Assasination could hurt business relations

The assassination of Benazir Bhutto is likely to further complicate business relations between the United States and Pakistan, which is already a major manufacturer of clothing and has been pushing for deeper private-sector ties, according to a report from the International Herald Tribune.
The report says that U.S. corporations have poured billions of dollars into the country in recent years, both as direct investment and to pay for a rising tide of imported products.
Experts say some of that investment could be at risk.
To read the full report click here.

Leckey's top business stories of 2007

With the New Year just around the corner, Andrew Leckey, the director of the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism, shares his top business stories of 2007.
Here's his list:
1. Mortgage defaults and foreclosures rise on "sub-prime" loans, sending world credit markets into disarray and stock markets into panic. Virtually all aspects of the economy, including retail sales, are hit.
2. "Made in China" becomes a warning message as products from toothpaste to toys prove to be unsafe, causing international tension.
3. Oil prices rise to nearly $100 a barrel, pushing up gasoline and other prices. This accelerates corporate America's move to green and also triggers an ethanol boom-and-bust cycle that drives up corn prices.
4. Big CEOs, such as Merrill Lynch's Stan O'Neal and Citigroup's Charles Prince, step down amid the sub-prime mess. They get big golden parachutes, however. A happy retirement awaits.
5. Media mergers dominate publications' own headlines as New Corp. buys Dow Jones, Sam Zell and an ESOP buy Tribune Company and Thomson Corp. buys Reuters. Other publications consolidate and ponder the financial aspects of the online future.
6. Economy causes jitters. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke cuts interest rates to try to avoid recession. The U.S. dollar wilts, improving the opportunities for our companies that export but putting a whammy on U.S. tourists abroad.
7. The United Auto Workers and GM, Ford and Chrysler agree to contract shifting $47 billion in retire health care costs from the company to the union. By 2010, the union will be responsible for health insurance of more than a half-million retirees and their spouses.
8. The Dow Jones industrial average flies past 14,000, but has second thoughts as the sub-prime debacle gains steam and trading turns into a daily roller coaster.
9. Apple again proves that consumers will indeed wait in line for something, with its iPhone and updated iPod players proving the company remains the innovation leader.

Randall W. Cope to resign from GateHouse Media Inc.

Editor & Publisher reports that GateHouse Media Inc. Co-President and Co-Chief Operating Officer Randall W. Cope is leaving the community newspaper publisher on Jan. 2.
GateHouse said Cope had told the company of his intention to resign on Dec. 19.
Gatehouse, which is headquartered in Fairport, New York and has 101 daily publications, is one of the largest publishers of locally based print and online media in the United States, according to the company's Web site.

Congress passes FOIA reform bill

The House of Representatives recently passed the first Freedom of Information Act reform bill in more than a decade, according to a release from The National Security Archive.
If signed by the President, the bill would:
* Mandate tracking numbers for FOIA requests that take longer than 10 days to process to ensure they will no longer fall through the cracks.
* Require agencies to report more accurately to Congress and the public on their FOIA programs.,
* Create a new ombuds office at the National Archives to mediate conflicts between agencies and requesters, clarify the purpose of FOIA to encourage dissemination of government information.
* Provide incentives to agencies to avoid litigation and processing delays.
To read more click here.

Freedom Communications Inc. suspends deal

Freedom Communications Inc., which owns the Orange County Register, postponed a plan to buy out two minority partners, Blackstone Group LP and Providence Equity Partners, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.
The report says that Freedom was planning to spend more than $500 million to buy back the roughly 45 percent stake held by Blackstone and Providence.
But negotiations were suspended amid the credit-market turmoil. Some banks were leery of lending money to Freedom, in part because of uncertainties facing the newspaper industry, and Freedom also faced higher borrowing costs, a person familiar with the situation said.
For the full report from Wall Street Journal reporters Dennis K. Berman and Martin click here.

Housing activist honored by The Boston Globe Magazine

Housing activist Bruce Marks was named the Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe Magazine.
Globe Magazine editor Doug Most said the turbulent housing market stood out this year as a multi-faceted issue with widespread consequences including a record number of homeowners facing foreclosure with little support.
In a note to readers, Mr. Most says, "Bruce Marks has made his share of enemies in his relentless push to get banks to provide fairer loans. But what is inarguable is that his tactics kept many people in their homes and convinced some mighty big lenders to change their ways. He's showed how one very determined person can make a difference."
Marks will be highlighted in the magazine's Dec. 30 issue.
This is the fourth year the magazine has selected a Bostonian of the Year.
Previous winners have included Governor Deval Patrick, Big Dig whistle blower Edward Ginsburg, and Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein.
To read the full release click here.

Lazarus: Free news online will cost journalism dearly

David Lazarus, a columnist for the Los Angles Times, says until a long-term business model for the digital age presents itself, newspapers must acknowledge that their content has value and stop giving it away online.
He says that as long as big newspapers give away their stories for free, smaller papers will have to follow their direction.
"Before you know it, no more little papers," Lazarus writes.
To read the full story click here.

Examining McClatchy newspapers

Page A1 of The Wall Street Journal today examines the plight of McClatchy newspapers, detailing the 78 percent plunge in the company’s stock price since 2006 and the up and down journey of CEO Gary Pruitt in a time of digital transition.
Reporter Steve Stecklow calls Pruitt, “one of the last true believers in the financial power of the press,” and discusses the company’s recovery strategy, which reportedly includes a new Web deal with Yahoo Inc and the sale of some non-newspaper operations.

Read the entire article here.

Chris Roush's new role

Chris Roush, associate professor, Director of the Carolina Business News Initiative, prolific writer and BusinessJournalism.org contributor, will become the Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Scholar in business journalism in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Chris’s new role is effective January 1, 2008.

In a memo, Dean Jean Folkerts said Chris’s “national reputation has been thoroughly established and I look forward to his continuing contributions to students, to the growth of programs within the School, and to our national reputation.”

Congratulations Chris!

CJR on business press and subprime

"If the business press has a blind spot, it is that it failed to understand the crisis for what I think it really is: a regulatory failure of mammoth proportions,” writes Dean Starkman about business media and its subprime coverage.
In the CJR.org piece, which is appropriately tagged as "The business press rediscovers regulators," Starkman reviews recent coverage - the good, the bad and the biased.

He also at one point concludes that the business press has traditionally viewed regulators as an afterthought and offers a reason as to why this is.

Read the entire article here.

Forbes.com 2008 predictions

Folio.com offers up a list of magazine industry resolutions for 2008. The thoughts come directly from those on the front lines, in a variety of roles. Representing biz magazines is Jim Spanfeller, President and CEO of Forbes.com.

Spanfeller says his 2008 prediction is: "If history looks back at 2007 as the tipping point for interactive media and the ad dollars that have migrated to the Web, pushing it to a position of prominence as a central media platform for advertisers, 2008 will be the year of the Interactive Marketer. CMOs now get the Web and have personal experience around its ability to power their brands, activate their customers and fuel their data analysis and marketing allocation optimization. The Web is still only at the beginning of its evolution and will remain a source of media innovation for some time, but the focus going forward will be less about the media and more about the marketer. The digitization of media will continue to disrupt the traditional media model and we will see more “late to the party” web acquisition and initiatives from major media players. From this perspective, 2008 will be a make or break year for companies like Time Warner and many of the major newspaper companies in the country."

Read more magazine industry predictions at Folio here.

Reynolds Center director quoted in Los Angeles Times

Andrew Leckey, director of the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism, commented today on the shutting down of the blog Think Secret, which was known for landing scoops about Apple's latest products, after a long battle with the company.

Leckey said, "Steve Jobs is like a little Dutch boy putting his finger in the dike. But the water is higher than he first thought."

Read the entire article here.

CNBC names person of the year

CNBC has entered the fray of media outlets looking back and reflecting on 2007 with lists and picks. The business network today named the American Homeowner as Person of the Year on the same day that Time magazine named Russian President Vladimir Putin as its Person of the Year. Quite a contrast.
"There is no question that the subprime mortgage crisis has had a major impact on the U.S. and world economy," said Jonathan Wald, Senior Vice President of Business News in the release. CNBC.com is also running a "live vote" on whether or not viewers agree with their choice or if they side with Time on this one.

Read the full release here.

Reuters aims to increase branded partnerships

After announcing a new deal with the International Herald Tribune last week, Reuters says it wants to add more branded partnerships, according to Editor & Publisher.
Next month, the daily business section of IHT.com and the print editions will be renamed Business with Reuters and will publish news from both organizations. The agreement replaced the papers' partnership with Bloomberg.
Reuters has said it wants to extend the IHT deal to its parent, The New York Times.
For the full report click here.

Tribune Co. will pay $15 million to settle case

The United States attorney's office will drop its prosecution after Newsday and Hoy, a Spanish-language publication in New York, agreed to pay a $15 fine to resolve a criminal investigation of a scheme to inflate circulation figures, according to The Associated Press.
Between 2000 and 2004, Newsday admitted it inflated its circulation by nearly 100,000 copies on weekdays and Sundays. Hoy doubled its reported circulation, prosecutors said.
Nine people have pleaded guilty to participating in the scheme and are awaiting sentencing.
The Tribune Co. owns Newsday and the company sold Hoy earlier this year to ImpreMedia.
To read the full report click here.

Tribune's Chairman and CEO will resign

When the $8.2 billion buyout of Tribune Co. is finalized, current chairman and CEO Dennis FitzSimons will resign, according to The Associated Press.

Real estate magnate Sam Zell is leading the buyout transaction, which could be completed as early as this week.

FitzSimons, 57, could leave Tribune with nearly $40 million in severance and stock holdings, according to corporate disclosure statements.

He joined the company in 1982 as a sales director for WGN-TV, Chicago. He became chairman in 2004.

To read the full report click here.

Media General's revenues drop

TV station and newspaper company, Media General, Inc., is reporting a drop in total revenues for November. Today's announcement said November 2007 total revenues were a 12.5 percent decrease from November 2006. The publishing division, which includes The Tampa Tribune, the Richmond Times-Dispatch and the Winston-Salem Journal, and the broadcast segment both suffered losses, while revenues for the interactive media division went up 34.8 percent.
In what seems to be a common scenario for the newspaper industry in 2007, most of the decline in publishing revenues is attributable to a drop in classified ad revenue.

Read the entire release here.

Rockford Register Star Biz Editor Leaves

Jack Burke, business editor of the Rockford Register Star in Illinois, is moving to a business-to-business communications firm in Waukesha, Wisc. His last day is Dec. 21. Burke’s replacement will be Deborah Austin, who has been a business staff writer for the paper. Burke is leaving after holding the business editor position for about a year after moving over from the paper’s metro desk. In October, the Register Star launched a weekly business-to-business magazine called BusinessRockford.com and downsized its daily business section to one page, although it kept its Sunday standalone section. Austin will oversee four business reporters once her replacement is named.

Trump's beef

David Lazarus, a columnist for the Los Angeles Times, recently wrote a column about Donald Trump's seminars otherwise known as Trump University, the real estate mogul's business school founded in 2005.

Advertisements for the two-hour seminar said potential investors could learn how to make big bucks from foreclosures in the current housing market.
Lazarus wasn't impressed with what he called "a two-hour infomercial for the three-day workshop," which would cost potential students $1,495.
His column continues to critique the seminars saying,

"There's nothing revolutionary about this, of course. Real estate speculators have been using such techniques for decades, and countless seminars are offered annually that purport to train novices in how they too can make a killing in the foreclosure market.

"All Trump is doing is adding his celebrity status to the mix, benefiting from a perception among some that his personal success and larger-than-life persona translate to greater trustworthiness as a business guru."

Lazarus' piece did not sit well with Trump.

After the column ran last week, Trump told Lazarus in a telephone conversation that his work was "inaccurate and libelous."
When Lazarus asked what the problem was Trump allegedly said "You'll find out in court" and said he planned to sue.
Then Trump sent this letter to the LA Times.
In the meantime, Lazarus wrote another column entitled "Trump's a grump about column on his 'priceless' tips." He says he must have made a poor impression on Trump, but he asked what he believed were straightforward questions.

FCC relaxes cross-media ownership rule

The Federal Communications Commission voted 3-2 to allow broadcasters in the largest markets to own both print and media outlets, CNN Money reports.
Kevin Martin, chairman of the FCC, pushed the plan to reform a more than 30-year-old rule. The change now permits companies in the 20 largest markets to own both a newspaper and a radio or television station.
"We cannot ignore the fact that the media marketplace is considerably different than it was when the newspaper broadcast cross-ownership was put in place more than 30 years ago," said Martin, at the agency's meeting.
To read CNN's full report click here.

Thomson sponsors famous Canadian golfer

The Thomson Corp. has agreed to sponsor its first athlete, Canadian golfer Mike Weir for five years, according to Canada's Globe and Mail columnist Lorne Rubenstein.
And the company's new face has already prepared for Thomson's changes, which include a possible merger with Reuters in the first quarter of 2008.
Weir said he will will start the season wearing the Thomson logo on his cap and then switch to a Thomson/Reuters logo when the merger is complete.
To read the full story click here.

Another Dow Jones addition

Mark Jackson will become executive officer, vice president and general counsel of Dow Jones & Co.
Jackson, 48, was most recently the associate general counsel of HarperCollins Publishers. He replaces Joseph A. Stern who leaving Dow Jones.
"As someone who has spent his legal career working with media companies, I am excited to be joining one of the most distinguished," Stern said in a release. "Dow Jones has a strong legal team and I look forward to working with them during the Company’s next phase of growth.”
To view the release click here.

Ian Weston is Dow Jones new senior vice president

Ian Weston was appointed senior vice president, special projects for Dow Jones, the company announced today.
Weston was most recently the corporate development director of News International Limited in the United Kingdom.
Weston, 43, was director of circulation, sales and head of business development at New International, Britain's largest national newspaper publisher that has newspapers with a combined circulation of more than 10 million.
Weston holds an MBA with distinction from INSEAD and a degree in engineering, economics and management from Oxford University. He will report to Chief Executive Officer Les Hinton.
"I am delighted Ian will be joining the Dow Jones team to help us shape our future. This is a time of exciting change for the company, and Ian brings years of top-level experience in the newspaper industry," Hinton said. "He has been key to developing radical change in News Corporation's British newspapers, in particular the company's recent $1.3 billion project to install state-of-the-art printing presses."
To read the release from the company click here.

Chicago Tribune now 75 cents

Managers of the Chicago Tribune increased the price of the Monday through Saturday newspaper from 50 cents to 75 cents.
The price change, which will begin on Dec. 31, comes as Sam Zell completes an $8.2 billion buyout of the company. The paper says the increase was not a directive from Zell.
To read the story click here.

64 journalists killed in 2007

The Committee to Protect Journalists reports that this past year was one of the deadliest for journalists since 1994.
The independent group who promotes freedom in the press and defends journalists rights says 64 journalists were killed in direction connection to their work in 2007. The group also is investigating another 22 deaths to determine if they were work-related.
Iraq was the deadliest country for journalists. There, most of the 31 victims were targeted and murdered. This includes Washington Post reporter Salih Saif Aldin, 32, who was shot in Bagdad.
To read the full report from The Committee to Protect Journalists click here.
For The New York Times story on the murder toll click here.

Wired editor on free media

Chris Anderson, editor-in-chief of Wired, talks about his new book and his notion that media companies can succeed in today's marketplace by charging consumers little or nothing, in the December issue of Media magazine.

He compares online tools and software to the media market and says music and video games will become free. He states that nobody wants to read an entire book online...we have to agree with that.
Anderson also comments on the newspaper and magazine model, saying "Most media has always been free to air. They say that if you understand why they sell newspapers in boxes that don't limit the number of copies you can take, you understand the newspaper business. They aren't selling newspapers. They're selling audiences to advertisers. [Magazines] charge a nominal price that is as close to zero as possible to incentivize the largest number of people to subscribe, but not so close to zero that it makes the product look de-valued. But it has no relation to the underlying costs."
Read the entire article here.

FCC to vote on media ownership

The Federal Communications Commission could approve a proposal today that would overturn a 32-year-old ban and allow broadcasters in the nation's largest media markets to also own a newspaper, according to the Associated Press.
The plan is from Republican Chairman Kevin Martin who says the change is a "relatively minor loosening" of the rule.
Cross-ownership was banned by the FCC more than 30 years ago to promote diversity and economic competition.
The Associated Press reports that under Martin's proposal, "one entity would be permitted to own a newspaper and one broadcast station in the same market. But it must be among the 20 largest in the nation and following the transaction, at least eight independently owned-and-operated media voices must remain. In addition, the television station may not be among the top four in the market."
To read the full report click here.

Denny Herzog is named editor of The Daily Sentinel and GJSentinel.com

Starting next year, Denny Herzog will become editor of Colorado's The Daily Sentinel and GJSentinel.com.
Herzog, 58, has been managing editor of the paper since 1985 and was also a city and business editor.
Herzog is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, a past board member of the Colorado Press Association and past president of Colorado AP Reporters and Editors.
“I look forward to leading the newspaper’s talented editors, writers, photographers and artists as we move into a new, digital age, and at the same time continue to produce the only newspaper that provides comprehensive local coverage that readers have for 115 years found to be an indispensable part of their daily lives," Herzog said.
For the full report visit The Daily Sentinel.

Changes to The Fresno Bee's business section

The Fresno Bee will eliminate some national and international features to keep a focus on local business news.
The change comes as the papers modifies it business and features sections and opinion pages in an effort to freshen up content.
Starting tomorrow, the daily stock market report will slim down to one page to include more snapshot features and allow the Opinion page to move to the back of the daily business section.
On Sundays, readers will now see new data pages of stock and mutual fund information.
The paper is also launching a local column by farm reporter Dennis Pollock.
For the full release click here.

Georgia's Rome News-Tribune has a new business editor

Bryant Steele, a veteran journalist, was recently named the new business editor for Georgia's Rome News-Tribune.
Steele worked as a reporter for the Augusta Chronicle and editor and columnist for The Macon Telegraph. He also worked at AT&T editing seven corporate magazines and newsletters.
While at AT&T, Steele traveled oversees to work in The Netherlands to edit a seven-language customer newsletter and technical journal.
His work also has been published in Newsweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and The Charlotte Observer.
“I figured out early in life that ink runs through my veins, and I’ve long thought I’d like to settle in Rome someday. So I’m delighted for this opportunity,” said Steele. “I hope the news that we bring to our readers will be discussed over cups of coffee and around water coolers daily.”
For the complete release click here.

Crain launches its first business newspaper outside of the states

Crain Communication Inc. launched its first city business newspaper outside of the United States today, according to How-Do, a site that covers the media industry in the North West of England.

The weekly paper is called, Crain’s Manchester, a new venture that adds to the company's business publications in New York, Chicago, Detroit and Cleveland. Crain’s claims the publication will be the first city business weekly of its kind in Western Europe, according to the story.

The paper's Web site, http://www.crainsmanchesterbusiness.co.uk/, was also launched today.

To read the report click here.

CQ's economics/finance editor becomes training director

Congressional Quarterly's economics and finance editor Jodi Schneider has accepted an offer to become the first Training Director for the outlet. In a memo, editor Mike Riley said her "primary charge will be to help us become a world-class learning news organization, and one of her key goals will be to develop a broad-based program for developing and coaching CQ’s many talented journalists."
Schneider has been a senior trainer throughout the country for Donald W. Reynolds center workshops since 2003. She has made frequent presentations on business reporting, writing and 24-hour coverage. “The fine job Jodi has done as a trainer for us indicates that Congressional Quarterly made a wise choice,” said Andrew Leckey, Reynolds Center director. “She knows business journalism and how to raise the professionalism of those involved in it.”
Schneider tells us: "I'm excited about the opportunity to further CQ's training efforts and to help this talented group of journalists grow in their careers here. And I'm looking forward to developing a CQ training curriculum from the ground up." She also tells us that she won't be assuming her new role until a new economics and finance editor is hired.

Former publisher of the Chicago Sun-Times gets 29 months in prison

The New York Times reports that F. David Radler, former publisher of the Chicago Sun-Times, was sentenced to 29 months in prison and fined $250,000 for stealing millions from shareholders of Hollinger International.

Radler's partner Conrad Black was sentenced last week to 6 1/2 years in prision for his role in cheating shareholders out of $6 million.

''I'm sorry for what I've done,'' said Radler, 65, who had pleaded guilty to fraud and testified against Black in return for a reduced sentence.

To read the Times full report click here.

Beyond the big guns

The New York Post highlights business-themed magazines that are sometimes overshadowed by big players like Fortune, BusinessWeek and Condé Nast Portfolio.
Here's a sampling from their report:

• Black Enterprise: The magazine, which focuses on the rich and soon-to-be-rich, has almost 1 million readers and is one of publishing's great success stories, according to the report. It recently got a makeover and includes stories on politics, business and news. For example, the magazine covered the $11.6 million award to Anucha Browne Sanders, who won a sexual harassment settlement from Knicks Coach Isiah Thomas.

• Dealmaker:The New York Post says Dealmaker is a magazine for investment bankers who want to read about great they are and how much society loves them. The magazine recently featured Tom Perkins, 75, who still buys $500,000 cars and yachts.

To read the full report click here.

Forbes to launch business magazine in India

Forbes Media will partner with TV18 to launch a business magazine in India, according to a report from Business Standard.
Steve Forbes, chairman, CEO and editor-in-chief, said TV18 is one of the most respected and fastest-growing media companies in India.
The new magazine adds to Forbes international ventures including Forbes Asia, Forbes China, Forbes Russia and Forbes Arabia.
“Our partnership with Forbes for a business magazine is another compelling testimony to the growing acceptance of the Indian growth story worldwide. Rapid economic expansion, change in consumer mindsets and deepening of the market economy in the country have led to an enabling environment for business brands,” said Raghav Bahl, managing director, Network18.
To read the full report click here.

Arizona Daily Star cuts Monday biz

Starting December 24th, the Arizona Daily Star won't feature a freestanding business section on Mondays. The content will instead appear on the back of the paper's Accent section. All other days will remain the same.

"Most of the standing features from Monday Business will be spread among the other days' Business sections. The Moving Up column will be published Sundays starting Dec. 23."

Read more here.

CBSnews.com layoffs

Fishbowl NY and Huffington Post both report layoffs last week at CBSnews.com
Read here.

Prosper Out of Print

California-based Propser, a monthly magazine for the greater Sacramento market focusing on capturing "the entrepreneurial spirit of the people and organizations who are flourishing," is taking what seems to have become the path of choice in today's startup publishing market. The company is halting its print publication, laying off employees and taking time to ponder...can you guess what? Yes, they are considering online initiatives as a way to continue the Prosper brand.
Get more details on the changes in a video message here.

The Atlantic Monthly is now just The Atlantic

The Atlantic Monthly is officially dropping "monthly" and now calling itself The Atlantic, according to the New York Post's Keith Kelly.
Kelly says the change comes after the magazine decided to publish just 10 times each year and also move its sales and marketing staff from Washington DC to New York.
The magazine's name dates back to 1857, the year of The Atlantic Monthly's first issue.
The idea for the magazine came after Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, James Russel Lowe, Oliver Wendell Homes met in Boston's Parker House for a summit.
The group wanted a magazine that had a distinctly American voice and would promote the "American Idea." That, they decided, was The Atlantic Monthly.
For Kelly's full report on the changes at the magazine click here.

Time Warner hires media analyst

Time Warner hired Douglas Shapiro, a former stock picker for Banc of America Securities, to become the company's head investor, according to a New York Times report.
Shapiro will work under Jeffery L. Bewkes, who within the next few weeks will replace Richard D. Parsons as Time Warner's chief executive.
The report states that "Major changes are likely under Mr. Bewkes that could result in a breakup of the media giant, whose assets include the Warner Brothers movie studio, CNN, Time Inc. and AOL."
To read the story click here.

Murdoch tells Dow Jones employees he will set an even "higher bar"

Rupert Murdoch spoke to Dow Jones employees at their Manhattan headquarters several hours after he bought their company, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal's Sarah Ellison.
Murdoch acknowledge that change creates nervousness and is sometimes difficult, but said Dow Jones must be the essential source of financial information and comment in the world.
Ellison reports says that Murdoch told employees he understood the value of Dow Jones and in particular The Wall Street Journal.
"If anything, you will find us trying to set a higher bar," Murdoch said.
Shareholders approved the more than $5 billion sale of Dow Jones & Co. to Murdoch's News Corp. on Thursday.
To read Ellison's full report click here.

This Week's Movers

While the much-talked about BusinessWeek memo, announcing layoffs and a reorganization, is arguably the week's most buzzed job news, it wasn't all bad this week. Here are other changes:

• Caroline Waxler will join MainStreet.com, set to launch in early 2008, as the general manager and editor. A former Forbes reporter, Waxler was also recently the markets editor for the now-defunct Business 2.0. She starts her new role next week.

• Commonwealth Business Media's Peter Tirschwell moves from magazine group vice president to senior advisory. The vice president of business development, Liam Power, will take over Tirschwell's former role. Read more.

• CMP Channel's CRN and VARBusiness made several changes with four promotions and a new hire to gear up their coverage. Andrew Hickey, a TechTarget veteran, was named senior editor, covering infrastructure technologies. Edward F. Moltzen was promoted to Managing Editor Test Center. Moltzen covers systems and printers as well as peripherals and writes "The Chart," a blog about the business aspects of high tech. Jennifer Hagendorf Follet, moved up to Managing Editor Technology. For more moves and the entire release, click here.
  

• And popular tech columnist David Pogue was named a CNBC contributor. Read the earlier post here.

Can Murdoch save newspapers?

Diane Mermigas, Editor-at-large at MediaPost, contemplates today about Rupert Murdoch's ability to save newspapers now that he has The Wall Street Journal in his hands. Mermigas says Murdoch's advantage is that he understands and embraces the notion of a global media landscape. He is able to envision possible digital applications of many currently undervalued, and often overlooked, assets.
While many publishers are expected to post a decline in revenues for the year, "News Corp.’s newspaper holdings are growing profits better than 25% annually to more than $650 million on $4.5 billion in revenues (and a 15% margin). It must be doing something right."
Read more from Mermigas here.

BusinessWeek: layoffs and staff shuffle

As many as a dozen BusinessWeek employees will be laid off as magazine combines it print and digital staff into a one editorial operation, according to a report from Folio.
An internal memo was given to staff on Wednesday by editor Stephen Adler.
Folio points out that the layoffs come as BusinessWeek experiences success. It's readership is up 3 percent and newsstand sales up 25 percent.
To read the full report click here.

NewsHour to air in high definition

On Monday, the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer will officially become part of the digital revolution, one that has every broadcaster replacing analog with digital transmission by February 2009.
Viewers will be able to watch the show in high definition. The method fills up large television screens with sharper images and better sound.
A producer from the show said they've redesigned sets, graphics, retrained staff, and updated their equipment.
For a glimpse of the changes at the NewsHour, watch the program on Friday for a behind-the-scenes tour with Senior Correspondent Jeffrey Brown.

Bancroft family expresses emotion over sale of Dow Jones

The vote that ended Dow Jones tenure today as an independent company, something it has been for 105 years, was emotional for some Bancroft family members, according to a report in Forbes.
Jane Cox MacElree the oldest surviving member of the Bancroft clan, teared up when asked about the sale.
"It's a very sad day," MacElree said. "Something that's been in your family for many generations--to see it end is very sad."
Other family members openly expressed their opinion about selling their company to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.
"I'm sad about this. This is a moment that I did not wish for,'' Dow Jones director Christopher Bancroft said, before the meeting.
To read the full story from Forbes click here.

Snippets: Murdoch interviewed on Fox News

Shareholders approved News Corp's purchase of Dow Jones today. Rupert Murdoch then appeared on Fox News.

Snippets from the interview...

• He plans to develop international editions of The Wall Street Journal.

• In regard to competition with The New York Times: "We are a long way in front now."

• Despite the success of the WSJ.com paid subscriber model, Murdoch talks of making the site free saying they'll cover the subscription revenue by increasing total online circulation (viewers) resulting in greater online advertising revenue. More eyes, more ad dollars.
  

• On how to get young people reading newspapers again: "Make newspapers better and more exciting."

• On making articles shorter: Murdoch wants to "keep the paper busy." Perhaps break stories in parts, "guts on the front page" and the rest inside.

• On Fox Business Network: "It's going well." Dow Jones and Fox Business Network will help each other.

Murdoch also talked politics and shared views on the writers' strike and its impacts on the industry.

Wall Street Journal sale is final

This afternoon the majority of Dow Jones & Co. shareholders approved selling the company to News Corp. for $5.6 billion.
The general council of Dow Jones said shareholders holding 60.27 percent of the company's stock had been approved for the sale, according to reports from The Wall Street Journal.
The sale ends the Bancroft family ownership of Dow Jones, which dates back to more than a century.
To read the full report click here.

Tribune's revenue down

The Tribune Company is reporting a drop in revenues for November. Publishing revenues were down 3.5 percent. Advertising revenues also took a hit, with much of the newspaper division hit by a 26.2 percent drop in classified advertising revenues.
According to the release, "Real estate fell 39.8 percent with the most significant declines in Chicago, the Florida markets, and Los Angeles. Help wanted declined 28.4 percent and automotive decreased 7.6 percent."
On a positive note: publishing operating expenses decreased in large part because of lower newsprint, compensation and marketing cash expenses.
For the full breakdown and short-term plans/projections, click here.

David Pogue now a CNBC contributor

David Pogue, a personal technology columnist for The New York Times, is joining CNBC as a contributor. Starting today, he will offer up tech talk and gadget reviews on CNBC's Business Day programming. Pogue is also an Emmy award-winning tech correspondent for CBS News and a prolific "how-to" writer with titles in the "For Dummies" series.

Read the full release here.

Baseball star enters magazines

Lenny Dykstra, a star player with the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies, will launch a magazine with Doubledown Media aimed at helping athletes make smart financial decisions and establish post-career wealth.
Called The Players Club, the magazine will be sent to athletes, agents, team managers and officials in 10 major sports. It is scheduled to debut in April.
Dykstra was a member of the 1986 World Champion New York Mets team and has since established himself as a successful businessman and columnist for TheStreet.com.
To read the full release click here.

New bureaus for LA Times

Next year, the Los Angeles Times will add several new bureaus in the newspaper's key coverage areas, which include the South, East and the Valley, according to the online journal LA Observed.
The report says veteran business reporter Jennifer Oldham is scheduled to oversee the Valley bureau.
Oldham joined the L.A. Times in 1995 and worked for four years as a business researcher. In 1999, she became a reporter and covered a variety of business beats. One of her investigative stories led to the recall of faulty furnaces. Most recently Oldham covered LAX and regional airports.
For the full story click here.

Approval likely for Wall Street Journal sale

The Wall Street Journal reports that a count of proxy votes indicates Dow Jones shareholders will approve a News Corp. takeover tomorrow.
Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. has offered to buy the company for more than $5 billion, which would end the Bancroft family long ownership of the newspaper.
For the full report click here.

NY Post editor walks out and quits

Dan Colarusso, a former business editor at the New York Post, walked out of the newspaper and quit, according to a report from The Village Voice.
Colarusso was recently promoted to metro editor at the paper and is known for revamping the Post's business page.
It is still unclear what prompted Colarusso's departure.
To read the full report click here.

Yahoo! Finance gets CNBC video

Yet another sign that business journalism and multimedia delivery is more important than ever, and it's as simple as supply and demand.
When the economy falters, the consumer feels he or she doesn't have enough information and wants more insight. All eyes turn toward the markets, and Yahoo! is striving to get ahead and fulfill the demand by strengthening its finance channel with a new distribution agreement with CNBC. As part of the content-sharing plan announced today, CNBC, including its global networks, will provide video clips and articles for use on Yahoo! Finance. According to the release, the agreement represents "CNBC's first global online alliance and Yahoo!'s first global finance video agreement." Video topics will include commentary, market buzz, analysis, interviews and investing segments.
For the full release, click here.

BusinessWeek gets Linked In

BusinessWeek is getting their Web site all linked in. MediaPost.com is reporting that the publisher is one of the first to get the LinkedIn invite, which will allow BusinessWeek developers to utilize functionality from the popular business social-network site for use on businessweek.com. According to the article,

"In one feature, LinkedIn will create links in the text of BusinessWeek editorial content for the proper names of businesses and people. By mousing over the links, the reader can determine how they are connected to the individual or entity in question, including how many of their own contacts are connected."

Will the synergy result in making businessweek.com a place where business is done rather than just talked about? Will you as a reader be connected through your network to business news makers of the day? And if so, what will that mean for journalists? We'll be watching...and in the meantime,we'll be beefing up our LinkedIn profiles.
Read Mediapost.com's full report here.

The Fed's Global Plan

The Fed and four of the world's top central banks-the Bank of England, the European Central Bank, the Swiss National Bank and the Bank of Canada-are moving toward injecting cash into money markets. In today's announcement, the Fed says it will establish a temporary Term Auction Facility, in which "the Federal Reserve will auction term funds to depository institutions against the wide variety of collateral that can be used to secure loans at the discount window. " The first two auctions, one scheduled for Monday and the other December 20, will inject up to $40 billion into the markets.
And with the news, markets are up...
For the full release and global resources, click here.

Colleges work to trim costs

Officials at Harvard University want students who dream of going to their school to know it's an affordable option.
But as students struggle to pay for the rising cost of college education, places like Harvard may seem unattainable.
That's why Harvard's president, Drew Faust, recently announced a plan to overhaul the school's financial aid policies.
He wants to make his university more affordable for middle income families through additional grant aid, eliminating student loans and the removal of home equity from the financial aid qualifying process.
Harvard is the latest school to offer a relief plan for students.
This past weekend, Duke University pledged a series of changes to its financial aid process that will ease the burden on the middle class.
To read USA Today's full report click here.

Conrad Black gets jail time

Media mogul Conrad Black was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison by a federal judge on Monday for his role in cheating shareholders of Hollinger International, according to CNN reports.
The company once controlled the Chicago Sun Times, the Montreal Gazette, Britain's Daily Telegraph and the Jerusalem Post. It also oversaw abut 60 percent of Canadian newspapers.
In July, Black was convicted of mail fraud and obstruction of justice. He must also pay a $125,000 fine.
Black's associates, Peter Atkinson of Oakville, Ontario, Jack Boultbee of Victoria, British Columbia, and Mark Kipnis of Northbrook, Illinois, were also convicted of mail fraud.
To read the full report click here.

Trump story is a fake

The Fox News home page included a big, breaking story about how Donald Trump left a waitress in Santa Monica a $10,000 tip. Defamer, E! Online and the Huffington Post also posted the story, according to a report from the Los Angeles Times.
Problem is the story was a hoax. Even the signed receipt that allegedly documented Trump's big gift was made up.
The story is traced to back derober.com, a celebrity gossip site that alters photos of the rich and famous. When Fox asked for a response from the site, which is run by two brothers from Venice Beach, here's what they had to say:
“We can’t believe a credible news source, such as Foxnews would feature a story for an entire day without doing their homework. If foxnews would have checked out the rest of derober.com, they would have realized that derober is a satirical celebrity gossip blog that features PHOTOSHOPPED photos."
The Los Angeles Times wrote a story explaining the hoax. Read it here.

SFGate launches new online business page

The San Francisco Chronicle launched a new business page on its site SFGate.com.
Packed with blogs, breaking news and a section focused on small business, the paper said it also plans to increase its business news posts throughout the day.
The page's design make it easier for visitors to find content on topics like Real Estate and inside the paper's five business columns.
To check out the new site click here.

Partners: International Herald Tribune and Reuters

The International Herald Tribune's financial section will have a updated feel next month, changes that stem from a new partnership with Reuters.
The daily business section of IHT.com and the print editions will be renamed Business with Reuters and will publish news from both organizations, according to reports from the International Herald Tribune.
The agreement replaced the papers' partnership with Bloomberg, which since 2002 has worked with the International Herald Tribune's financial sections.
Executive Editor Michael Oreskes said the project could spark even broader cooperation in the future.
To read the full story click here.

CBS gets into the resturant biz

CBS Corp. is partnering with New England Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft to establish a new station-themed restaurant.
CBS announced today the plans for CBS Scene Restaurant and Bar, a 15,000 square-foot restaurant scheduled to open next fall nearby the Patriots' Gillette stadium in Foxborough, Ma.
The restaurant will feature 130 high-definition televisions programmed with CBS shows. It will anchor Patriot Place, a 1.3 million square-foot retail and entertainment hub at the stadium.
With its new venture, CBS Corp. is entering the restaurant business beside stations with established restaurant chains like ESPN and FOX.
"There is no greater franchise right now in the NFL than the New England Patriots, and there is no better or higher rated broadcaster than CBS Sports, which has become network televisions No. 1 supplier of big ticket events like the NFL," said Leslie Moonves, CBS Corp. president and chief executive officer, in a release.
"The CBS Scene restaurant and Bar represents a terrific opportunity to bring these forces together to launch a first-of-its kind dining and entertainment destination at what promises to be one of the Northeast's most popular attractions."
To read the full release click here.

Internet access in flight

Several major airlines may soon allow passengers to log onto the Internet during their flights.
The New York Times reports that next week, JetBlue Airways will offer a free e-mail and instant messaging service on one aircraft, a first in the United States.
American Airlines, Virgin America and Alaska Airlines also plan to add more Web options in the next few months.
The report says the airlines’ goal is to turn their planes into the equivalent of a wireless hot spot once the aircraft reaches its cruising altitude.
To read the entire story click here.