Mediagazer: Erik Huggers to leave BBC for Intel (Josh Halliday/Guardian)

9:35 AM ET, January 19, 2011

Top News:

Cecilia Kang / Post Tech:

FCC, Justice approve Comcast and NBC joint venture — Federal regulators on Tuesday approved Comcast's acquisition of NBC Universal, allowing for a joint venture that puts a vast library of television shows and movies under the control of the nation's biggest cable and broadband Internet service provider.

The United States Department of Justice:

Justice Department Allows Comcast-NBCU Joint Venture to Proceed with Conditions … WASHINGTON - The Department of Justice announced today a settlement with Comcast Corp. and General Electric Co.'s subsidiary NBC Universal Inc. (NBCU) that allows their joint venture to proceed conditioned …

Brian Stelter / New York Times:

In Comcast-NBC Conditions, A Victory for Bloomberg — Embedded in the rules that the government is imposing on Comcast's acquisition of NBC Universal is one that specifically benefits Bloomberg LP, the financial news giant that owns Bloomberg Television. — Broadly, the Federal Communication …

Staci D. Kramer / paidContent:
Updated: DOJ's Approval Of Comcast-NBCU Contingent On Giving Up Role In Hulu

Discussion: Multichannel, rbr.com and Susan Crawford blog

Denver Post:

MediaNews Group announces management changes; Singleton to become executive chairman — Denver Post owner MediaNews Group Inc. said today it is launching a search for a new chief executive officer to succeed current CEO and chairman William Dean Singleton. — Upon hiring of the new chief executive …

Discussion: Poynter, paidContent and LA Observed

Ken Doctor / Newsonomics:

Dean Singleton's Departure Marks New Owners Want for Faster Innovation — Dean Singleton worked the deals in corners of the U.S. for decades, building from scratch a major chain, that by circulation (though, not revenue) is probably the second largest in the country.

Russell Adams / Wall Street Journal:

Consolidation Weighed for Newspaper Publishers — MediaNews Group Inc., publisher of more than 50 daily U.S. newspapers including the Denver Post, is eyeing a merger with Freedom Communications Inc. and possibly several other newspaper companies, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Discussion: Recovering Journalist and BrauBlog

Tom Junod / Esquire:

Why Does Roger Ailes Hate America? — An exclusive and unbiased investigation into the highly paid operative of a foreign-born tycoon, a man who reengineered political and media culture and fomented a revolt that threatens the very stability of our country — Today, here at Esquire …

Discussion: CJR, Poynter, New York Magazine, Chickaboomer, Mediaite, Salon, TVNewser, FishbowlNY, Ben Smith's Blog, Runnin' Scared, Gawker, On Media's Blog and The Wire

Tom Junod / Esquire:
The Next Steve Jobs Is Roger Ailes

Discussion: The Huffington Post and TVNewser

Nick Summers / New York Observer:

The Crisis at the Front of the Book — On a Tuesday night some weeks ago, at a jam-packed book party at Sidecar, the handsome upstairs space next to P.J. Clarke's on East 55th Street, Hugo Lindgren was leaning on the bar next to his deputy. The new editor of The New York Times Magazine …

Megan Garber / Nieman Journalism Lab:

Alan Taylor brings “Big Picture” prowess to The Atlantic — Starting in February, The Atlantic will have a new section on its website: In Focus, a photography blog featuring “photo essays on the major news and trends of the day.” — Editing the site will be Alan Taylor …

Discussion: Gedankengang, Poynter, mediabistro.com, kottke.org and MediaMemo

Joe Pompeo / Yahoo! News:

WSJ denies rumor that editor's leaving for Australia — A thinly-sourced report in today's Sydney Morning Herald suggests that Robert Thomson, managing editor of News Corps' Wall Street Journal and one of Rupert Murdoch's top lieutenants, may be packing his bags for a move back to Australia.

Stephen Mayne / Sydney Morning Herald:
Change afoot for Murdoch's minions

Discussion: Talking Biz News

Gabriel Sherman / New York Magazine:

Venerable Lefties at Harper's Divided by Union — Harper's, one of the last bastions of old-line liberalism and a lonely defender of a certain idea of what literary culture should be, has long been supported by the largesse of its owner and patron, John “Rick” MacArthur …

Discussion: Poynter, bookforum.com, New York Observer, FishbowlNY, The Huffington Post and Boing Boing

Damon Kiesow / Poynter:

Why the Orange County Register saw record mobile traffic last weekend — This past weekend, nearly 25 percent of The Orange County Register's digital traffic came from mobile devices — a new record for the paper. — Sonya Quick, who heads up social and mobile newsroom initiatives at the Register …

Discussion: Nieman Journalism Lab

Michael Calderone / Yahoo! News:

Publisher asks journalists not to comment on Obama novel — Time's Joe Klein said he didn't write Simon & Schuster's forthcoming Obama novel. Several other Beltway figures, in media and politics, have also denied being the anonymous author behind “O: A Presidential Novel,” which hits book stores next week.

Discussion: Poynter, Scocca, Mixed Media, Gawker and GalleyCat

Joe Mullin / paidContent:

After 200 Lawsuits Against Sites, Righthaven Targets Online Commenters — So far, the copyright-enforcement venture Righthaven has only made a few thousand dollars per settlement with its publisher targets, according to news reports. To make any real money, Righthaven will have to widen its sights.

Josh Halliday / Guardian:

Erik Huggers to leave BBC for Intel — Director of future, media and technology will join US computer firm as corporate vice-president — Erik Huggers, the BBC's director of future, media and technology, is to leave the corporation at the end of February.

Discussion: paidContent, BBC, themediablog.typepad.com and paidContent:UK

James Rainey / Los Angeles Times:

On the Media: Groupon experiences growing pains with customers, merchants — The Internet phenom experiences growing pains with customers and merchants — and hold on to your ‘expired’ coupons. — Groupon Inc. signage is displayed outside the company's headquarters in Chicago. (Tim Boyle / Bloomberg)

Katherine Rosman / Wall Street Journal:

How Adam Got @Adam and Became Cool Online — All Rob Goldman ever wanted was to be himself. In the Silicon Valley start-up obsessed world he inhabits, that means being facebook.com/rob or @Rob on Twitter. — But Mr. Goldman can't get what he wants, even at a website he founded.

Johnnie L. Roberts / The Wrap:

Executive Musical Chairs Won't Save Broken Record Business — Has the music stopped for the broken record business? — Pearl Jam and Gregg Allman may have new albums out Tuesday but with CD sales of chart toppers historically anemic the first weeks of 2011, record companies can't rely on old faves to keep beating the declining odds.

Discussion: Communication Prof's News … and Company Town

Erick Schonfeld / TechCrunch:

With $2 Million In Fresh Funding, FanBridge Buys DamnTheRadio — Fan “relationship management” service FanBridge recently closed a $2 million Series A financing and already completed its first acquisition of Facebook fan management startup Damntheradio. Super angels Jeff Clavier (SoftTech VC) …

Discussion: hypebot and New York Observer

Stephen J. Dubner / Freakonomics:

Yes, This Blog Is Leaving NYTimes.com — As reported in Forbes on Friday, the Freakonomics blog will be leaving NYTimes.com on or around March 1 and returning to its indie roots. — The Forbes piece and most of the followup coverage drew the seemingly obvious connection between …

Gabriel Sherman / GQ:

The Worldwide Leader in Dong Shots — With his leering coverage of Brett Favre's penis (allegedly!), Rex Ryan's foot fetish, and the surprising sex life of ESPN, A. J. Daulerio has turned Deadspin.com into the raunchiest, funniest, and most controversial sports site on the Web. But at what cost to his soul?

Discussion: Poynter

Michael Calderone / Yahoo! News:

TPM hires The Hill's Crabtree, plans D.C. expansion — Talking Points Memo is preparing for a significant expansion in 2011, including plans to roughly double the size of the political news site's Washington, D.C., bureau by the end of the year. — To kick things off …

Discussion: FishbowlDC

Chris Roush / Talking Biz News:

Moore named NYC bureau chief for “Marketplace” — Heidi Moore, a former Wall Street Journal reporter, has been named the New York bureau chief for the public radio business news show “Marketplace.” — Moore is familiar to Marketplace listeners as a regular guest of host Kai Ryssdal's Friday segment, The Weekly Wrap.

Erick Schonfeld / TechCrunch:

Exclusive: Ad Tech Startups Banding Together To Take On Google And Microsoft — As the online ad technology industry consolidates, it is becoming tougher for startups to stand out among the giants. The 500-pound gorillas like Google and Microsoft keep integrating in new technologies …

Discussion: paidContent and New York Observer

Gillian Reagan / Bookish:

Editor, Agent and Author Betsy Lerner on What's Wrong with Writers — Sovereign book editor and star literary agent Betsy Lerner was “burning with rage.” She was sitting in the Booth Theatre this past Sunday after a production of Next to Normal, the Pulitzer-Prize winning musical …