• As the bidding begins for Knight-Ridder's quite profitable newspaper assets, the question begs: Which newspapers, exactly, does Knight-Ridder publish? [NYT]

• NBC News prez Steve Capus thought ABC would surely go with Charlie Gibson. Everyone else thought Steve Capus would surely not then go on to take a pot shot at ABC. [TVNewser]

• We don't even know what the magazine is about, but a free vibrator with purchase? You bet we're buying. [WWD]

• Jack Shafer rubs his crystal ball to find out why more journos aren't in jail. [Slate]

• A magazine aimed at pregnant women over 35? Lucky, Vogue, Glamour, Cosmopolitan and the rest finally have some competition. [WWD]

• Without Ted Koppel, the new Nightline looks more like 20/20. And without Barbara Walters, the new 20/20-esque Nightline looks like decoupage. [USA Today]

• Get Eliot Spitzer's heart medication. Not only is the radio industry engaging in payola tactics, but now the U.S. military is buying off Iraqi newspapers to publish favorable stories penned by American soldiers. [LAT]

• Brian William's nightly news lead continues to grow, thanks to all that viewer email he's responding to. [AP]

• At John Huey's super secret succession initiation at Time Inc., where Norm Pearlstine finally moves on out, guests were treated to hot water-revealing mugs of Huey's, ahem, mug. [Gawker]

• Since the U.S. is far too flooded with celebrity weeklies, they're now invading Canada. British tabloid Hello will set down across the northern border next August, where it'll hope to beat native Bonnie Fuller at her own game. [Toronto Star]

• Blogger Panopticist goes way too far with the half-assed satirical rumor of the New York Times buying Gawker. Way. Too. Far. [Panopticist]

• Obligatory note: NBC makes official Steve Capus' position as NBC News president, a role he's filled since September anyhow. [NYT]

Sweet Karl Rove, is Rick Kaplan actually on the way out? As soon as today?

Sounds like it could be, according to this ominous email circulating MSNBC's in-house network. Not only are Jeff Zucker and Steve Capus about to make an announcement — they're traveling all the way to New Jersey (Secaucus, no less) to make it.

From: Announcements @ MSNBC
To: @MSNBC Secaucus ALL
Sent: 10/6/2005 12:55 PM
Subject: Town Hall Meeting Tomorrow

Jeff Zucker, President, NBC Universal TV Group, and Steve Capus, Acting President of NBC News will visit MSNBC for a town hall meeting this Friday at 1:00 pm. Together with Rick, they will answer your questions, as well as give you an update on what's happening throughout the news division and network-wide. This is a great opportunity to hear from Jeff, Steve, and Rick. Please gather in the Production Studio at 12:45 pm on Friday. See you there!

12:45pm? Looks like Monica Crowley and Ron Reagan are going to have to hear it through the grapevine. (Or will they?) Even more ironic, Connected Coast to Coast was Kaplan's idea.

• Martha! Howard! Cosmo? Kate White is teaming with Sirius for a 24-hour channel to launch in 2006. But at this point, we're about the only ones without our own Sirius show. (Especially now that Oprah is signing on too. Jeez.)

• NBC News president Neal Shapiro is stepping down to pursue "the kind of creativity I've had in previous jobs." Namely, mastering the elongated chevron knitting stitch. Jeff Zucker named his replacement: Steve Capus, who's a bigger fan of the mistake rib.

• Meanwhile, Shaprio's stepping down is just the latest blow that's put network news on the brink of disaster that also includes ABC and CBS. Seating is first come, first served.

• Razor publisher (and Internet porn peddler) Richard Botto cut his staff loose on Thursday, notifying all that the struggling magazine would cease printing.

• Oh where, oh where, has MSNBC's weekend staff gone? With Hurricane Katrina taking up all available resources, they're operating on a skeleton crew — with honcho Rick Kaplan even exec producing their telethon. "there is NOBODY in charge … NOBODY!!!"

• Former ESPN reporter Adrian Karsten was found dead from apparent suicide after facing a prison sentence for failing to report more than $600,000 in income.