We're just receiving word that VNU Business Media editorial director Sid Holt has been — wait for it, wait for it — fired!
You might remember Sid from his fling with Rolling Stone photo director Jodi Peckman that cost him his job as the book's managing editor. Now the unsubstantiated gossip mill relays that Sid has been axed from the job he took over when then-VNU editor-in-chief Keith Girard was fired at the end of '04 (where he and senior editor Samantha Chang promptly filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against VNU).
No word yet on precisely why Holt was let go, but we are told that Billboard publisher John Kilcullen – a defendant in VNU's infamous dildo lawsuit – remains a rising star at the company. Perhaps it's because he fires others so well? To make matters more interesting, Kilcullen reportedly asked Holt to take over Billboard at least twice. And was turned down as many times.
Karen Leigh's saga continues. The new editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly – who landed the gig hovering over Lori Majewski's desk thanks to Norm Pearlstine being Karen's godfather – continues to miff EW veterans.
Hiring Karen "was definitely NOT a good move," says an insider, "especially considering they nearly forced loyal staffers to move on as to make room for people like Karen. … Karen's hiring pissed a lot of people off."
Like say, for example, freelancers who maintain a revolving door at the magazine (thanks to Time Inc.'s 1,100 hour cap for stringers) that are begging for a masthead position.
But screw them. The good fortune belongs to Karen, who, says another source, is known for her sense of entitlement.
CONTINUED »
After all that shuffling around – from exec editor at Us Weekly in '03 to managing editor of Teen People in '05 to exec editor at Entertainment Weekly in September – Lori Majewski certainly needed somebody to handle her calendar. Lucky, then, that Karen Leigh was available to take on the job as her assistant.
Karen who? That'd be Karen, goddaughter of Norm Pearlstine, Time Inc.'s chief. Ah, nepotism.
This much we know: Karen is 21, and just returned to the New York after a stint at Time magazine in London. And, naturally, she has ambitions to one day be an editor-in-chief. Quick, someone subscribe her to that ED2010 thing the kids are crazy about.
Exclusive
"Page not found." That's the error WABC's website will hand to you if you try to bring up the profile of news anchor Steve Bartelstein. (Google Cache version here.) Which makes sense — given that he was just axed, we're told.
The Eyewitness News this Morning and Eyewitness News at Noon anchor has been clashing with brass for some time now, we're told, but "the last straw" was when he slept through a Good Morning America insert on Friday. GMA was covering the Bronx fire (that killed 10 people) and Steve was expected to chime in during the commercial break to plug WABC's coverage. But he was a no show, and the network was forced to air two minutes of weather and traffic. Producers were pissed.
Steve has a history of not showing up for work and, allegedly, a raging crystal meth addiction. We're told ABC usually allows one rehab stint for employees — or 16 less than Hollywood casting directors allow talent.
Then again, you'll remember way back to Dec. 2005, when a similar WABC incident went down with Bartelstein, where WABC's coverage preempted GMA, and Steve and co-anchor Lori Stokes "looked as if they were blissed out on hash brownies." And back in November, he showed up 20 minutes after the 5am broadcast began.
Oh yeah, and what was that about the "M4M stalking" lawsuit that was filed against him?
It's as if, we don't know, he had it coming.
Exclusive
We hear that – despite advice from the liberal blogosphere – Fox News is going ahead with The 1/2 Hour News Hour, it's stab at taking on The Daily Show. (Clips here, if you missed them.)
Though you wouldn't be hard pressed to find a negative review of the show (which had a pair of episodes aired to test the market), the second pilot picked up 1.4 million viewers on its Sunday night airing, which was enough to make FNC brass happy enough to ink a deal for 13 episodes, says a source. We're told to expect a formal announcement shortly.
Exclusive
By now you've heard the news: The season finale of Law & Order: SVU won't be about a father who kills his wife and baby, but rather the trio of celebrity guest spots. Star Jones is popping up as a prosecutor, Nancy Grace plays herself, and Ludacris is … well, we're not sure what he's doing there. Maybe he's the one who finds the body in the opening scene?
Either way, while the network is expecting a ratings boost, not everyone is thrilled with the new additions. A NBC source tells us SVU stars Chris Meloni and Mariska Hargitay are anything but pleased about the new arrivals.
Says our insider: "It's the season finale. They wanted [the last show] to be about them … and now [producers] are bringing in all this star power. They're pissed." Adds our source: "Mostly, it's about Star Jones. Nobody wants her on the show. I can't, for the life of me, figure out how her agent got her [this role]."
To which producers replied – in the imaginary conversation we just had with them – "Chris and Mariska just got huge pay raises. Tell 'em to fuck off."
Exclusive
Lisa Sharkey once held an enviable dayjob at Good Morning America, where she played senior producer (and professional faster … 82 days!). That was until her bosses discovered she was using her business card's pedigree to do some Star Jonesing: snag free products, services, and tickets from anyone looking for a chance to get booked on GMA.
She was, as they say, dismissed.
Following her ouster, Sharkey landed, in July 2005, at Al Roker Productions, the producing arm of the Today show weatherman that spits out programming for the Food Network and Court TV.
Only thing: She carried her trademark swag grabbing over to Roker's biz. And, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter, "Roker didn't like hearing back from folks that Sharkey was threatening to withhold business unless they gave her stuff." So what did the weatherman do? He fired her, natch. That was at the end of last year.
Now we hear Sharkey (pictured at right, with TV producer Rebecca Shalam) is trying to get back into the morning show game, putting out feelers to anyone who will take her calls — and, she's hoping, doesn't know her reputation. Except she already burned her bridges at ABC with her GMA stint, and Roker's strong ties with NBC means the door is shut there, too, says our source.
So what's left? The Early Show on CBS, the daddy of Sharkey's old haunt, KCBS, where she landed her first job before ending up at Inside Edition.
We're told she's "in talks" with CBS about possible employment, but so far it's unclear whether exec producer Michael Bass knows Sharkey is the Winona Ryder of morning TV. That might not go over well with HR.
Image via NYSD
Exclusive
At the end of last month, Chicago real estate mogul Sam Zell offered to purchase Tribune Co. outright, which "effectively eliminated" competing offers from the likes of Ronald Burkle and Eli Broad and the Carlyle Group.
Now, a source claiming deep inside information tells us exclusively that Tribune is poised to accept that offer, with a formal announcement coming in the next 48 hours.
Though the company just unloaded two Connecticut papers to Gannet for $73 million, we're told to expect Zell's deal to come in "just over $35" a share, putting the asking price at about $8.4 billion. (Burkle and Broad's offer came in at $34 a share.)
As the kids say: Developing.
Don't let Men's Journal's slippery pages allow their on-going strife slip away from you. The Wenner Media title has already suffered industry mockery with Jann Wenner-as-EIC taking the title below its rate base. And that was after the internal warfare that resulted in deputy editor Ben Court's removal as the book shifts toward general men's interest.
As we predicted, it was James Kaminsky who took over (as "editor" Tom Foster made his exit at the end of January). But with his tenure clocking in at just over a month, one insider says James "already has mutiny on his hands."
CONTINUED »
Exclusive:
Two weeks ago, Playboy Enterprises reported a nearly 20% decline in fourth-quarter profits. At the time, CEO (and PEI Chairman) Christie Hefner had to say:
While the year clearly has been challenging for the domestic TV and magazine businesses, growth in our licensing, online, international TV and mobile initiatives support our belief that these businesses will drive the company's performance going forward.
Not so, says our tipster on the inside. According to our source, Playboy bigwigs will be meeting at 3pm (Pacific time) to inform their underlings that the entire department (or very close to it) is being laid off.
Says our snitch:
"The word came down today. Its basically closing down the whole network. Executive Vice President, Sol Weisel, over 25 years at Playboy, gone…Everyone is gone, Dan Smith, Tom Furr, tons of VPs..anyone on staff is being released and freelancers don't know whats going on yet. They will be assembled at 3pm (Pacific time) today and be told details. Playboy TV is dead."
Hear anything else? Be sure to tip us off. Meanwhile, we'll try and gently break the news to our porn-addicted brother, Queerty.
So, about our earlier report that Tina Exharos, MTV's exec VP of marketing, was fired? (And staffers were thrilled?) At least one insider says it's not the case — and that she's still in the office.
Files a tattler: "Tina was walking down the hallways saying to people, 'I know it's on Jossip, but it's not true, I have not been let go.'"
All of which brews speculation that either a) She may not even know yet that she's fired; or b) She's choosing not to say anything.
But, either way, TRL is still canceled. So there's THAT to think about.
Exclusive
We've just received unconfirmed (when multiple sources say it's true, that's confirmation, right?) word that MTV execs have officially canned TRL, and fired approximately fifteen people responsible for its production.
Details to this still-developing story – first rumored about in Gatecrasher – are scarce, which means we can only speculate as to what this means for TRL's potty-mouthed veejay, Vanessa Minnillo.
We'll update you as soon as we hear official word on Vanessa's future life plans, and encourage you to write in with any new information, or cell phone pics of tearful adolescents ripping up their "WE LUV YOU VANNY!" signs in the middle of Times Square.
Exclusive
The MTV bloodbath isn't over with yet. Not only has VH1 Classics been dismissed along with Affiliate Marketing & Sales and pretty much all of MTV World, but we hear top ranking executives – who impressively survived previous rounds of layoffs – are getting pink slipped as well.
An insider tells us that at the top is Salli Frattini, senior vice president of production and – more notably – best friend to MTV prez Judy McGrath. It's Sally who was behind big events like the VMAs and Movie Awards. She's also been there since Day One, a tattler tells us. And now she's gone, as is everyone under her. So too is Kathy Flynn, the SVP for production events, and her staff.
Elsehwhere, in a shock to even the most cynical staffers, we hear executive VP of programming Paul DeBenedittis is also out the door. No matter that he's best friends with MTV programming president Brian Graden.
And with MTV World folding, you can also wave goodbye to Nusrat Durrani, the department's head.
CONTINUED »
With those 250 layoffs at MTV, surely Viacom isn't expecting staffers to keep quiet. And – good news for us! – they aren't. Reports an insider:
Apparently the Affiliate Marketing and Sales Department called a meeting at 1 and told staffers that their beloved boss Jessica Heacock had gotten the ax. They then basically told them that many of them wouldn't survive the day and politely asked them to get back to work. So basically, MTV is treating staffers with the same respect they always do, at least now they're offering the hope of pathetically tiny severance packages.
To make matters worse, the severance packages will be doled out in Jamba Juice cards.
Things are looking up – way up – for Donna Dees, the ousted chief publicist for Mort Zuckerman, who lost her job in August. Depending on who you ask, Dees was either let go as part of a slate cleaning of anyone hired under former Daily News chief Les Goodstein, or she could never get Zuckerman decent play in the New York Times, which is all he cared about.
But now we hear Dees has landed firmly on her feet: As of Monday, she's the new director of communications for Inside Edition. We're told it took only one quick chat – two weeks ago – with Deborah Norville for IE to offer her the gig.
Which should be familiar territory, as it also took only one quick chat for Zuckerman to dismiss her.
Exclusive
In the wake of Anna Nicole Smith's death, do you know who's truly suffering? Staffers at The Insider, that's who.
We hear the entire stage crew staff – some 17 or 18 people – was just given the ax by exec producer Linda Bell Blue. (Cost cutting measure in resigning Pat O'Brien?)
So what's to happen to the show? An, ahem, insider tells us it might move to the set of Entertainment Tonight – a fellow Paramount/CBS Studios product, and Bell Blue's stomping ground – but nothing has been decided yet. The Post, meanwhile, reports the show is moving to New York.
As for Blue Bell? We're told "she cried" when news of Anna's death hit the wires. Our tattler suggests a few possible reasons for the tears:
1) Linda was genuinely sad about the death;
2) They were tears of joy, celebrating a huge return on an $800,000 investment in Anna. All that money for exclusive interviews with the deceased is just now realizing its value, as The Insider will have hoards of unseen footage of a breathing Anna;
3) Tears of guilt, because the $800k in payments to the former Playmate only helped feed her addictions;
4) She felt like she lost a sister: "Anna Nicole once told Linda Bell she thought they looked like sisters," says our source;
Oh, and one other reason Bell Blue might be devastated? She'll have to find a new celebrity to mop the floor with during sweeps.
Despite reports from Gatecrasher and Radar that Pat O'Brien is being ousted as the host of The Insider, an insider tells us he's not out of a job.
We hear Paramount plans to keep him around, resigning a version of his 3-year/$4 million contract, which should keep afloat his budget for leaving coked up voicemails.
Like the half million blogs (or so) launched everyday, VH1's show about blogs might end up suffering the same fate: premature bust.
HushHush is the name of the network's new pop culture series that's hoping mainstream buzz about blogs – is that still going on? – will be its ticket to a successful new programming gimmick. Their magic formula: take the editors behind wildly successful indie entertainment blogs, put them in front of a camera, and bam!, insta-ratings.
Unfortunately for them, the bloggers aren't buying it.
Last month, VH1 fired off invitations to audition to what seemed like anyone who had put their fingers on a keyboard and launched a blog mildly related to entertainment. Blogs including Just Jared, Hollywood Tuna, and even our own MollyGood and Jossip were pitched for the series. (To get it out of the way: As much as we heart VH1 and Best Week Ever, this blog didn't even respond to their emails. Getting pitched for that Joan Rivers show was insulting enough.)
Try-outs were held in New York and Los Angeles over the past couple weeks, with VH1 flying in potential on-camera talent for group auditions where bloggers – many of whom had never met before – were encouraged, according to one insider, to "act like they were friends" on camera and joke around with each other like old pals. (Or, as one hopeful put it, "Act like idiots in front of a bunch of producers who [themselves] didn't know what the fuck they wanted from us.")
More blogger backlash after the jump.
CONTINUED »
Exclusive
In the on-going saga that is Ken Baker and his tenure as Us Weekly comes word that he's leaving his gig as West Coast executive editor to become "editorial director" of UsMagazine.com. From EIC Janice Min's note to staff:
Effective today, Ken Baker has been named Editorial Director of usmagazine.com. He will still be overseeing Hot Hollywood events for the magazine, and be doing PR for the magazine.
For all assignments and LA queries pertaining to the magazine, please contact Martha Flores. A replacement will be named shortly.
Janice
Or, if you read between the lines, Ken will be heading up the new "celebrity video channel" venture with Veoh. And slapping Noelle Hancock around.
Update: After the jump, the more official-sounding announcement.
CONTINUED »
By now you're likely sick of the Citi-"Money Honey" story. You know, the one where CNBC host Maria Bartiromo and ousted Citibank exec Todd Thomson are accused of having an affair while he abused his bank's resources (like its private jet) to shuttle Maria around the world. Unfortunately for your boredom, however, the story continues to flow.
Here's what you likely know so far: Maria received approval from CNBC before taking her Beijing flight with Todd, paying around $4,000 for her ride. Todd, however, didn't receive approval from his bosses, costing them about $50k — and costing him, as of Monday, a job. Meanwhile, this twosome is said to be carrying on a private romance, even though Todd has a wife and kids, situating Maria as the newest member of the Mile High Homewreckers Club. Also, Maria has disclosed, on-air, that she owns Citi stock.
Then, there's what we've been hearing: Behind closed doors, CNBC brass has been meeting to discuss Maria's future with the network. While one insider says "the whole situation will blow over, just give it a couple weeks," we hear CNBC chairwoman Pamela Thomas-Graham and* president Mark Hoffman has been on calls with top execs at GE. They're in "crisis management mode," tattles one source, while another CNBC insider says, "Englewood has become a gossip scene … [usually] this sort of thing is what happens at 30 Rock … [but now] it's all anyone here is talking about." Another CNBC source, who has knowledge of Maria's administrative affairs, says calls have arrived from Business Week, where she writes a column. (The nature of the calls sounded ominous, says our source, but surely they're just talking about edits.)
We're also told that Jim Cramer, of all people, has privately come to Maria's defense. Not that he's running his mouth to build her alibi, but we hear that when asked by a colleague about what he thinks, his response was along the lines of "Who cares? Why are we still talking about this? She's a good girl."
Meanwhile, as a TVNewser source points out, "This brings to light CNBC's stock ownership policy for newsroom employees. It hasn't been talked about much, maybe the network has dropped its guard, but everyone in the newsroom is talking about it again."
And, certainly, you likely know more. So why not share it?
* As a reader pointed out, Pamela Thomas-Graham no longer works at the company. That was our mistake, not our source's, whose report included information about "CNBC's president/chief," which our shoddy research labeled as Thomas-Graham.
Editorial Director
