THE 50 STATE SOLUTION The New York Observer is 20% complete with their new project, Politicker. This site is a hub for political news from all 50 sites; ten states have launched so far. The plan is to put a journalist with a laptop and a BlackBerry in the state capital and let them go. We'll be sure to let you know about any openings in the Honolulu bureau. [NYT]
DEMOGRAPHICS Hey, that piece about Tumblr from the New York Observer is getting a lot of traction on the internet. Guess why? Because people who are interested in the tumblrs have tumblrs and are blogging about it.
BLAME THE NEO-CON The Times has cut their local opinion pages, in parts because no cared about Gateway National Recreation Area, and also to fund their new conservative columnist, Bill Kristol. First Iraq, now this. Democrats in '08. [NY Observer]
Whoever said the New York Observer was anything less than observant? Those eagle-eyed scribes couldn't help but notice that the Op-Ed page in Sunday's Times was four pages instead of the usual three!
Freelancers, rejoice: Slate is set to launch a new business site as early as next summer.
Following in the steps of Portfolio and Fox Business News, Slate sees an opening in the crowded business news market. The project is still waiting final authorization, but Slate already offered the head job to Elizabeth Spiers. She turned down the position; maybe she is also tired of seeing her name attached to big web launches.
CONTINUED »
In Rudolph Giuliani’s narrative of his own life, as confided to rapt Republican voters along the presidential primary trail, he has been fighting the lonely twilight struggle against “Islamic terrorism,” as he insists on calling it, since sometime in the 1970’s. Like President Bush, Mr. Giuliani is vain enough to compare himself with Winston Churchill. Both the former mayor and his supporters often suggest that his understanding of the terror threat is visceral and almost mystical. Only he, among all the candidates of both parties, truly grasps the issue and possesses the fortitude to confront the threat.
–Excerpted from Joe Conason's article "Rudy's Glass House" in today's New York Observer
One year ago, the New York Observer was boldy proclaiming "man flab is fab." But new evidence suggests the tides are changing!
THEN:
One by one, from Hollywood to the Hamptons, men have liberated themselves from the flat-stomached emo-boy reign of terror…Our men are carrying an extra 10—hell, maybe 15—pounds in the midriff, haven’t even thought about the gym in months, and they are unashamed. Why should they be? The Hollywood box-office draws have stopped looking like the lithe and graceful Orlando Blooms of the world, delicate and emotive and who might possibly weigh less than an average female fan… [NYO]
NOW:
Tired of hating yourself and your boyfriend for not hating himself? Help is on the way! Just one week after it was revealed that Ryan Gosling’s chunky physique may have contributed to his dismissal from a film role, directer Ridley Scott has reported that he demanded from the stocky Russell Crowe a 30 pound weight loss before filming began on their newest project, Body of Lies. Finally, everyone can be afraid of looking in the mirror. [Mollygood]
Apparently man flab just became a little less fab and a little more problematic. Now, are you going to break the bad news to Val Kilmer or should we?
Those of you who had a little too much to drink last night (and are, therefore, contending with morning crankiness, a throbbing headache and an almost irrepressible urge to vomit) may wish to avoid Gawker alum Doree Shafrir's article in this week's New York Observer about media personalities and the increasing importance of "branding." Not just because it quotes Julia Allison (again) without disclosing the author's indirect – or possibly even direct – hand in Allison's rise to fame overhyped mediocrity* but because it quotes Times' media columnist David Carr doing his best impression of a self-important elitist trying to come across as humble.
Felix (like the cat) Gillette (like the razor) might have had something else on his mind when he wrote a profile of Donny Deutsh for the New York Observer this week.
The Big Idea has made marginal ratings gains, from 138,000 in 2006 to 158,000 in 2007, but the show still routinely garners less than 50,000 viewers. In the third quarter, the show’s scratch rate was 26%.
So as much sex appeal Deutsch might have for middle-aged women, his ratings growth probably doesn't merit a profile.
The article might have been inspired by the upcoming launch of the Fox Business Network, which will no doubt vie for the same “main street” business owner viewers as The Big Idea.
Seeing as they both Deutsch and Rupert Murdoch have no financial need to work and live in the Trump Park Avenue building, relating to demographic shouldn’t be a problem.
Alex Balk is leaving Gawker to become Radar's online managing editor. [NY Observer]
If A Million Little Pieces taught us anything, it’s that readers love a good tale of redemption, and now that Mr. Frey is back with a new novel, the people who have agreed to help him sell it are going all out to convince the world that New York has forgiven Mr. Frey his sins…
And at least one publishing executive who believes himself to be one of the eight or nine Mr. Simonoff [Frey's new agent, Eric Simonoff of Janklow & Nesbit] has been referring to in interviews suggests that his interest in the book was significantly more passive than Mr. Simonoff has represented.
“It’s a bit of a fig leaf,” he went on, referring to Mr. Simonoff’s efforts to suggest that all is forgiven with Mr. Frey. Still, “it may have the virtue of being true, which is not a bad thing. This is publishing. We hire the handicapped.”
–Excerpted from Leon Neyfakh's piece in this week's New York Observer, "Reconstructing Frey"
We've never had any particular inclination to crash a NYO bash. Primarily because we always envisioned their ho-hum gatherings as being garish salmon-themed affairs, involving a sherry-toting Jared Kushner, a martini-guzzling Spencer Morgan and impromptu political debates with cerebral media mensch Michael Calderone.
But that, of course, was before we knew about the illegal escorts. [P6]
As we write this, we’re looking out the window and salivating over the picture perfect weather outside, currently being wasted on lazy, unemployed persons and pretentious NYU students. And so, for your sanity and ours, we’ve decided to kick off a glorious new feature called “Comment of the Day,” to provide a transient glimmer of entertainment for all you working stiffs who would much rather be downing margaritas poolside on the Jersey Shore (while fending off advances from married, guidos named Tony) than slaving away in your cubicles.
Today’s “Comment of the Day” comes to us from the New York Observer website, and it pertains to Jared Kushner's bizarre decision to reprint Candace Bushnell's "Sex and the City" columns (that originally ran back in April of 1995).
But will they stand the test of time? Do people still care about Samantha Jones, Carrie and Mr. Big? And why hasn't Bushnell written anything new in the past ten years?*
Find out, after the jump.
As you're wont to do, you already devoured this week's Observer on their new Halloween-themed website. But what about the common commuter, who doesn't have the luxury of sitting at home morning thru afternoon, clicking on links and needs the Wednesday rag to stay informed on people with more money and influence than he? This week – for the second week in a row – he was missing his NYO. A breakdown at the paper's Brooklyn printing plant, where The Sun is also spit out, meant Jared Kushner's paper didn't finish its inking until 2pm yesterday. And by then, all the cool kids already knew about Keith Olbermann's new pad. Sad face.
Well hello there, new New York Observer website. We were wondering when you were going to spend some of J. Kush's millions on upgrading yourself to Web 2.0. New Flash bobble heads on the front page. Cute new icons. And we just love the Halloween skin you guys are rocking now!
The side-by-side nature of Wednesday night's New York Observer and CNN fetes at the Four Seasons meant guests had the chance to wander between the two, paying their respects to Jared Kushner and Peter Kaplan while trying to score facetime with Larry King in the other room. The adjacent events also allowed uninvited guests of one to attend the other.
Which explains how ex-Observer staffer and current Portfolio scribe Gabe Sherman scored a playdate with his former haunt.
Gabe was not invited to the Observer party, says a source, because none of the Observer boys (and girls) were unwelcomed at Portfolio's uberrific launch. But with entree at CNN's gathering, Gabe clocked some time with his former colleagues. None of whom were particularly pleased to see him.
Update: Observer brah Tom McGeveran writes in with a counter: "I'm in a position to tell you that Gabe Sherman was invited to the Observer party at the Four Seasons the other night. I put him on the list myself."
Not in the frame: Jared Kusher shoving a copy under Bloomberg's arm.
It's a new dawn, it's a new day … and thankfully, it's not another Michael Bublé album. It is, however, the week of the New York Observer. Sure, Radar might be relaunching tomorrow, but that story got tired last month. For on Wednesday, our salmon weekly is going tabloid — with all sorts of changes.
The front cover that readers see on newsstands will contain no story text - only headlines, photo and a small version of its famous cartoon logo. [...]
Readers will have to turn the outside four-page wrap to see the "real" front page. [...]
Inside, there will be a lot more 400- and 500-word news stories while the long features - that once ran 3,000 to 5,000 words - will be trimmed to the 2,000- to 2,500-word range.
One striking change: The back page will showcase real estate in much the way more conventional tabloids reserve that space for the big sports story. "Real estate is porn to New York," Kaplan said.
There will also be a second "cover" inside, with a 20-page pullout on city culture.
All of which is a candy-coated way of notating: The Observer is going down market. And they're all sorts of excited about it.
• Oscar nominations announced. Dreamgirls shut out from Best Picture. Gays cry.
• Ahoy, The Politico, and welcome to the neighborhood … where we don't watch each other's backs or care much if the bullies on the corner kick your ass on the way home from school.
• Maria Bartiromo: CNBC anchor, homewrecker.
• NYT jumbles up its reporters and rebrands them Hollywood scribes.
• With a fourth hour, isn't it time for the Today show to add the fifth through 24th hours?
• Scooter Libby's trial begins.
• Twenty four writers have ditched the Observer for the Times. Twenty four writers are richer because of it.
This ounce goes out to our girl Rebecca Dana, whose byline is missing from this week's New York Observer as she's gone and abandoned Jared Kushner and taken up shop with the Grey Lady and it'll never be the same again and if only she gave us one more chance to show her our appreciation then maybe she would've stayed and we're sorry if we did anything to make her feel unloved and we just wanted to be her friend and make things good in the world.
Ahem.
Thanks for all the sweet nothings, girl.
Editorial Director
