Dead Horse Media
Elizabeth Spiers annouced today that she will be leaving Dead Horse Media, LLC, the blog company she founded last year with angel investor funding from Justin Smith, president of The Week, and Carter Burden, president and CEO of Logicworks. In an email to friends and colleagues this afternoon, Spiers cited "an insurmountable difference of opinion regarding long-term strategy" as the reason for her departure. Explained Spiers: "I would like to do some projects that are materially riskier and more experimental than Dead Horse's existing properties", which include Fashionista, the fashion blog she founded early this year, law blog AboveTheLaw, Dealbreaker, DMH's inaugural blog, which covers Wall Street, and Supermogul, a C-level executive blog which Dealbreaker acquired earlier today (in an innovative M&A move that appears to defy all corporate logic). Asked what sort of projects she had hoped to pursue before parting ways with DHM, Spiers responded (in any admittedly vague way): "One project was an online magazine - a sort of Maxim for women, and the other was a news-oriented site with a heavy tech component. If I decide to do either or both of those projects independently, it might make sense to find a corporate partner instead of building corporate infrastructure from scratch again. But I haven't done the math yet, so we'll see." Spiers is unclear on who will succeed her or what her future role, if any, will be in DHM, which she claims to be leaving under amicable circumstances "after a lot of trying to make things work in spite of creative differences". She laughed off the suggestion that her departure had anything to do with her eviscerating review of the inaugural issue of Portfolio (which Conde Nast lauched to much fanfare — and criticism — earlier this week): "Well, I did want to do one last post on Dealbreaker that would be memorable, if only to me. But otherwise, the only impetus for the post was Portfolio's insistence on putting out a mediocre first issue. I wasn't trying to kick them on my way out the door. Not consciously, anyway".
Spiers, famously, got her start as the founding editor of Gawker. After a subsequent stint at New York Magazine, Spiers moved on to serve as editor-in-chief of Mediabistro. There, she created a stable of media-blogs* with the same eye for niche markets that she would later put to use with DHM. ETP looks forward to her next venture.
Update: Not surprisingly, Spiers' surprise exit from DHM has caused ripples in the blogosphere and biz/tech press, though we're not sure how Wired came to these conclusions based on no sourcing other than Spiers' email (not to mention forgetting that Spiers started out in the business world). The item also notes that Dealbreaker failed to garner much attention, which is totally true — just ask Solengo! Hmm. Perhaps they have something against Wetumpka.
*Requisite disclosure: ETP editor Rachel Sklar got her start in the blogosphere at FishbowlNY under Spiers.
Bucky Turco
In a classic damned if you do, damned if you don't media moment, NBC is starting to catch some flack for airing the images and videos contained in VT gunman Cho Seung-Hui's "multi-media" manifesto. As disturbing as the images are, the peacock should be applauded in its decision to not further sanitize the news than it already is. Although there's no moral equivalent for any kind of tragedy, it's hard to not, at the very...
Someone else will have to beat this Dead Horse. Elizabeth Spiers is out. (ETP's take above.)
Take heart, New York Times! Just in time to boost those sagging financials come scads and scads of cash, as Howard Milstein goes all in.
Plenty of flaklash to go around on the Cho Seung-Hui materials. Irate readers mob the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Las Vegas Review-Journal, others. According to E&P, the "two-pistol" photo was the most widely used image; angry respondents skew female.
In an online chat, Washington Post's Marc Fisher defends NBC's decision to air tapes, criticizes the NRA for "hypocrisy."
BET is preparing its first scripted series, Somebodies, a "sitcom about a group of black slackers." And, in all likelihood, in other news, Boondocks creator Aaron MacGruder is preparing to hate BET's first scripted series.
Anyone who had pinned their hopes of a healed nation on Lauren Conrad's sex tape had better re-evaluate their expectations. Cheer up, though! Jamie Kennedy's Kickin It Old Skool is coming!
Courtesy of Patrick McMullan
Last night was a can't-miss double-header for any party-hopping media-riffic type, especially those who love hyphenating words. ETP is well-known in certain circles for its love of party-going hyphenation, and we were duly out in full force working the room and breaking up fistfights. Not really, but that would have been awesome, especially if people fell into the pool in the middle of the CNN party like on Dynasty. Alas, the hijinks were limited to stealing CNN gift bags and playing "I crush your head!" with people from across the room, just because that's always a fun game. For more trenchant party reporting, however, we now cede the floor to ETP social-whirl correspondent and hyphenate extraordinaire Julia Allison, who also doubled as paparazzi for the event along with the other ETPers in attendance (and the gang from Patrick McMullan, from whom we borrow a snap or two). Grab a drink — they're free! — and get swept away in the glamour with us as we revisit the glittering affair times two.
The Four Seasons hosted a media two-fer last night, with parties for both the old guard — Larry King, celebrating 50 years of bad posture on-air, and the new — fresh-faced Observer-owning young Turk Jared Kushner, celebrating nine months of injecting new life into our favorite (new, smaller sized!) salmon weekly.
We walked into the lounge area at 5:30 (a full half hour early, because we take our party coverage very seriously) and were immediately herded to the bar by Four Seasons co-owner and consummate worker-of-the-room Julian Niccolini, who feted us with pink champagne and caviar. All on the Kush's Amex? This was a long way from free pizza on Tuesdays. (Ed. Er, yes, Julia, Niccolini greets aaaaaaaaall his guests with pink champagne and caviar!)
We quickly spotted Kushner — boy-publisher, occasional newspaper vendor, and possible Ivanka Trump paramour — holding court in the lounge area, grinning amiably with various media-friendly guests, including his father, 
siblings, the Observer staff, Tom Wolfe, and beleaguered Star EIC Bonnie Fuller (in a terrific set-for-spring blouse and Prada bag, we might add). We also saw the NYTBR's Rachel Donadio (so smiley!) — Page Six's Corynne Steindler and Bill Hoffman, Crain's Matthew Flamm, Rush & Molloy's relentlessly chipper Patrick Hugenin, New York Magazine's Jesse Oxfeld (so smiley!), the Daily News' Ben Widdicome (proudly sporting a man purse, or "murse"), and former Seventeen EIC and unabashed MySpace-lover Atoosa Rubenstein. Radar's entire masthead (no, seriously. Every. Single. Staffer.) was there, including a very jovial EIC Maer Roshan, deputy editor Chris Tennant (whose hair was going head-to-head with fellow staffer Adam Lakhof for sheer gravity-defying frontal 
height), gossipista-extraordinaire Jeff Bercovici, exec editor Aaron Gell, and the ubiquitous assistant editor Neel Shah. Flame-haired Observer alum and former Banana Republiquista Jessica Joffe made an appearance, as did Gawker's Doree Shafir (Gawquista!) Additional Gawquista Choire Sicha (and former Observista) was there in a highly touchable olive velvet blazer, plus other Observer alumns like Rebecca Traister (Salonista) plus Sheelah Kolhatkar and Gabe Sherman, now both at Portfolio (Portfolista? Okay, we're done now). Either way, both looked very chic and, it was observed by more than one person, very Condé. Laundry list of other attendees below; we need to get back to the storyline.
Although we were overjoyed at the opportunity to eat free tuna tartare (on potato chips!) with our favorite boldfaced newsmakers, we weren't exactly clear on what the party was for, per se. Of course, there's the new, way-cuter-and-easier-to-hold tabloid format, launched in mid-February (on 
Valentine's Day! Aw!). Then there's the upcoming website redesign, rumored to go live as early as next week. Or maybe - OMG! - they were celebrating the Kush's acquisition of that one New Jersey politics-ish web site thingee. Who knows!? Who cares!?! There's always something to cheer when you're a baby Citizen Kane in the making, without the whole Rosebud thing holding you down.
We sidled up to the ever-polite Tom Wolfe, to ask him what he thought of all this. Mixing up his signature white suit with a Yankees tie (yes, they played last night. Who knew it was baseball season? Not us.), he eagerly expressed his admiration for the paper's new format. "It's hard to downsize any publication," he admitted.
Especially one known for 3,000 word couples-therapy transcripts! Still, the small O "looks better than ever." His explanation? "Peter Kaplan is a genius. He's created more great journalists than any man in New York." No news there — you only need to look at the mastheads of the NYT/New Yorker/Salon/Porfolio/Atlantic etc. to know that. And also, that it takes more than 25k and free pizza to keep talent.
But could the dapper Mister Wolfe be a bit biased? Well, his 26-year old daughter Alexandra began her J-school-perfect career under Kaplan, followed by the WSJ and now, Portfolio. In fact, an article she wrote there, "American Coddle" (about parents who, yep, coddle their kiddies) led to a book deal about the same subject - out from Doubleday in spring of '08. "She had some hard edits," he says, "but she just came home singing their praises. I really love the paper. Even the snarky part!"
And what says the resident genius Kaplan of the redesign? "My mom thinks it's adorable." Nothing like the focus group of ... mom. But adorable? "Adorable is good! Younger is good! More female is good!" We agree. Kaplan joked about the Observer's new look in his remarks to the crowd, saying that "like Jared, the paper has become younger, thinner, and better looking." (Ed. It should be noted that Kaplan was sporting a fairly adorable new haircut that made him look all of fifteen — Kushner certainly hadn't cornered the market on the Observer's boyish charm!) The paper, says Kaplan, is looking for those readers in the "generation that wants strong attitude with their writing. That's our calling. In a bloggy world we rely on a print tradition - story telling, reporting, writers who will cut through the crap with smart, edgy writing. Witty goes a long way."
But what price, wit? As we were asking media reporter Michael Thomas about his column in this week's issue, Kushner, ever cognizant of the bottom line, cut in and said "You have a dollar? Go buy a copy!!"
We're going, we're going!!
Ed. Here's that laundry list, in no particular order: Salon EIC Joan Walsh, braving the JetBlue skies to grace our coast (and wearing a great blazer with nice lapel detailing); dapper NYO style guru Simon Doonan; the lovely and erudite Liesl Schillinger; New York's John Heilmann; the NYP's Keith Kelly; Sir Harold Evans (and, according to Doree at Gawker, wife and Diana biographer Tina Brown); Steve Rubenstein plus Rubenstein pere, Howard; HuffPo's own Katherine Thomson, late of the NY Daily News, plus ETPer Sven Hodges; some dude who has a movie coming out in June at BAM who almost maxed out our patience; plus current Observer staffers Spencer Morgan, Alexandra Jacobs, Michael Calderone, Chris Schott, Lizzy Ratner, Felix Gilette, Tom McGeveran, and additional hyphenate Anna Schneider-Mayerson. We're sure we're missing people but, wow, not many.
As for the CNN party: You already know about the gift bags, but here's who we noticed/spoke to: Lou Dobbs, as mentioned; um, Larry King, we assume, and heard, though in truth did not see — oh, but the folks at Patrick McMullen did, and wow, looky who else was there: Donald & Melania Trump, Gayle King, Barbara Walters, Joy Behar, Walter Cronkite, Phil Donahue, Peter Max, Mario Cuomo, Andy Rooney, Cindy Adams, Steve Kroft, plus former Time top dog Jim Kelly (no relation to Keith above). 
We also saw Jerry Stiller milling about, and the sight of his receding form shuffling off with a gift bag in tow was very cute (we think he'd look just as swell as Neel in the hat). Plus, we are 85% positive that CNN commenterista Jeanne Moos was there, too (and definitely sure that B&C's Anne Becker was there, we shoulda asked her). We said hello to showtune-loving CNN prez Jon Klein but, alas, did not have a chance to sing with; as well as his not-relative Joe Klein from Time, with whom we enjoyed an extended conversation along with HuffPo contributor John Neffinger, until the lights were raised, the room cleared, and Klein's very patient and stylish wife Victoria tactfully came over to signal that it was time to go. The Observer party easily outlasted the CNN party, with stragglers keeping the spirit alive as all that remained of the CNN party was a lone pen floating in the pool. People finally — finally! — departed the Four Seasons (including, we assume, the couple sucking face on the windowsill, where they had been parked for at least an hour); Maer Roshan swore that he wouldn't be the last one, and wasn't, if you count being the sixth-last to get your coat, but not if you count standing on the street after with your staffers having a cigarette. Sorry Maer! Larry King was long gone, as were Jared and Peter and Tom Wolfe in his natty whites, and it was time for us to go, too. Apparently we had to go buy an Observer for a dollar; we didn't have the heart to tell Jared that it was free online.
Above, from L to R: Jared Kushner and Peter Kaplan (courtesy of Patrick McMullan); Megan Asha, Julian Niccolini, and Julia Allison; Corynne Steindler, Michael Calderone and Bill Hoffman; Atoosa Rubenstein and Jeff Bercovici; Rachel Donadio; Tom Wolfe (courtesy of Patrick McMullan); Chris Tennant, Jesse Oxfeld, Adam Lakhuf, Adam Lakhuf's hair; Neel Shah modeling CNN's spring hat line. All non-PMC photos above taken by Julia Allison and Rachel Sklar, who takes responsibility for all the italicized stuff and the relentless use of the "-ista" meme.
The New York Times
It's Thursday! And you can do your part, today, to help boost the New York Times' second quarter figures! How? By reading Thursday Styles! In this roundup: underwear, botulism, lacerations and fraud--they're the New Four Horsemen of West 43rd Street.
In the May issue of the (blessedly Andy Pemberton-free) Spin, Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello talks about his affinity for Democratic contender Barack Obama, citing qualities that include but are not limited to chocolatey goodness!
"He's certainly a different type of candidate. With his Kenyan father and white American mother, his Illinois roots, Harvard education, and handsome milk-chocolate good looks...five things we've got in common...maybe there's hope."
Nevertheless, Morello remains one of those "undecided" voters who have yet to be lovingly pandered to:
"I've been asked many times to perform for different candidates, and there's never been one I thought I could support. I don't think we've heard enough from Obama to make that determination yet. But if he wants to try George W. Bush as a war criminal, then I'll fire up the amps."
Hmmm. Given the message thus far from the Obama camp, we feel it's likely that Morello's support shall be rendered acoustically.
[Obama's opinion on this nation's shameful legacy of audioslavery was not known at press time.]
Mad photoshop skillz by Philip Bump
NYT via Gawker.com
Jeepers! Have you seen the New York Times' report on the first quarter of 2007? Silk purses are receding to the land of sow's ears: "The New York Times Company announced today first-quarter diluted earnings per share (EPS) from continuing operations of $.14, compared with $.21 in the first quarter last year." Yikes!
Of course, it's not all worse news. Some of it is just bad! Yet, fit to print:
But hey, Times Select subscriptions are said to be blowing up the interwebs. To learn precisely how much, however, you'll have to enrich Arthur Sulzberger Jr.'s portfolio by buying him a sandwich or something.
More from Gawker here and here.
Tangentially related: The Style section looks at boy-undies, and helpfully intimates where one might first wish to apply first aid.
Post by Jason Linkins; photo selection by Rachel Sklar, plus the stuff about "boy-undies."
While there will be more posted on last night's New York Observer party later, its proximity to Larry King's 50th anniversary bash (both at the Four Seasons, linked by a short hallway) provided this: On leaving, without a gift bag, we walked by CNN's golden-haired beacon of gravitas Lou Dobbs laughing with two other men, dragging on a cigarette. We were shocked — shocked! — to see it. Quick, someone ask Obama what he thinks!
And about those gift bags, CNN's party had them, the Observer didn't, but we got a peek inside. Check eBay for red fleece blankets with the CNN logo, a postcard of Larry and a fancy DVD set featuring Larry's best interviews. But, if you are so moved, feel free to send over an extra olive-green soft leather bag with the caramel-brown calfskin with matching leather tag embossed with "50 YEARS in broadcasting Larry King" with a star in the zero. (It's not the biggest writing but still, it's not the smallest tag. ) Sadly, there were no more left by the end of the event; that may have to do with the fact that the people manning the gift-bag tables kept offering them to the Observer guests sneaking in to the other party. Four Season party synergies!
Consider this: Today's New York Daily News manages a less subtle headline than the New York Post. NB: All definitions of the word "subtle" to be adjusted accordingly.
And, of course: Image courtesy of NBC News.
from inyourface.com
A surprising admission by David Broder in today's Washington Post:
I had never heard Imus's broadcast, because I am a longtime fan of NPR's "Morning Edition," which is on at the same time. I was stunned to learn how many of the journalists I admire had been regular guests on the program. Many are now having a hard time explaining their association.
David Broder — award-winning political columnist, regular on "Meet The Press," the "Dean of the Washington press corps," as Gawker points out — had no idea what went on on Imus' show? How is that possible? How would it have been possible to mix and mingle in that town and not know anything, about Don Imus' guests or his off-color reputation? How would it have been possible to consume media in any way and not know anything?
Personally, I have been at this for just over two years now, and have since seen "Imus in the Morning" less than you could count on two hands — but still, even I had heard of him. How? Thanks to the various scandals about the content of his show (my first-ever post on Imus was titled "Don Imus and Contessa Brewer: Can He Just Say That?"). Since then, I've been aware of Imus and his show, as most media watchers are, including the high-profile guests he's had. I do not hold myself out as any more or less educated than any others on this point — but I have to say, I would have thought David Broder would have topped me. Being so clued out about something that seems to have been regular water-cooler conversation in the world of Washington insiderism for so many years strikes me as really, really odd — and smacks, perhaps, of the willful blindness which he ascribes to his colleagues. Either that or no one tells David Broder anything.
Earlier this week, we discussed many of the angles to the Virginia Tech story that were likely to emerge. Today, we revisit how these story frames are developing in the media sphere.
Non-Traditional Content
In the immediate aftermath of the shootings, there were plenty of examples of how content from non-traditional sources were serving to flesh out the story, and capture aspects that traditional reportage couldn't. After yesterday afternoon, however, it is no longer possible to have a benign discussion about it. The packaged "manifesto" of Cho Seung-Hui has seen to that. This is not to say that Cho's dark materials are without precedent: indeed, it immediately calls to mind the grainy videotapes that terrorists have used to disseminate their menace. But while the clumsy, low-tech methodology of the al-Qaeda set has kept them at arm's length from any "new media" discussion, Cho's similar execution closes the distance considerably, mainly because of the way he exploits the immediacy, the technology, and the accessibility that are the hallmarks of today's non-traditional content. You can expect plenty of discussion of the package received by NBC in the days to come that will likely range beyond its intrinsic content and lead to discourse on the media ramifications, and whether Cho's tapes are a chilling vision of future incidents.
The Gun Control Debate
The hue and cry over gun control, for and against, began in earnest, and it continues. Today, web readers can pull stories on the gun control angle from every single news organ. And this topic has rippled from central media sources, out into the blogosphere and back again.
Cho's Writing, Academic and Otherwise
What began as a trickle has, after yesterday, become a deluge. We didn't think that Cho's poor playwriting attempts weren't the "hint of lurking menace" many were making them out to be (though it's worth pointing out that Cho's playwriting teacher nevertheless has stated that the class both "saw that he was troubled" and "recognized the violence in his writing"), but the unbridled and disjointed sociopathy evinced in what we've seen of his videotaped screeds and his written manifesto certainly fit that bill. While the Gonzalez story is gradually taking center stage this afternoon, news and analysis of Cho's materials led at the websites of CNN, Fox, and MSNBC this morning. And while police are saying that the material contained little they did not already know, it's a safe bet that this discussion will be dominant through the weekend.
The Response of Virginia Tech Officials
Cho's manifesto, which highlights the enormity of his maladjustment, has seemingly pushed content concerning the response of those in charge of keeping the Virginia Tech community safe and informed below the fold. But that's not to say the media isn't raising important questions about it. While CNN, in one piece, hails Virginia Tech President Charles Steger as a "calm, steady voice," they're nevertheless analyzing the university's actions. The Associated Press reported on Steger's promise to tighten security, but also noted his lack of specifics. Yet, the Washington Post reports that Steger "stumbled," but has "recovered," and notes that he's received support from the student body. Indeed, Virginia Tech's Collegiate Times has published an editorial today (available as PDF, pg. 5) titled "University should not take the blame," in which they state that the incident was "no one's fault bit [Cho's]."
Prejudice in the Aftermath
It seems perplexing that the South Korean community should feel pressure or fear after Cho's rampage. After all, Cho clearly had trouble connecting with any community, and the crime doesn't have any racial or national identity. And, reflecting that, this aspect to the story hasn't received much play. Nevertheless, an article in Salon captures the mood of many in the Korean community at Virginia Tech, and reveals that their unease was very real.
Videogames
It's safe to say that yesterday's revelations have made discussion of videogames and their role in breeding mass murderers entirely frivolous. The subject is currently getting very little play, but the barest of mentions can nevertheless be found. Additionally, blogger Melissa McEwan has offered some commentary on the issue. This angle, though, has become a greatly diminished part of the discussion.
from TVNewser.com
As predicted, yesterday's decision by NBC to air the videotape, photos and writings of Cho Seung-Hui has resulted in a huge national discussion — another huge national discussion — about whether or not they ought to have aired it, and under what circumstances, and so soon. Last night's broadcast was only half an hour long, with only excerpts made available (heavily edited, and agonizingly so, according to NBC News president Steve Capus on Hardball last night), with more revealed today on the "Today" show — for which NBC is getting more flack, since it looks like a naked grab for ratings (whether or not that was part of the decision, which of course NBC says it was not). That did not matter to some family members scheduled to appear this morning on "Today" — who cancelled as a result of NBC's decision to air Cho's video.
In the meantime, TVNewser reports that NBC has pledged to spend only 10% of airtime per hour of broadcast — a maximum of 6 minutes per hour — but who cares? The cat is already out of the bag in a big way — the other networks have picked it up, and there is extensive documentation available on MSNBC (with a highly-justified warning before every page) (they show a carefully-selected five pages of Cho's 1,800 word accompanying document, complete with embedded photos). Reaction is coming in from all sides; last night, blogs were on fire with reaction, mostly against NBC's decision, with fear of copycats and glorification of the killer and a sense of exploitation (there is a good round-up and response from Captain's Quarters going through both sides, and coming down on the side of freedom of information). On TVNewser, a "trusted observer" writes in that NBC made the right decision in the name of serious journalism; Canada's CBC News' editor in chief disagreed, calling it a "mistake." Tim Goodman at the San Francisco Chronicle isn't really sure how he feels about it — he sees both sides — but still, it makes him uncomfortable.
It makes everyone uncomfortable — but is the news supposed to make us comfortable? Could anything about this news possibly do that? No. There is no way. This is certainly the creepiest and most unsettling turn one can imagine the case having taken — a "multi-media manifesto" that Charles Manson could only have dreamed of — produced on the cheap in a dorm room, because these days, it's just that easy. Which means it's easy to slap it on the web in its own multi-media showcase (available for multi-page browsing at MSNBC.com), and easy to put it on the air as breaking news. I say "easy" in the technical sense; NBC's Capus and Brian Williams have made it clear that this was not a welcome task, as did Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira in discussing the decision this morning, noting how the newsroom was split. But still, "easy" makes it harder to argue against doing something, and gives you less time to do so — which is why, while everyone wonders why it was necessary for NBC to have aired the package so soon, Goodman characterizes it as sitting on breaking news. That's how things are framed when things are "easy."
So what should NBC have done differently? Should they have ignored this material, this crucial evidence about what exactly made Cho do it? No — that's an editorial decision they're not entitled to make — news breaks and you report it, good or bad, because that's the job. But did they have to air it so soon — or at all? No. They could easily have reported on its arrival, reported on the contents, consulted with victims' families, consulted some experts on what its impact might have been. Hell, they could have slept on it. They didn't. Instead they ran enough footage and showed enough images to get the message across plenty — no matter how that message might be received. A CNN viewer tells me that last night, Anderson Cooper interviewed an expert who said yes, there WILL be copycats...and then looped back to the footage right after. Courtesy of NBC, of course.
Courtesy of NBC on all the networks now, splashed across the web, across this website and all the others — a many-headed hydra of word and image, a genie you can't put back in the bottle. It's a pretty big genie to release on a couple of hours' notice.
There's no doubt that this was a tough, tough call to make. On the one hand, NBC did turn the package immediately over to the authorities, and were given the official go-ahead to air it. On the other hand, wow — this is heavy stuff, and sudden, and fraught with many complexities, none of them trivial. I admit that I watched NBC News last night, flew straight to the web to look at the package, because I wanted to see, and to know. But did I need to? Yet? Of course not. And did the juggernaut of viewers who flew to NBC last night to crush in the ratings need to? Of course not. We needed the news — just maybe not so much of it, and maybe not so soon.
Package Forced NBC To Make Tough Decisions [NYT]
Gunman handed NBC an exclusive and a quandary [LAT]
Psychiatrist: Showing Cho's Video Is "Social Catastrophe" [ABC]
Should NBC Have Aired The Cho Package? [Captain's Quarters]
For NBC, an exclusive ethical challenge [Baltimore Sun]
Update:
NBC Statement Explaining Use of Video [TVNewser]
Earlier:
VTech Killer Sent Package To NBC News [ETP]
Reconstruction of events:
'That Was the Desk I Chose to Die Under' [WaPo]
The Village Voice
We don't want to forget to check in with what's being offered by the good people at New Times Village Voice UltraBorg Media and Chowder Society Unlimited, do we? This week: a long look at Elliot Gould, Nat Hentoff relates a jazz rebirth, no lessons learned in the Imus flap, and the ongoing 9-11 rescue mission.
Fortuitously, many of this week's Voice offerings echo a strong, recurring theme of revival. In "The Goulden Age", J. Hoberman takes on the early career of Elliot Gould, recalling the actor's blend of ethnic panache and urban cool in a profile that's nostalgic for a romantic old city. Hentoff, in, "In New Orleans, the Saints Are Marching In Again," talks up the work of New York's Jazz Foundation of America and their tireless work at restoring both the musical life of New Orleans and the welfare of the musicians who are making it happen. Kristen Lombardi profiles John Feal, a 9-11 first-responder who's not done responding by a long shot, in "Life Support." Finally, while many Broadway revivals seem like empty exercises in profiteering, Michael Feingold finds that some current revivals are more accurately termed re-vitals in "Lie, The Beloved Country."
Also:
Another Imus in the Mourning?
What was CBS thinking replacing Imus with Mike Barnicle, whose own racial backwardness come additionally salted with clumsy plagiarism?
Slumlord Showdown
Can Christine Quinn tread water on the affordable housing issue, or will her mayoral hopes drown in compromise?
The Stall of Fame
Glasgow Phillips' The Royal Nonesuch is termed "a gonzo memoir of new-media madness and bottom-feeding buffoonery from the heyday of irrational exuberance."
Eric Boehlert
Here's a simple challenge for Power Line, the popular conservative blog which recently revisited the 2004 Swift Boat Veterans for Truth campaign controversy. Upset by media references that suggested the Swift Boat attacks on Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) had been "discredited," Powerline claimed, "Most of what the Vets said in their ads has never been disputed, let alone discredited."
There was something so audacious and egregious about Powerline's claim that little about the Swift Boat...
