MSNBC's Dan Abrams got a lot of flack for his announcement that he'll be opening up his own consulting agency to help clients deal with PR crises, armed with a staff of out-of-work media types that usually fan the flames of these sort of stories. Though it seems a silly ethical question: how will Rachel Sklar, Bonnie Fuller, or Steven Brill report on any of their new-found clients when there are no paying gigs left to dish to?
That's what Abrams is banking on, anyway. Being one of the last refuges of the media world, he's hoping the 650 who've already applied as experts to his new company will keep their traps shut out of a sense of self-preservation in order to keep the jobs of the one place that will still pay them. So how hard is it to become an "expert" for Abrams Research?
Dan Abrams, with a future client?
The Ghostbusters do not, in fact, take unsolicited calls, which leaves open the question, "When crisis hits, who you gonna call?" Former MSNBC general manager and ex-Verdict host Dan Abrams hopes you've got his business card tucked away, and you'll end up on the line with Abrams Research, the strapping gent's newly formed media counsel firm.
Armed with a phalanx of media know-it-alls — including former Huffington Post media critic Rachel Sklar, ex-media mogul Steven Brill, and former American Media editorial director Bonnie Fuller, who could all use an hourly wage these days — Abrams' new outfit (first client: Ron Perelman!) can put together a "mock jury" for a client suffering a public relations crisis, made up of the very people who are normally responsible for fleshing out the public relations crisis and who, supposedly, could best guide a client out of such a matter.
Critics, naturally, are jumping all over this thing, fingering the grey matter between journalism and what's basically public relations spin, says the WSJ. Since Abrams, son of famed First Amendment attorney Floyd Abrams, turns to journo types to offer advice to clients, what happens when those same media industry fellas are later asked to, say, report on the matter? Dicey!
Interestingly, Abrams isn't alone in his post-MSNBC strategy. CONTINUED »
See? There isn't much difference between traditional journalism and web blogging: A study done by an ex-Huffington Poster showed that the Arianna-owned site actually favored male bloggers for the front page-selected stories. Only 23% of the 1,125 posts featured during that period were women bloggers, and 57 of those 255 women posts were written by Huffington herself.
So, gender bias? Or just an elaborate form of payback by a disgruntled ex-employee?
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Blame it on the High Holy Days around the corner, but Jews are certainly getting their fair share in the press recently for reasons other than owning the entire industry. Not that you couldn't do this exercise any old week, but just looking back in the past five days, count how many Jew-centric stories are in the news: Harvey Weinstein in the press again, Sarah Silverman shlepping for America, hell, even Bill O'Reilly feels the need to comment on the Jewiest show about Jews, albeit a decade too late.
Now, in honor of Rosh Hashanah this weekend, The Jewish Channel launched a series of webisodes, featuring New York elite Jews talking about their yearly mitzvahs. Unfortunately, Woody Allen isn't involved, but Rachel Sklar is, so things equal out? Maybe?
First of the episodes, after the jump:
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Fox News just wants to make sure you knows who loves you, baby. The network took out a page in the Chicago Tribune yesterday to print this CNN attack ad, which references the historic Gerald Ford smear campaign.
Despite this, and vocal criticism from the media that CNN's "expansion" project is just another word for cutbacks, the network is doing just fine: Its Biden-Obama announcement coverage on Saturday was 137 percent ahead of Fox in the ratings, and with 743,000 viewers in the coveted 25-54 demographic, was the highest-rated hour on cable.
A difficult feat, considering Fox won the lottery to provide all the raw footage from the DNC to the other networks. This is one of those scenarios where the numbers speak for themselves; flies, honey, vinegar, and all that.
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This clip of Keith Olbermann, on Wednesday's Countdown, has Huffington Post media crit Rachel Sklar in a huff. It's because Keith sums up an argument about how to end the Barack vs. Hillary fight – Newsweek's Howard Fineman says the "adults" of the party must finally make a decision – with, "Somebody who can take her into a room and only he comes out."
For Sklar, that sounds a bit too close like beating up a defenseless woman and leaving her for dead. To us, that sounds a bit overreactionary. CONTINUED »
PET NAMES Rachel Sklar's vernacular so far includes: Brian Williams as "BriWi," Katie Couric as "KaCo," and, as of today, Tom Brokaw as "ToBro." What's next? Diane Sawyer as "DiSaw" and Robin Roberts as "RoRo"?
While Judith Miller has shown she's on board with breaking the Harry Potter embargo, one other saucy brunette is piping up to say she's not down.
It's Rachel Sklar, shrine to all that is good in media, and she's giving the New York Times (and not the Baltimore Sun because, well, they're the Baltimore Sun) flack for snagging an illicitly purchased copy of the book and – egads! – reviewing it.
And spilling plot lines!
• If they ever do make a tv movie about Bob Woodruff, the role of ABC news president David Westin will be played by a Desperate Housewives "hunk."
• The Post gets to the heart of the U.S. News/Sarah Lawrence controversy by reminding everyone that U.S. News and World Report is actually owned by Mort Zuckerman.
• Last week, the two biggest news stories were the Scooter Libby verdict and the presidential race. (And lest you thought our country had smartened up too much, it's worth noting that Antonella Barba grabbed the #3 slot.)
• Turns out CBS Evening News' new exec producer is actually friends with the Clintons. Conflict of interest? Or just boring coincidence?
• "[Keith] Olbermann types with one finger. His right pointer. Eighty words a minute." Just think about that.
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• OK! doing OK better.
• TVNewser's Brian Stetler is Jon Friedman's online journalist of the year. Because he, like, totally doesn't spread gossip.
• Virus attacks email inbox of skinny people everywhere.
• NYT promotes top execs, finds less room to pay for newsroom types.
• Rachel Sklar takes a moment away from her Joe Scarborough playdates to do online radio.
• CBS relaunching music label to cherry pick tracks for its shows.
• Seth Mnookin joins parade calling bullshit on NYT's anonymous source policy.
• Ken Auletta can't call others smug when he himself, is you know, that too.
• Katie Couric isn't the only diva at CBS News.
• HuffPo's Rachel Sklar throws down with Graydon Carter, who has no idea that media blogs everywhere are watching his every chortle.
• BlackBerrys will cause your children to resent you and your spouse to leave you.
You remember Nick Douglas, don't you? He's the plucky fella who was launch editor for Nick Denton's tech gossip site Valleywag. He also hates when you call him "plucky fella." Last month, he abruptly left his Silicon Valley chattering ways, fueling speculation of "did he resign or was he fired?" The 8-Ball points to the former, but today there's also good fortune: news that he's joined deep pocketed Huffington Post as an Eat The Press contributing editor. Also joining the payroll: Opinionista sblogger (and BFF of ETP editor Rachel Sklar) Melissa Lafsky. Which means Dave Zinczenko will soon have two beauties on his arm at those never-ending calendar of book parties. Half of which are for him, anyhow.
• Those crazy Russians prove they are more crazy than Madonna. [AP]
• Look, having Kate Moss' career really isn't that hard. You probably just have to date Fernando Gil or something. [FBNY]
• Is it worse that Matthew Broderick fell off a horse, or that the press is still referring to him as "the Ferris Bueller star?" [TMZ]
• Obviously, no awards show is complete without a good B-List nip slip. [Mollygood]
• Oh lord. Everyone knows, if you stick your thingy in Paris Hilton, it's gonna' take somethin' a lot stronger than Tilex to cure whatever you're bound to catch. [Us]
• Leave it to Rachel Sklar to keep blogging from the middle of a lake in Canada. That girl is nuts, yo. [ETP]
The Huffington Post is reportedly getting a boost. A $5 million boost at that. Like we said this morning in regards to Bono buying Frobes, investing in online media is all the rage right now, and "venture capital group" Softbank is putting its money where Arianna Huffington's mouth is.
It actually took us a few minutes to actually process the number …. $5 million? Into a blog? A non-Denton owned blog? This is kind of huge, people. The major investments comes a year or so after Huffington launched her political-based site, filled with big-named contributors and new right hand woman Rachel Sklar.
Huffington Post is in the midst of an expansion: it has added a media section called "Eat the Press" and is now offering online video. Its list of more than 750 bloggers includes Al Franken, Bill Maher, the Hollywood talent agent Ari Emmanuel and Nora Ephron.
And just think — they still want to invest even though George Clooney isn't blogging. Girl must be doin' something right.
BUCK$ FOR BLOG [Tim Arango, New York Post]
Last night we hit up Pravda for an hour or so of white wine chatter hosted by Best Life EIC Stephen Perrine. It never takes more than three sips of pinot to forget what party you're at and why you're celebrating, so we were sure to write it down ahead of time: we were mingling among a sea of PR types to honor Why Do Men Fall Asleep After Sex?, the new tome by Mark Leyner and BIll Goldberg. Sure, they weren't giving the the book gratis to any partygoers – you had to buy it! for $14! and it was only in paperback! – but who cares? Men's Health's David Zinczenko was there letting his pecs burst through a white button down, which is about all we need to hear to RSVP.
There was Zinczenko's comparing Men's Health to Cosmopolitan – they're both "horny" magazines, which is why he and Kate White are BFFs – New York's press denizen Serena Torrey showering the bar with glitter (or perhaps it just looked that way; her beauty is blinding), Best Life publisher Mary Murcko ensuring your hand was never without a cocktail (and, should have you two hands free .. well, you get the idea), and authors Mark Leyner and Bill Goldberg hanging on each other's well-sculpted shoulders. Though it was Arianna Huffington's arrival – on the arm of Eat The Press chaperone Rachel Sklar – that caused a stir. (Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that Arianna's dressing like a 24-year-old? And pulling it off?)
Though we expected a room brimming with male model types (or at least industry vets who could pass as former abdominal display cases), we weren't entirely let down: Pravda's strawberry martini proved worth the trek into a below-ground lair of air conditioning heaven. Even if we never even caught a glance at the book's cover.
• Why are none of these "Middle East hotties" Middle Eastern? Sure Anderson Cooper's cute and all, but there's got to be some sexy shirtless Turkish guy somewhere. [TMZ]
• Remember when eBay was for antique necklaces and weird kitchen stuff? Now you can bid on Matthew McConaughey's car. [FBNY]
• Seriously, you should grab those open HuffPo positions before the whole world realizes that working there = free massages from Rachel Sklar. [HuffPo]
• Tara Reid’s body has finally hit the point of self destruction. [Perez Hilton]
• Julia Roberts learns the joy of catching poop. Oh, how the mighty fall. [The Sun]
When the "official official" announcement came that Jeff Bercovici and Sara James were leaving their posts at Women's Wear Daily's Memo Pad for the greener pastures of Radar and Men's Vogue respectively (really, there will be more green, we're sure of it) we asked you to vote (ok, you made us beg a little) for who their perfect replacements would be.
The process was entertaining — if not overwhelming. Amazingly enough, some people actually voted for Lloyd Grove (though we're assuming it was Lloyd), and while it seemed at first like the Observer's media mogul Gabe Sherman was going to come out the winner, Huffington Post darling Rachel Sklar won by an ish, with Gabe coming in second at the end. But hey, there are, after all, two spots to fill!
Official, official final outcomes, after the jump.
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Ok, people. We spent a solid amount of time and effort putting this poll together, and now we want you to vote in it damn it! According to Janice Min, you care more about gossip than voting in any sort of political election, so we expect your full participation in this. Who do you think should fill the fashionable, gossipy shoes of Jeff Bercovici and Sara James when the move on from WWD? Snap to it, folks … we want to let Gabe Sherman know the results before he starts his vacay.
Now that the departures of beloved Memo Pad staffers Jeff Bercovici and Sara James are all official, it's time to move on to the next topic. Who could possibly fill those dapper shoes? We had a pretty tough time pulling these names out of our rears, but we've come up with a few guesses.
However, we need your input. (Ok, we don't need it, but we really, really want it.) Any of these qualified applicants would leave a gaping whole in their current spots should they depart, which would only mean more meta media door revolving, and in turn, sheer delight on our part. (If your currently vying for Sherman or Sklar's job, we suggest nominating them!) We'll announce the official results tomorrow morning.
It's been awhile since we've had any solid Drudge Reports to report. But today, Drudgie gives us not only a photo worth gazing at, but also, some actually interesting information that contributes to our knowlege of current events.
Anderson Cooper has the top selling book? He beat out Tim Russert? Props, Coops! While currently, there is no link to the actual sotry… hence the "developing" aspect … one thing's for sure.
Arianna Huffington is surely sending Sklar out for a bottle of Veuve as we speak.
Editorial Director
