MEAN AS A FOX
 Late
last week, Los
Angeles Times
media writer Matea Gold reported that "Fox News
is poised to reclaim the title of the most-watched cable news network in
the key advertising demographic in the second quarter of 2008." She
quoted Bill Shine, senior vice president for programming, as
saying Fox regained the top spot because “we do better
television than anybody else.”
On Saturday, the
New York Times ran a story by Jacques Steinberg spinning a
different tale. Headlined "Fox News Finds Its Rivals
Closing In," the story indicated strong primetime ratings
growth at CNN and MSNBC, while Fox News viewership
had flattened.
 Yesterday,
"Fox &
Friends" co-hosts Steve Doocy and Brian Kilmeade
struck back, labeling Times reporter Steinberg and
editor Steven Reddicliffe "attack dogs," claiming that Steinberg's
June 28 article on the "ominous trend" in Fox News
ratings was a "hit piece." According to Doocy, Reddicliffe,
a former Fox News executive, had an "axe to grind" and
ordered Steinberg on the attack. Video
here.
  During
the segment, Fox showed digitally-altered photos of Steinberg
and Reddicliffe. Their teeth had been yellowed, facial features
exaggerated, and portions of Reddicliffe's hair were moved
farther back on his head. Fox News gave no indication that the
photos had been changed.
 They
then showed a "photograph" of Steinberg's face
superimposed on a poodle, while Reddicliffe's face was put on the
man holding the poodle's leash.
Childish? Yes. Passive aggressive?
Absolutely. Ironic? Just six weeks ago, the
Washington Post ran a story about Bill O'Reilly's
extraordinary televised assault on Jeffrey Immelt, the chief
executive of General Electric, calling him a "pinhead"
and a "despicable human being" who bears responsibility for
the deaths of American soldiers in Iraq.
According to the Post, the assault
was triggered by Fox News boss Roger Ailes, who telephoned
NBC's Jeff Zucker and warned him that if Keith
Olbermann didn't "stop his attacks against Fox," he
would unleash O'Reilly and the New York Post on NBC.
Not since elementary school have we seen
such childishness. The trend of mean-spirited retribution cuts deeply
through the fabric of Fox News. Writers who cover the media are on
constant alert, warned by the Fox spokesmonsters that negative
stories could result in blacklisting. Many, including AP's David
Bauder and Frazier Moore, have been on and off the list with
regularity.
 Your
gentle-yet-occasionally-Surly Editor© has a permanent spot on
the list. Slithery Fox spokesbitch Irena Briganti, known
among writers as the "Queen of Mean," declined our 2004
request for a tour of Fox News, saying, "After trashing us
in one way or another literally every day, why would I possibly
accommodate you for a tour of this network?"
The following week, she welcomed pliant
young "Cablenewser" Brian Stelter with open arms. Stelter,
of course, now works for the evil New York Times. We wonder if
he's been moved to the "Briganti blacklist."
<<<>>>
 Landmark
Communications is expected to announce the sale of the Weather
Channel to a group made up of NBC Universal, Blackstone Group LP,
and Bain Capital in the next day or two, according
to sources close to the negotiations.
<<<>>>
Boston blogger Brian Maloney,
editor of The Radio Equalizer, broke
the story yesterday that Rush Limbaugh had re-signed through 2016,
was getting a nine-figure bonus up front, and would be profiled in
Sunday’s New York Times Magazine.
<<<>>>
 Charges
have been dropped against Rick Foley, the veteran news photog
for KOB-4-NBC in Albuquerque (Market #44) who was attacked,
handcuffed, and cited by an unnamed city cop last month, after he
ignored an order to move. Video
here.
The camera-shy officer is now on paid
leave and is scheduled for a disciplinary hearing next week.
<<<>>>
CBS News correspondent Michelle
Miller was nailed in the head by a foul ball at Yankee Stadium
the other night. CBS medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook,
who happened to be sitting 15 rows back, rushed to her aid. "She
was on the ground with an earful of blood," said LaPook,
"but she can really take a punch."
Miller
returned to her seat and the crowd cheered as the "Rocky"
theme song played. The fan who caught the ball after it bounced off her
noggin gave it to her. The ball...not her noggin.
 <<<>>>
CNN poster boy Anderson Cooper is
featured on the cover of the gay mag The Advocate. The
accompanying article is titled "Silver Foxes: The rise
of the mature man (It's not just an Anderson thing)."
<<<>>>
Joe Coscia, news director at Hearst-Argyle's
WPBF-25-ABC in Palm Beach (Market #38) since 2001, was released
yesterday.
<<<>>>
Michele
Gors
"resigned" Tuesday as ND of KWCH-12-CBS in Wichita
(Market #69). Assignment Editor Karen Hager followed her out the
door.
<<<>>>
 Brian
Sexton, radio voice of the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars, has
been hired as sports director at Newport Television's (former
Clear Channel) duopoly WAWS-30-Fox and WTEV-47-CBS in
Jacksonville (Market #49). He replaces Dennis Evans, who signed
off Monday.
“This is a dream job for me,” said Sexton.
“I've called every play ever run by the Jaguars, and now I get
to expand my passion for all sports working for CBS47 and
FOX30.”
 <<<>>>
Baby-faced sports guy Mark Gruba
was fired yesterday and escorted from the building at Hubbard's
WHEC-10-NBC in Rochester (Market #78).
 <<<>>>
Calkins Media made cuts at WTXL-27-ABC
in Tallahassee (Market #108) this week. Sports guy Sean
Smith (right) and weather guesser Don Harrigan
both got the boot, say tipsters.
<<<>>>
Sheena Foster, fired as a reporter
at WMBB-13-ABC in Panama City (Market #154), has landed a gig at
New York City's NY1 cable news. Go figure.
 <<<>>>
Ann
Hughes, who anchors the 5 and 10 p.m. newscasts on Newport
Television's WXXA-23-Fox in Albany, NY (Market #56), announced
yesterday that she is "giving up the early program to spend more
time with family."
<<<>>>
BEYOND TASERS
 Pompous
Vanity Fair writer Christopher Hitchens has discovered
what we hope will be the next step in participatory journalism....waterboarding.
Needing to capture the true essence of
the torture technique, Hitchens allowed himself to be strapped
down and nearly drowned. This is not necessarily a bad thing.
Whether the trend will extend to local TV
news reporters in crappy little markets around the country, remains to
be seen. We can only cross our fingers and wait.
We'll see you back here tomorrow....on
the Fourth of July.
<<<>>>
 MRS.
BLUEZETTE'S GRAMMAR YAMMER
"A PBS mind in an MTV world."
The foreword is the introductory
note written by someone other than the author of the book.
How unfortunate that the cover of a book Mrs. B's mother is reading
looks like this:
Wellspring by Janice Holt Giles
with a forward by Wade Hall
That "forward" as a noun means
a player in games like basketball, soccer, or hockey, who is part of the
forward line of the offense.
It's also the position played by that person.
Inside the book, foreword was
correctly spelled.
We never know who might notice our
spelling mistakes.
Mrs. B hopes you'll remember that a misspelling can hurt your
credibility.
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