Writing an article about television censorship and the use of naughty words, Washington Post scribe Lisa de Moraes finds herself in the unusual position of discussing what, exactly, the FCC has such a problem with — while her own newspaper won't let her use certain words (or, actually, letters) to describe the situation. Awkward!
On the April 10 episode of "30 Rock," the staff of the late-night show "TGS" has become obsessed with a new reality hit called "MIL[letter that's been deemed too naughty for The Washington Post when it follows M, I and L] Island."
For the uninitiated: MIL[WaPo Scarlet Letter] stands for Mothers I'd Like to [have sex with].
In this episode of "30 Rock" — which NBC says also is titled "MIL[WaPo Banned Letter] Island" — network bigwig Jack (Alec Baldwin) is watching the riveting finale of this reality-series hit, pitting the final two contestants, Debra vs. Deborah, when he is blindsided by a blind item in a newspaper gossip column. In it, a network staffer calls him a "Class A moron" and adds, "That guy can eat my poo." [WaPo]
"F" = Not allowed
"Poo" = Totally kosher
Katharine Weymouth, publisher of the Washington Post, sent staffers a memo today about its buyout plan to cut staff. They're calling the program, which is only for non-Guld members, "Voluntary Retirement Incentive Programs (VRIPs)." It would've done them well not to include the acronym "RIP" in their plan, but so be it. There are a few eligibility requirements, like being older than 50 and work at least 22.5 hours a week. So basically, that includes everyone the Post would be looking to excise. CONTINUED »
Before we start this, for the record, we like Malcolm Gladwell. His books and articles are always interesting. When he met him at the Moth Gala last year, he recommended a book to us and pointing out a bug scampering on the floor, which for the sake of symbolism, might as well have been a moth.
At the event, Gladwell told a story about his mischievous days at the Washington Post, which was used on a recent episode of This American Life. While he was at the Post, as Gladwell puts it, he had a “Jayson Blair moment,” when he realized mistakes he put in the paper could have a major impact on the world. He went on to goad the National AIDS Conference to hold their annual meeting in Sydney, Australia because he hadn’t been there before. CONTINUED »
Seeing Slate's continued success and the purchasing power of blacks, the Washington Post Co. has launched TheRoot.com, a news and entertainment site for people of color. Henry Louis Gates Jr., an African-American Studies professor at Harvard, comes on board as editor-in-chief, with folks like Malcolm Gladwell signing on to contribute.
Gates is also involved on the business end, with TheRoot teaming up with his own AfricanDNA.com, which is among a growing number of companies promising to link the black diaspora to its African roots through genetic maps. Readers of TheRoot are often directed to Gates' website.
Gates – and apparently WaPo – sees no conflict of interest, even though their new website (named TheRoot, after all) makes an explicit effort to focus especially on genealogy. Which is a convenient stance to take. (And given our own interest in black web publishing, perhaps our skepticism is also convenient?)
What we wear, what we buy, who we like and what we’re like, duh, it’s all controlled by the media. And politics is no different.
So if you’re the kind of person who likes to gamble on the future of our nation, Barack Obama and John McCain winning the primary today in New Hampshire seems like a good bet. Because as some outlets are admitting, the media has a huge crush on both of them. CONTINUED »
COST OF LIVING GOES UP IN D.C. The Washington Post will be an even 50 cents starting December 31, up from 35 cents, its cost since 2001. The New York Times is more than twice that, but as saying goes, it’s all about location, location, location. [WP]
Sometimes publicists won’t take “unsubscribe” for an answer. Washington Post music critic Tim Page was so eager to get off the email list for former crack user and current DC Mayor Marion Barry that he wrote an email to a Barry aide that may have verged on the inappropriate:
Must we hear about it every time this crack addict attempts to rehabilitate himself with some new — and typically half-witted — political grandstanding? I'd be grateful if you would take me off your mailing list. I cannot think of anything the useless Marion Barry could do that would interest me in the slightest, up to and including overdose.
To be fair to Page, Marion Barry overdosing on crack has very little to do with his opera beat. CONTINUED »
Digg, that site you’re always hearing is important but don’t really understand why, might finally be sold.
Word on the street is that a major media player is set to buy the link sharing site for $300 to $400 million. While that number might seem a little 1999, Digg recently signed a $100 million multi-year ad deal with Microsoft.
Over at Valleywag, they’re guessing that the media player in question is the Washington Post Co., which already has ties with Microsoft through Slate. Well, Digg couldn't be any worse of an investment than About.com.
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 »
Sometimes I just have to say, “what the fuck?” and the royal we doesn’t work as well. These are my thoughts—raronauer
In college, pretending to have read books was a necessary skill. There were papers to write, tests to take, and in between, keg parties to crash.
But since I’ve graduated from required reading, my free time is finally free. If I wanted to spend all my non-work hours playing Mortal Combat 2, that would be weird, but still my choice. I end up reading books and magazines because I enjoy to, not because I have to.
CONTINUED »
An Iraqi reporter for the Washington Post was fatally shot in Baghdad over the weekend, proving once again that this war was a giant fucking miscalculation reporting from the front lines of an active war-zone is still extremely dangerous. [WaPo]
From the Washingtonian:
The Northwest cafeteria Coffee Cart is offering Post managers an opportunity to reward their employees with tickets for either a free box of popcorn or a free 16-ounce regular coffee. Tickets must be purchased in sheets of ten and can only be redeemed at the Northwest Coffee cart. The price is $11.00 for ten popcorn tickets and $15.50 for ten 16 oz. regular coffee tickets. (Taxes are included).
Dance, monkeys, dance!
Earlier: Tub of Lard
WaPo Reliable Source columnist Amy Argetsinger snuck a camcorder into last night's "Grammy's on the Hill" awards, and captured an inebriated Ted Kennedy slurring his way through a group rendition of "We Are The World." A sarcastic Lloyd Grove muttered, "Wow, Ted Kennedy drunk at an open-bar D.C. event! Call the presses!" [BigHeadDC]
Christopher Orr is making good use of his Lexis account today. The New Republic senior editor is waling on Washington Post TV critic Tom Shales for his inability to see the entertainment landscape post-1998, when Seinfeld signed off. You see, Shales really, really liked that show. So much so that since Seinfeld went off the air, "Shales has cited it in a remarkable 79 articles. (Compare that to a mere 18 mentions of The Simpsons, which has actually been running, albeit at quarter-steam, all those years.)"
Shales has described "Seinfeld" as "the most successful and acclaimed sitcom ever"; "one of the most popular and highly praised sitcoms ever"; "It may have constituted a 'great era' all by itself"; "the last great sitcom of the age of the sitcom"; and "the last really funny TV show"–a tidal wave of praise that would be less overwhelming if not for the fact that all these quotes appeared in the last 14 months, many years after the show went defunct.
Orr wants to know why Shales can't look to The Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm, or even Scrubs for a new analogy for great TV, or lack thereof. Luckily, there's the off chance that Shales will tune in to VH1's What Perez Says and walk away with fresh means of comparison. Or another excuse to long for Jerry.
• As the battle between the 'Giuliani Girl' and the 'Obama Girl' heats up, Team Barack "keeps to their tradition of balancing booty with wit, using a pop-up Al Gore to excellent effect, along with the somewhat hapless character of "Kucinich Girl," which is a nice nod to lower-tier candidates (though one shudders to think of what "Gravel Girl" might look like)."
• Larry Flynt to Tucker Carlson: "I'm a slimeball, and you can't dance."
• According to the results of a new Harvard study, "young people do not make an appointment with news every day the way older adults do." As a result, teens also tend not to talk like out-of-touch septuagenarians.
• WaPo brings "local news" to excruciatingly boring macroscopic level.
Editorial Director
