The New York Times is off the hook. No, we're still going to bash them for being a-holes about TimesSelect, but the possibility that they'll be facing criminal charges – for not divulging the sources of leaks about planned federal raids on Islamic charities – is likely moot at this point, since the statute of limitations has expired. Special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald only got his hands on phone records a few weeks ago, which left him with little time to actually identify suspects in the leaks.
That, and Fitzgerald has been very busy tracking down the a-holes who stole your money on eBay.
• After giving Aaron Brown the shaft in order to put Anderson Cooper on his pink pedestal, CNN has yet to see its gray haired mascot pull in a ratings payoff. [Media Week]
• Matt Lauer and Katie Couric didn't bother to mention the Macy's Parade balloon accident even once during their coverage, thanks to entertainment producers who didn't see the incident worthy of coverage. So much for Matt and Katie maintaining their "hard news" edge. [NYDN]
• Paper magazine, not content with being a hipster bible in New York only, plans to show up in L.A. with a hackneyed public artsy performance project to generate some buzz. [WWD]
• Some editors actually stand by their writers when faced with job-jeopardizing criticism — and we'd like to meet them. Well, except for Brandon Holley. [Mediabistro]
• For its 1,000th cover, Rolling Stone is going 3-D. The plans are already in the works, even if the issue won't pop up till May 2006. And, of course, it was Jann Wenner's idea. [NYT]
• Valerie Plame manhunter Patrick Fitzgerald is calling Time magazine's Viveca Novak in front of a grand jury to talk about her conversations with Karl Rove's attorney Robert Luskin. This marks the second Time reporter Fitzgerald has summoned and the 198th time we fell asleep while reading a Fitzgerald-related article. [Reuters]
• Another Bazaar staffer leaves. Giggle. Said staffer immigrates to Vogue. Double giggle. [Page Six]
• Hearst's latest women's weekly Quick & Simple has been slow & lagging at the newsstand, selling just 70,000 to 80,000 copies a week. It's fun knowing we're beating Hearst in at least one category. [WWD]
• And lastly, the new Nightline debuts tonight, sans Ted Koppel. We know you're giddy to get your Martin Bashir on. [AP]
If you're in need of a good laugh, as we are, you'll excuse us as we go back in time (!) to Sunday, when the Washington Post reported a statement from disgraced former VP chief of staff Scooter Libby.
Libby is a man who loved his job so much he planned to stay with Dick Cheney until, uh, "I get indicted or something."
And today, he got that "something."
We were so looking forward to reading E&P's live blogging of the indictments, and then, well, that didn't happen. Instead they had to go and bore us with an actual article about Scooter Libby's five-count indictment and his subsequent resignation as Dick Cheney's chief of staff.
The criminal charges were one count of obstruction of justice, two counts of making a false statement and two counts of perjury, all related to the Plame case in 2003 and releasing information to reporters.
Libby will resign, ABC reported, citing a White House source saying his "boxes are packed." According to the New York Daily News, his post will be filled by Cheney's chief counsel David Addington.
Startlingly, there are zero counts against CNN, MSNBC or FNC for boring us all morning with repetitive speculation. Meanwhile, Karl Rove remains under investigation (and so should his blood pressure) while special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald admits defeat in actually completing the task he was charged with.
Grand Jury Speaks: Libby Indicted on Five Charges [E&P]
Earlier: Plamegateâ„¢: Libby going down
As you begin your Friday dreaming of what the weekend will bring (hint: Halloween fiascos and an extra hour of slumber), you can also look forward to raising your glass to the indictment of Scooter Libby, VP Dick Cheney's chief of staff.
Unfortunately, if you were planning to pour out an ounce for Karl Rove, you're going to find yourself with a little extra liquor on your hands: President Bush's deputy chief of staff isn't likely to face indictment from special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald.
Finally that little website he set up is going to get some action. Ooh, perhaps they'll even live-blog the whole thing!
Cheney Aide Appears Likely to Be Indicted; Rove Under Scrutiny [NYT]
• Some have the audacity to call the Peter Jackson's upcoming King Kong – at three-hours long and costing $207 million — bloated. [NYT]
• What's worse than reading the live-blog of Patrick Fitzgerald's Valerie Plame-related indictments? Reading the live-blog of Patrick Fitzgerald's Valerie Plame-related indictments when there, uh, aren't any indictments. [E&P]
• For a newspaper that's supposed to represent freedom of information, Boston Metro sure makes it difficult to get interviews with their staff. But perhaps that's because their "staff" is composed of wire report copy and pasters. [Boston Phoenix]
• Both Spin and Vibe magazines are on the sale block, but don't tell anyone about it. We're also pretty sure this is where Nick Denton issues an announcement that Gawker Media is not for sale. [Radar]
• Cookie magazine may look a little too similar to Child magazine with its fur-wearing fat baby on the cover, but rest assured that when the new Conde Nast baby title debuts next month, the baby will have had some liposculpting. [WWD]
• Jann Wenner isn't just a magazine publisher, he's also an interior decorator. And, like everything else he gets his hands in, he's quite the anal interior decorator. [Lowdown]
• Will & Grace's top act Megan Mullally has secured distribution for her upcoming talk show in the country's top four markets. Unfortunately for viewers, her whiny, high-pitched Karen voice is not actually how she speaks. [AP
• Sean McManus will not eat, sleep or breathe until he pulls CBS News out of third place. [AP]
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