Collected and Edited by Rick Kaempfer
Highlights and links to the big stories in the news this week about the media. This column appears twice a week at MEDIA NOTEBOOK
Presidential Debate Moderators Set
(Huffington Post) PBS will host two of the four debates this presidential cycle, with Jim Lehrer hosting the first Presidential debate and Gwen Ifill hosting the only Vice Presidential debate, it was announced Tuesday. NBC's Tom Brokaw and CBS' Bob Schieffer will host the remaining two Presidential debates. ABC News is noticeably left without a debate, perhaps a response to what many perceived as a "Gotcha!"-style debate hosted by Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos.
Does Rupert Murdoch's WSJ have a problem with women?(Portfolio) Jeff Bercovici writes: "Some at the paper have begun to say so, albeit quietly, in the weeks since managing editor Robert Thomson put his leadership team in place...As that shuffle was going on, Laurie Hays, the deputy managing editor in charge of investigations, was leaving for a job at Bloomberg. Her departure -- said to be at least partly the result of marginalization from above -- left the paper with only two women among its nine deputy m.e.'s, neither of them with a news job: Alix Freedman, the editor in charge of standards and ethics, and Cathy Panagoulias, who oversees staffing. And then there was the recent buyout of Carol Hymowitz, the management columnist who doubles as the paper's point person on women's workplace issues...Put it all together and you have, if not the makings of a clear pattern, then at least a confluence worthy of comment -- especially in light of the questionable sexual politics at other Murdoch-owned outlets. At Fox News, it's an all-but-official rule that women must show their legs, while at the New York Post, political correctness exists only to be mocked."
Circuit City apologizes to Mad Magazine
(Consumerist) After a thin-skinned Circuit City exec ordered stores carrying Mad Magazine to search and destroy all copies of a recent issue featuring a 4-page parody of "Sucker City," someone with a brain stopped the madness. (The entire apology letter to Mad Magazine is at the link)
CLICK HEREWhy aren't cable talk shows covering the John Edwards story?
(TV Newser) Since the John Edwards National Enquirer story broke more than a week ago, the cablers have largely ignored it. There are various theories as to why that's the case. But as time goes on, producers are finding creative ways to work the story in. Fox News Channel has covered the story the most, although still only four times. Hannity & Colmes aired a segment on the story July 25, the day Foxnews.com advanced the details first reported in the Enquirer. Bill O'Reilly mentioned the story on Thursday's show, saying, "The Factor's trying to decide exactly how to cover the story responsibly, and it is not easy," before playing a Jay Leno clip. Then, during Friday's Special Report, Bret Baier reported a different angle to the story, about the Charlotte Observer obtaining the birth certificate of the child in question. MSNBC used a late night talk show to bring up the story as well. Its only two mentions came on Thursday by playing part of a David Letterman's Top 10 list, in which the top answer to "Signs Barack Obama is Overconfident," was: "Been cruising for chicks with John Edwards." CNN has not covered the story yet.
Dana Milbank leaves Countdown for CNN(Daily Kos) Keith Olbermann writes about Milbank's decision in the Daily Kos thusly: "Dana Milbank of The Washington Post, who notified us today that after four years appearing with us, he had accepted another television offer. This saved your crack Countdown staff an increasingly difficult decision. For nearly a week we'd been waiting for him to offer a correction or an explanation for his column from last week in which he apparently reported an Obama quote without a full context turned the meaning of the quote inside-out. Then he called criticisms of his column "whines" even though the dispute was over whether Obama said the self-deprecating: "It has become increasingly clear in my travel, the campaign -- that the crowds, the enthusiasm, 200,000 people in Berlin, is not about me at all. It's about America. I have just become a symbol of the possibility of America returning to our best traditions" -- or only the part about "I have just become a symbol..." We had decided not to have Dana on this news-hour again until this was cleared up, and, sadly after some very happy years, he's apparently chosen to make that cloud permanent. Good luck, Dana."
The rich get richer
(Mel Phillips) Mel writes: "Under the chapter ”The Rich Get Richer” comes word that Mel Karmazin, CEO of Sirius XM Radio Inc. was not content owning a measly 6.5 million shares of the company he runs so he went out and bought 2 million more shares. Karmazin now owns $11.8 million in stock and an additional 33,800 shares through a retirement plan. Yikes! I mean does anyone need that much wealth? The Sirius all-stock takeover of XM was worth $2.76 billion and Mel is on his way to buying enough stock to eventually reach that figure."
CLICK HERE
Skip Caray dead at 69(MLB.com) Mark Bowman writes: "The Braves family lost one of its most beloved members on Sunday, when Skip Caray passed away at his Atlanta-area home. Caray, who would have celebrated his 69th birthday on Aug. 12, went to take a nap Sunday afternoon and didn't awaken. He is survived by his wife, Paula, two sons, Chip and Josh, two daughters, Shayelyn and Cindy, and seven grandchildren. 'Our baseball community has lost a legend today,' said Braves president John Schuerholz. 'The Braves family and Braves fans everywhere will sadly miss him. Our thoughts are with his wife Paula and his children.' The two sons will carry on the family's rich broadcasting tradition, which began with Skip's father, Harry Caray, a Hall of Fame announcer who remains one of the most popular figures in baseball history."
CBS plans to sell radio stations
(Radio Online) CBS Radio announced Thursday that it would divest 50 mid-size market radio outlets so the company can focus on its major market stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and San Francisco. The company sold 40 stations in several smaller markets in 2007. During its a conference call to discuss earnings, CFO Fred Reynolds said CBS has already had "preliminary discussions with strategic buyers." "We continue to see proof that focusing on better content in our largest radio markets is working," said CEO Les Moonves during the call. "The 15 major market stations that have been reformatted have dramatically improved their profits, underscoring radio's potential."
(This is good news for smaller markets)
CLICK HERELuke Russert hired by NBC News
(NY Times) Brian Stelter writes: "The late “Meet the Press” moderator Tim Russert’s imprint will remain with NBC News for some time to come: his son Luke will serve as a correspondent at large for the network. The elder Mr. Russert, 58, died of a heart attack on June 13. He frequently mentioned Luke, his only son, in television appearances. The younger Mr. Russert’s first assignment will be at the Democratic National Convention in Denver at the end of August and at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul at the beginning of September. A 2008 Boston College graduate, he will focus on youth issues for NBC."
Network and Cable Ratings getting closer(LA Times) Scott Collins writes: "AND THEN, the audience parted. Here's what has happened to TV viewing this summer: People who want reality shows have stuck with the broadcast networks. Viewers who prefer scripted series have migrated to the cable channels. And in terms of ratings, the once-vast gap between the two worlds is shrinking like never before."
BBC fined for faking contests
(Independent) Sherna Noah writes: "The BBC has been fined £400,000 by Ofcom, the media regulator, for faking winners and misleading audiences in viewer and listener competitions. The penalty, for flagship TV shows such as Comic Relief, Sport Relief and Children in Need as well as the Jo Whiley and Russell Brand radio shows, is a record for the corporation. Comic Relief and Sport Relief were each fined £45,000, Children in Need £35,000, and the children's show TMi £50,000."
CLICK HERE
Morning Fix fired at Q-101
(Chicago Tribune) Phil Rosenthal writes; "Alan Cox and Jim Lynam's "The Morning Fix" has been bounced from Emmis Communication's WKQX-FM's 101.1, with afternoon hosts Brian Sherman and Steve Tingle set to take over in morning drive, effective Aug. 11, the station said August 1. WKQX Program Director Marc Young plans to hire a new afternoon personality for a new program, heavy on Alternative Rock music.Cox and Lynam were the only survivors last November when WKQX ditched its original "Morning Fix," a bold but flawed 14-month experiment with ensemble comedy in morning drive after the 2006 ouster of Erich "Mancow" Muller. In the last eight months, the "Fix" was more focused on music with Cox as host and Lynam handling headlines, sports and traffic."
Clark Weber interview
(Chicago Sun Times) Rob Feder beat me to a Clark Weber interview about his new book. His interview is excellent. You can read it at the link above. Mine will be posted this Sunday at Chicago Radio Spotlight.
Chicago Radio Spotlight interview with KC Lupp(Chicago Radio Spotlight) Last weekend I spoke with Actor/Broadcaster KC Lupp. When he worked in Chicago radio he was known as KC White; so named because he was only white guy on the WGCI Morning show. He's currently in town performing in The Full Monty, and we talked about that too. Coming this weekend: Radio legend Clark Weber talks about his new book.
