Tulsa World, when he joined that newspaper last year. "It's about life."

Marlette also drew the syndicated comic strip Kudzu, collaborated on a musical version of the strip, and wrote two well-received novels. But it will be the political cartoons, for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1988, that will best define his legacy (the cartoon above is from his Pulitzer portfolio).

Given the turmoil that has roiled the newspaper industry, Marlette felt lucky there were still newspapers around who would put up with someone like him. After all, only about 80 papers have cartoonists, down from 200 as recently as the 1980s.

As he wrote in the Tulsa World last year: "There's something about cartoons, by definition unruly, tasteless and immature, that brings out the ayatollah in even the most permissive of adults."

And Marlette was as unruly as they come.

Oldies Aren't Moldy After All, at WCBS-FM

Hit the Road "Jack," Or At Least Take Up Residence on HD2, as Solid Gold Sounds Get Polished Up To Return Thursday

For 33 years, WCBS-FM was New York's oldies station. Despite various tweaks in its format, a few changes to the airstaff and a gradually graying audience, the station was a reliable engine of profits for CBS Radio, with estimated billings of $35 million a year.
But back on June 3, 2005, that wasn't enough. And even though the station enjoyed healthy ratings, the brass decided those over-40 listeners just weren't going to bring in enough advertisers over the longer haul. So, out went the oldies and in came "Jack," the format that's meant to be more of a radio jukebox, playing everything from Gloria Gaynor to Led Zeppelin.
It was a miserable failure.
What had succeded in other markets died a horrible Arbitron death in New York, with a format that attempted to be a "Jack" of all trades, but master of none. Listeners didn't know what to expect at any given moment, and most didn't bother to find out.
So, with enlightened radio executive Dan Mason returning to helm CBS Radio, he decided not to stand pat with the festering "Jack" and bought himself and his bosses mountains of goodwill and, maybe, more money, with word that CBS-FM will go back to oldies on Thursday at 1:01 p.m. (the station is at 101.1 on the FM dial).
The rumors and speculation of the format flip had been running rampant in the radio trades, and the New York Radio Message Board, where posters have been fulminating about Jack for the last two years (full disclosure: I participate in discussisons there now and then). Then the New York Daily News bannered the news on its front page Saturday, a combination of a slow days and a semi-seismic event on the New York airwaves.
How did it happen that oldies is suddenly back in vogue? Well, first thing, it's not really oldies anymore. Now, it's called "Classic Hits." But that's more than just a semantic thing. The new station will skew more heavily toward 70s and 80s music, with flecks of the 60s a la Motown, the Beatles and the Beach Boys.
As for the likes of Elvis, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, and anyone else from the 50s, there's always satellite radio and your CD collection. Bottom line: the station doesn't want to play music that's older than the listeners it wants.
And for the three of you who will truly miss Jack-FM, fear not. The format will still be available online at the station's HD2 channel and here.

Forget "Lean Dean": Singleton Might As Well Be A Skeleton If He Gets His Way at the Pioneer-Press

And You Thought Things Were Bad at the Mercury-News

Sometimes you have to wonder why William Dean Singleton even bothers. He buys up newspapers large and small as head of MediaNews Group, then proceeds to suck the lifeblood out of them, presumably thinking there's a motherlode of profits to be unearthed after he clears out the deadwood the rest of us call reporters, editors and photographers.
As we've said repeatedly, no one begrudges the guy a right to make a profit. It's just sickening how he attempts to go about doing it, sacrificing the product and hoping readers won't notice or care.
The latest assault from "Lean Dean" was lobbed at the employees represented by the Newspaper Guild at the St. Paul Pioneer-Press. The Rake blog enumerates all the givebacks Singleton desperately craves, which would essentially reduce the staff to the ranks of indentured servants rather than seasoned professionals.
Everything from benefits, to vacation pay, severance, and overtime are on the table. Other papers' unions recently, including the Philadelphia Inquirer, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Toledo Blade and Singleton's San Jose Mercury-News, have approved contracts that were markedly worse than the one they had. But none of them were confronted with a proposal that was as brazenly draconian as the one Singleton has put forth in Minnesota.
If the bottom truly is falling out of the newspaper business, you'll know the real reason why by looking at Singleton's demands.
For those of you who have been following Singleton's slash-and-burn approach to the Mercury-News staffing levels, John Bowman offers some keen insights into just how fervently Singleton has pinched pennies at his other Bay Area properties and what that could mean for the Merc.
Bowman should know, having worked for Singleton five years before "quitting in disgust."
Yesterday, Bowman noted that Singleton had one editor in charge of the news report for five newspapers for the Fourth of July.

That's one editor to oversee the staffs at five spread-out newspapers, assign stories if news breaks and guarantee the accuracy of stories written by reporters at all five papers. That might sound like a reckless -- even dangerous -- way to operate newspapers in an area that sits on a couple of America's most notorious earthquake faults, and where a flash fire can destroy a neighborhood of hundreds of homes in the time it takes the A's to get to the seventh-inning stretch. But it is standard operating procedure on every holiday -- and every Saturday and Sunday, for that matter -- at Dean Singleton's ANG papers.

Scary stuff, even if for Singleton it's SOP.

For newsroom managers complacent about thin holiday staffing, I think back 10 years ago to what was shaping up to be a very quiet Labor Day weekend. I had finished a Saturday shift at CBS Radio, when I had done an occasional interview but not much else. It was how it was supposed to be. A few hours later, Princess Diana would change that.
We were fortunate in that it was late in Europe, where it was not a holiday weekend. Our London correspondent, the late Adam Raphael and Paris reporter Elaine Cobbe hit the airwaves soon after word broke. Raphael, a well-connected veteran, was among the first to confirm her death.
Alas, over on the TV side, they were caught flat-footed as there was no correspondent in the building late on a Saturday night. While other networks were going wall-to-wall, the CBS station in New York was showing pro wrestling until a reporter from WCBS-TV came on the network to read wire copy.
It took more than an hour for the TV network to cover the story on its own. The result: "reassignments" of senior executives in the news division -- particulary Lane Venardos -- who was in charge of hard news and was shifted to special events.
End result: There is always a correspondent or anchor in the CBS Broadcast Center to go on the air 24/7 to prevent another fiasco like the Diana crash.
Singleton's California papers are one earthquake or freeway collapse away from meeting a similar fate.

AAA Radio Gets Downgraded By XM

"Enhancements" Mean XM Cafe and Starbucks Hear Music Channels Are Being Combined

Buried in a press release earlier this week about channel "enhancements," XM Radio jolted listeners like me who turn to it largely for its AAA (Adult Album Alternative) programming, which is spread over three channels that have each succeded quite well on their own merits. At least I thought so.

XM says it will launch the Starbucks XM Cafe channel on Aug. 1 to create the "highest-quality coffeehouse music experience ."

Fine and dandy. Only thing: What that actually means is XM is combining two of the AAA channels, XM Cafe (ch. 45) and Starbucks Hear Music (ch. 75) into one.

Enhancements don't usually come from subtraction, but there you go.

At first listen, both channels cater to essentially the same audience -- 25-54 adults who have been disenfranchised by the stultifying programming on commercial terrestrial radio. They feature an eclectic, expansive playlist, everything from Norah Jones and Lyle Lovett, to REM, Snow Patrol and Bonnie Raitt.

One nice thing about both channels -- slightly more so at XM Cafe -- is that they feature a lot of new artists who would otherwisie go unheard on the radio. I know iTunes has gotten some business from me after I heard a song on one of the channels that I wanted to keep.

To be sure, there's enough out there for both channels to be complementary to each other, even if some artists and songs were duplicated. That's certainly not unique on XM, which has enough formats floating around its channels for songs to span several genres for different audiences.

By consolidating XM Cafe and Starbucks, many promising artists may be iced out of the playlists, especially if there's a greater emphasis on artists whose CDs you can buy at Starbucks.

Either way, it's a shame that XM has diminished one of its reasons for being. You pay your $12.95 to choose what you listen to, rather than let someone else who may be more focused on what music moves more macchiatos choose for you.

A Study of African Contrasts In The New York Times

In Age of Shrinking Foreign Bureaus, Gray Lady's Presence A Welcome Sight

Say what you will about The New York Times, and we often do, but at a time when the nips and tucks in its newsroom budget have become evident, the same, thankfully, cannot be said for its foreign coverage.
Case in point: A front-page dispatch yesterday from Sharon LaFraniere in Mauritania, where the men like their wives fat. The fatter, the sexier. And they're dead serious about that, to the point where thousands of women and teenagers are deliberately overfed, so they become more desirable to suitors -- themselves usually thin -- in the Muslim nation.

For decades, the Mauritanian version of a Western teenager’s crash diet was a crash feeding program, devised to create girls obese enough to display family wealth and epitomize the Mauritanian ideal. Centuries-old poems glorified women immobilized by fat, moving so slowly they seemed to stand still, unable to hoist themselves onto camels without the aid of men’s willing hands.

It's a brilliant slice of life from a place most Americans would have trouble finding a map, assuming they could find the continent in the first place. But the Times' Africa hands have often shown the ability to ferret out stories from remote locales and convey the essence of places we've never known.
That there is a part of Africa where binge eating is encouraged, when so many other nations on the continent struggle with malnutrition and starvation is itself remarkable, which made Michael Wines' piece from Johannesburg yesterday about the turmoil in Zimbabwe even more troubling.
Even when people there are in a position to feed themselves, an inflation rate that may be as high as 10,000 percent often precludes the purchase of staple foods. And government efforts to curb prices are only making matters worse.
Wines' previous reporting from Zimbabwe has kept him off Robert Mugabe's Christmas card list, which is why Harare may be but a memory for him for the short term.
That Mugabe has managed to hang on in the face of internal chaos and stiff international pressure is nothing short of remarkable, not to mention tragic.
Having reporters, rather than relying on wire services for such an explosive story, is the stuff that makes papers great. It may not show up in newsstand sales, but a paper that doesn't stray from its core journalistic mission can finesse that -- something the Bancrofts should continue thinking long and hard about before turning over Dow Jones' keys to Rupert Murdoch.

P.S. Covering Africa may be the most rewarding assignment in a reporter's career as well as the most challenging and frustrating. Wines wrote cogently last year about the particular dilemmas he faces.

The Times and Journal Editorial Pages Actually Agree on the Libby Sentence? Well, Sort Of

Bush Plays the Get Out of Jail (Not Free) Card For Scooter and Editorials Are Apoplectic for Different Reasons
It was safe to assume The New York Times would rip President Bush to shreds for commuting Scooter Libby's sentence. But you wouldn't have expected The Wall Street Journal to essentially do the same.
Of course, they reached that conclusion by taking entirely different routes. Noted the Times:

Mr. Bush’s assertion that he respected the verdict but considered the sentence excessive only underscored the way this president is tough on crime when it’s committed by common folk. As governor of Texas, he was infamous for joking about the impending execution of Karla Faye Tucker, a killer who became a born-again Christian on death row. As president, he has repeatedly put himself and those on his team, especially Mr. Cheney, above the law.

So, no great surprise, then, from Andy Rosenthal & Co. about what transpired yesterday.

To call the Journal's editorials right-wing is to severely understate the case on most days. The early betting had been that Paul Gigot and his gang would be singing the sweetest of hosannas to Bush for keeping one of their main men out of the pokey. But a lot of dissonance emerged instead.

[B]y failing to issue a full pardon, Mr. Bush is evading responsibility for the role his Administration played in letting the Plame affair build into fiasco and, ultimately, this personal tragedy.

The Journal is miffed because Libby was taking the fall for something that was most likely not of his own making, at least in their view. Mr. Libby deserved better from the President whose policies he tried to defend when others were running for cover.

Whether he should have followed their lead is something the Journal doesn't address because it would mean actually criticizing Bush administration policy, something it has been loathe to do even in the most obvious and odious of circumstances.
Gigot has been blindingly loyal to Bush, even to the point of risking the Journal's credibility in the process. The editorial conveys the bitterness upon learning that Bush could not muster the guts to respond in kind.
For the Journal, committing a felony takes a backseat to fealty. He's one of us. Leave him be. Even Dubya found that hard to stomach.

Mercury-News Poisoned By New Round of Layoffs

From The Dot Bomb To Craig Running Wild With His List, End Result Is A Shriveled Newsroom
"The bloodletting has to stop."
That pronouncement from SaveTheMerc, a Web site run by the San Jose Newspaper Guild, which lost 31 members Monday in the latest round of layoffs at the Mercury-News.
That means the size of the newsroom staff has now been cut in half to 200 since the dot-com heyday faded.
The usual suspects are to blame, fewer classifieds, free online ads and more people willing to read the paper online for free than to plunk down a few coins for the print version.
So while nobody begrudges the need for owner William "Lean Dean" Singleton to make a profit, slashing and burning what makes the Merc an indispensable read is not the way to go about that. As the SaveTheMerc notes:

San Jose deserves a great newspaper. Silicon Valley deserves a great newspaper. There are hundreds of stories to be told about changing communities, cutting edge technologies, pop culture and high art, school boards and government. Who will tell these stories?

An excellent question.

One story they may be telling a year from now is the latest version of what happened Monday, if management can't find a way to right the ship.
The Guild was told there would not be any more layoffs for this fiscal year, which fortunately just began Sunday.

Now That The Bun's In The Oven, Campbell Brown Puts Herself On Hiatus

A belated mazel tov to Campbell Brown and husband Dan Senor for their upcoming family expansion.
Brown, who's wrapping up her tenure on "Weekend Today" before heading to CNN (all but announced) in an as-yet-undefined role, made it official on Sunday's program.
No word yet on a due date or the gender. Apparently, she wants to find out, while the hubby prefers to wait.
Outside the Brown household, the larger question is what does this mean for Brown vis a vis CNN.
The betting line had Brown uprooting Paula Zahn from the 8 p.m. slot, although her arrival could presage a larger rearrangement of the anchor chairs (Lou Dobbs in prime time, anyone?). If Brown is on the shelf for a few months, will CNN wait for her to come back, or will they move quicker on Zahn and put another anchor in as a place holder? Or none of the above.
Bashing Zahn has become a little too fashionable as of late, especially when her ratings have improved though her numbers most nights still put her behind Bill O'Reilly, Keith Olbermann and Nancy Grace (also preggers albeit with twins).
Merely swapping out Brown -- however engaging and talented she might be -- for Zahn may not be what CNN needs in that slot to make a serious dent. Which is why the cajoling of Dobbs by CNN brass may have already begun.

The Sun Blares Its Blair Exclusive As Tony Bids Toodle-Oo

Murdoch's Busty Tab Nabbed A Sit-Down With Dubya Last Month. Did He Ever Read Page 3?
You don't read The Sun, Britain's raciest and -- not coincidentally -- best-selling tabloid for its insightful political coverage.
Instead, Rupert Murdoch has the bread for this cash cow buttered with a heavy dose of sports, gossip and, of course, the Page 3 girls, whose revealing profiles can make being squeezed like a sardine during a rush-hour ride on the Underground a tad more tolerable.
But as it turns out, Sun Editor Rebekah Wade nailed a softball interview with Dubya last month in the Oval Office, where he waxed poetic about Tony Blair's impending departure, which happened this morning.
"Blair ain't my poodle, says Bush" blares the Sun headline.
Indeed, Bush says Blair's more of a pit bull who can talk circles around him.

“Tony’s great skill, and I wish I had it, is that he’s very articulate. I wish I was a better speaker. This guy can really . . . he can talk ... We have different speaking styles, of course. He’s much more kind of lofty and eloquent than I am."

Don't we know it.

Trouble In Paradise: Antigua and Other Caribbean Nations Show How A Free Press Has A Price

Discouraging Words Are Discouraged As Islands Refuse To Let Sunshine In

The feisty blog Barbados Free Press brought our attention to an item from Caribbean360.com about how Antigua gave the boot to the editor of the local daily paper, the Antigua Sun, under the guise of immigration violations.
This happened, despite the fact that Vernon Khelawan is a citizen of the Caribbean Community and Common Market, where people who live in any of the 15 member nations are supposed to be able to travel freely.
The government also deported Lennox Linton of the privately owned Observer Radio.
In case you were wondering, Antigua's constitution explicitly guarantees freedom of the press, but Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer doesn't seem to concerned about that for now.
Regrettably, incidents like these are hardly shockers in the Caribbean Basin, according to Barbados Free Press.

Folks in larger countries do not realise the power that small island governments have over their citizens and their local media. If a reporter or a citizen says the wrong thing or asks the wrong questions in Barbados, Antigua, St. Lucia or a host of other Caribbean islands, they probably won’t have their leg broken when they answer the door in the middle of the night…

But their wife or brother will be fired from their job for no apparent reason. Or that building permit that their sister wanted won’t come through. Or their good friend’s computer servicing company will suddenly find their government supplier designation “under review.”

Sippy-Cup Battle Looks Good on TV, But Real Story Isn't Being Told

No Water-Gate Here: Baby Or Not, This Time The TSA Got It Right

A preface: I've had enough rotten experiences at airport security lines like almost all of us. So, you won't see me reflexively rushing to the defense of the TSA, even if they did reimburse me $150 for a destroyed bag without giving me a hassle.
This weekend, the agency was once again on the wrong end of the spotlight, when network news programs showed video of a woman named Monica Emmerson -- who just happened to be a former Secret Service agent -- having an angry confrontation at Reagan National Airport in Washington after being told she couldn't take a sippy cup for her baby filled with water through a checkpoint.
The donnybrook kicked off when Emmerson then either dumped out the water on the floor, or as she says, accidentally spillled it. Eventually, she cleaned it up. But the damage was done. Amid this version of Water-gate, she and her 19-month-old missed their flight.
And that should have been the end of it, except for the fact that Emmerson made a big stink of what happened by posting in a local forum, and soon the blogosphere took hold of the story. The TSA then responded by posting a video of the incident on its Web site, to show its agents did nothing wrong. So vehemently did the TSA believe in its position that it placed the video under a heading blithely labeled "Mythbusters."
ABC tried to present a balanced report by saying "in a tense environment, some argue that passengers need to be more aware — and that the sippy cup mom may have acted inappropriately."
The problem phrase here is "may have." The video was provacative enough and relatable to millions of beleaguered travelers. Yet, in the end, it really shouldn't have been much of a story, if any at all.
The real news here may be that the TSA got this one right. As is stated clearly at TSA.gov, "[p]rescription medications, baby formula and milk (when traveling with an infant or toddler) are allowed in reasonable quantities exceeding three ounces...."
Not water.
We don't know if this was explained to ex-agent/pissed-off Emmerson. Either way, her reaction was not the one warranted or deserved. The mere presence of the incident being caught on tape didn't make it any more newsworthy.
I came up against this rule myself traveling with my toddler earlier this year at LAX. If there had been milk or juice in my son's sippy cup, that would have been fine. But it was water, and that it was verboten was conveyed to me in a matter-of-fact, even apologetic way.
I've long since shrugged off incidents like these as just one of the many annoyances of flying today, rather than throw a hissy fit. You won't win the argument nor should you.
I've actually noticed an increased level of professionalism and courtesy among TSA personnel, who had been more prone to make up rules as they went along and treat passengers like cockroaches who stood in the way of their coffee break.
Which is not to say they are perfect, but on this day at Reagan Airport, they were right.

Campbell Brown Heads Uptown, Tired Of Being Consolation Prize At NBC

Being A High-Paid Weekend Anchor and Fill-In Just Doesn't Cut It

NBC News has been quick to publicly claim its love and affection for Campbell Brown, the co-anchor of "Weekend Today" and designated Brian Williams fill-in on "NBC Nightly News." They've done everything short of putting Xs, Os and gold stickers on her paycheck as her contract comes up for renewal next month.

Thing is, Brown has shown she has the chops to be more than the scrappy utility player off the bench. Which is why she felt rightfully felt wronged when NBC threw open its vault to snag Meredith Vieira to replace Katie Couric on "Today," when they already had Brown lying in wait, and who could have been had for a lot less.

So, now comes news from various sources, including The Washington Post, that Brown is on the verge of leaving 30 Rock and head west to the Time Warner Center, where CNN has its New York digs.

NBC could match any offer, but likely won't, as any Brown deal will likely be in the seven figures, and as John Siegenthaler and Stone Phillips found out the hard way, the network isn't inclined to pay those sums any more to anyone but those perched on the top shelf. To be sure, Brown belongs there but there just isn't any room.

So, it's likely off to CNN, which is likely bad news for Paula Zahn, whose ratings have been decent, yet still pale in comparison to "The O'Reilly Factor." The Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes how CNN has been patient, perhaps to a fault, nurturing Zahn's show since she jumped from Fox News Channel in 2003.

Brown's arrival could be the impetus CNN needs to do something about that, namely move "Lou Dobbs Tonight" to 8 p.m. to take on O'Reilly, leaving Brown to slip into Dobbs' slot at 6 p.m. or to get a 7 p.m. gig if CNN revamps Wolf Blitzer's "Situation Room," which now runs 4-6 p.m. and 7-8 p.m.

Getting Steamed About LG Steam Dryer Spots

So With All This Whizbang Technology, Why Fake The Star Attraction?
As someone who's been appliance shopping lately, a TV spot I caught a couple of days ago for the LG Steam Dryer grabbed my attention.
Thoughts of sending the iron to my dustbin vanished as the announcer extolled the virtues of the Steam Fresh feature, which injects steam via a pump and cartridge system to reduce wrinkles on dry clothing without water.
Pretty cool, huh. And you'd think that for the privilege of shelling out as much as $1,400 for the machine you'd get to watch the steam in motion. You do in the commercial. Only thing, up flashes a "steam simulated" sign.
Fake steam? Now I'm steamed!

SFGate.com Really Puts The Service Into Service Journalism

Violet Blue's Open Source Sex Column Source of Some Really Probing Journalism

Give SFGate.com, the web portal for the San Francisco Chronicle a lot of credit. It's anything but boring.
Case in point: The online column Open Source Sex from Violet Blue offers advice that, suffice to say, would not have been proffered by Ann Landers.
To wit, the column on how to safely fly with sex toys, which is one you won't see in too many papers outside San Francisco. Their loss.
A particularly helpful hint: check your fetishes at curbside along with your baggage.

"Remember that if they're confiscating toenail clippers and eyebrow tweezers, they're definitely not letting you bring the fuzzy handcuffs, tit clamps, leather flogger or unusually shaped vibrator on the plane."

Advice I'll be sure to take to heart next time I'm traveling without the kids.

Why Editors Shouldn't Try To Make Excuses For Layoffs

Trying Times In The Triad for the Greensboro News & Record Leaves Editor Attempting to Convince Readers He'll Do More With Less
Pink slips to prevent red ink are becoming common in newsrooms nationwide, including the Greensboro News & Record, where 18 reporters and editors were among the 41 who were axed last week.
So, at least give editor John Robinson credit for trying to put a smiley face on the bloodletting.
Like others at newspapers that have experiences similar losses, he failed miserably.
On his blog today, Robinson was unconvincing in explaining what happened and how the paper will move forward. Let's parse a few of his missives, shall we?

Talented folks left the building, and we'll miss them. This hard business decision brings us in line with many newspapers across the country.

So what Robinson appears to be saying is everyone else is doing it, so why can't we? Too bad, there's no one to give Robinson the equivalent reply I used to get from my Mom as a kid, some variation of "if everyone else jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge would you do it too?"
No one's forcing you to lay off anyone John; it was a business decision to prop up profits at the expense of your staff, plain and simple.

I respect the folks who left too much to suggest that we won't miss them in the newspaper. Our challenge is to make sure that we are producing the journalism that helps you understand and engage with the world.

Robinson then says the paper will organize around three themes. The first -- public service journalism -- is what Robinson rightly calls the "core reason we exist." He tells us that means "unique" stories, more investigative enterprise and community news."
But if you just slashed nearly 20 percent of your staff, who's left to do investigative reporting? And if you do free up someone for that, doesn't that mean other important stuff gets left by the wayside?

The second Robinson tenet is "audience-centered" journalism because -- news flash -- people are reading the paper online.
We will move faster to where you are so that we can get you what you need, when and how you need it.

Who's we? And with your staff threadbare, how can they move if they're constantly tethered to their desks?

Finally, he says the News & Record will be about "community building," on the belief that "there's a role for the newspapers to build community."

Of course, the last way to build community is to pull reporters out of those communities, which is what has happened. Robinson says the paper will continue its emphasis on "local, community-level news." But whether there's anything left worth reading about is a larger question that Robinson is in no position to answer.

However, given what's happened at all the other papers the News & Record has imitated, it's not hard to draw conclusions, none of which leave you sanguine about the quality of newsgathering in the Triad.

Will It Just Be The San Jose Mercury If There's Nobody Left To Cover the News?

"Lean Dean" Singleton Strikes Again, As He Prepares to Suck Lifeblood out of Silicon Valley's Prime News Source (Yes, Still)

Nobody at the San Jose Mercury-News who agreed to a draconian contract last year really should have expected that would be the end of their new owner's designs on reducing costs even further.
And now William Singleton has sadley proved them right, according to Grade The News. With a proposed 24 percent cut of the newsroom staff, he continues his campaign of killing the newspaper in order to save it.
No one disputes the Merc's days as a cash cow long ago dried up way before Knight Ridder packed it in, sold the paper to McClatchy, which then flipped it to Singleton's Media News. But it's a safe guess that the Merc still makes money, although Singleton keeps tight-lipped about those things.
It then becomes a question of how much profit is enough, especially in the challenging -- to put it charitably -- climate newspapers find themselves in.
And with Singleton pretty much achieving a newspaper hegemony by owning all the major titles in the East Bay, he's should have already wrung enough efficiencies out of his titles without having to gut his California flagship further.
Alas, he's proving us wrong, allowing him to prove that morale at the Merc could somehow sink even lower than it has.
Meantime, the staff has little to go on but the bromides from newly installed editrix Carole Leigh Hutton, telling them to chin up.
"This is a tough business these days, but it remains the very best profession, and we should all remain proud of our contributions to it."
Too bad pride doesn't get you to the head of the line at the unemployment office.

David Gregory Getting A Little Too Chummy Over At The White House?

During yesterday's NBC Nightly News, White House correspondent David "Stretch" Gregory reported on the impending departure of Bush communications czar/nonpariel spinmeister Dan Bartlett.
It got a little uncomfortable from my side of the TV when he referred to Bartlett on second reference as "Dan."
Which is fine if he's calling up Bartlett for a comment or running into him outside the press room and saying hi.
But even if the two of them carpool and play squash together once a week, "Dan" is still "Bartlett" to the rest of us. And for Gregory when he's on the air.