• The Wall Street Journal has the Times in its sights. The paper is hiring a dozen reporters to cover local news and will launch a NYC edition next year. [NYT]
• As expected, a big round of layoffs at Time Inc. is underway. [Gawker, NYT]
• Harvey and Bob Weinstein may be looking to buy back the Miramax name from…
Vogue Cuts, The NYT Changes Course & The WSJ Wins
• The Condé Nast job cuts have made their way to Anna's domain on the 12th floor of 4 Times Square: Vogue laid off six staffers today. [AllThingsD]
• More bad news for Condé: some advertisers are reportedly "jumping ship" after the recent shake-up at Brides. On the plus side, The New Yorker appears to be hiring, so…
Floundering Hollywood Wants to Plant One on Chris Pine
Firings, sell-offs, suicide stories and Joe Pesci's leftovers; It's a bummer of a day for everyone in Hollywood who is not locked into the role of James T. Kirk.
Letterman's Ratings, Rather's Suit & The Post Parody
• Barack Obama's appearance on David Letterman's show last night helped the Late Night host score his second-highest ratings ever. [NYT, WP]
• Dan Rather scored a couple of victories in his suit against CBS: A motion by the network to dismiss the case was denied by a judge; and Rather's lawyers will be permitted to…
Everyone Hates Katherine Heigl
Seth Rogen and Judd Apatow trash Katherine Heigl, Joe Jackson confirms Michael Jackson's Norwegian lovechild, Britney mocks K-Fed's weight gain, Robert Redford dislikes Scarlett Johansson, Jessica Simpson has an expensive new reality show and Sienna Miller needs love.
Optimistic, and Crazy? J-School!
In your darkening Wednesday media column: J-school mania explained, the Food Network thrives, media conglomerates put on a happy face, and Adam Rubin gets plenty of sympathy.
Ben's Big New Deal, Another Rough Quarter For Viacom
• Ben Silverman didn't have much success during his two-year stint at NBC, but that didn't stop him from scoring a super-sweet deal with Barry Diller's IAC. His new venture will reportedly give him $100 million to play with. [NYP]
• Viacom, the media conglomerate controlled by batty billionaire Sumner Redstone,…
The Box Office, The Times, More Trouble at NBC
• Despite unkindly reviews from most critics, the Transformers sequel racked up $112 million at the box office over the weekend, bringing its five-day gross to more than $200 million. [THR]
• Don't worry too much about the New York Times going under. AdAge reports the paper should be in business until at least 2011. […
Live at Five, Richard Branson, NBC, & Wolff
• Say it ain't so, Sue: WNBC may be planning to drop the 5 o'clock newscast, Live at Five, in favor of a "lifestyle show" of some sort. [NYO]
• Richard Branson does not want to buy Playboy. Sorry, Hugh. [Reuters]
• NBC ratings hit a new low last week. [AP/HuffPo]
• Naturally, NBC Universal chief Jeff Zucker painted a…
Viacom Has 22 Reasons Not to Pay You
In March we told you about "Invoiceworks," Viacom's Kafkaesque new system for paying (or not!) its freelancers. How bad is it? We present to you, "22 Invoice Rejections at Once":
Pay Cuts, Quarterly Losses & Other Happy News
• The New York Times Co. has reached a "tentative agreement" with its union to impose a 5 percent pay cut on employees through the end of the year. [NYP]
• Disney's ABC is joining Fox and NBC and taking a stake in Hulu. [AdAge]
• As expected, Time Warner said it may spin off AOL. But it may end up selling it, too.…
Splits at the NYO and MySpace; Viacom's New Channel
• Chris DeWolfe is out as the CEO of News Corp.-owned MySpace. [CNN]
• More on Peter Kaplan's split from Jared Kushner's Observer, and the rumor Kaplan is now heading to Condé Nast Traveler. [NYT, WWD, DHD]
• ABC has renewed 12 series, including Dancing with the Stars, The Bachelor, Grey's Anatomy, and Desperate…
Jon Stewart and Jim Cramer Have Posses
The suits have jumped into the Jim Cramer-Jon Stewart drudge match: NBC Universal CEO Jeff Zucker and Viacom CEO Philippe Daumann traded jabs today over their corporate assets at today's McGraw Hill Media Summit.
Viacom's Nightmarish New Payment System
Yesterday we heard rumors that Viacom has introduced a new system for screwing its vendors out of getting paid on time. Today, more insight into the Kafka-esque world of "InvoiceWorks," from a real vendor!
Is Viacom Screwing its Vendors?
In your rumormongering Thursday media column: rumors of layoffs and shenanigans at Viacom and Sesame Street (updated), Felix Salmon jumps the Fort Polio ship, Jay Carney flackery, and a journalism grad is broken:
Jon Stewart-Jim Cramer Feud Widens Into Network Rumble
You have to hand it to Jon Stewart: The Daily Show host at least has the good sense to mock his "Basic Cable Personality Clash" with Jim Cramer the very moment it becomes mockable.
Comedy Central Show To Mock Internet
Comedy Central will soon start production on Tosh.0, in which comedian Daniel Tosh makes fun of blogs, online videos, tweets, etc., oh-so-boldly reversing the usual flow of snark between the internet and television.
Box Office Gets a Boost, Redstone Catches a Break
• The recession hasn't been all that bad as far as Hollywood is concerned: Ticket sales this year are up 17.5% and attendance is up 16%. [NYT]
• Viacom and CBS chieftain Sumner Redstone will have until the end of next year to sell off assets in order to repay his enormous pile of debt. [WSJ]
• Hearst is looking to…
More Viacom Layoffs Today?
In your gloomy Wednesday media column: More rumored Viacom layoffs today, Newsweek staffers are mad at the boss, Playboy might have to sell Playboy, and more!:
Pinch Jr. Joins the Times, Playboy Now Up for Sale
• Arthur Gregg Sulzberger, the son of New York Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr., is joining the paper next week as a Metro reporter. [NYO]
• Following a huge fourth quarter loss, Playboy says it's now up for sale. [Folio]
• It's rumored that Viacom is laying off staff today. [Gawker]
• Newsweek staffers are…
