Mediagazer: 20% of the UK online population use iPlayer. Here's how the BBC plans to grab the rest. (Paul Sawers/The Next Web)

10:10 AM ET, August 8, 2011

Top News:

News Corp.'s Soft Power in the U.S. — Over the last month, many Americans watched from a distance in horror or amusement as it became evident that the News Corporation regarded Britain's legal and political institutions as its own private club. — That could never happen in the United States, right?

Discussion: On Media's Blog and New York Magazine

Wall Street Journal:

Investors Await News Corp. Meeting — News Corp. executives will try to use an important board meeting and full-year earnings this week to steer attention away from the scandal at the media giant's U.K. newspapers unit and refocus investors on the company's core operations, people familiar with the matter said.

Discussion: Betabeat, Deadline.com, Poynter and Guardian

David Lieberman / Deadline.com:

Q&A With UK Journalist Who Uncovered News Corp Scandal: Rupert Murdoch Likely To Outlast James Who's In “A Tight Corner”, The Guardian's Nick Davies Says — James Murdoch could lose his job as News Corp's deputy COO or BSkyB's chairman as soon as this fall.

Discussion: Adweek, The New York Observer and Future of Journalism

Nat Ives / AdAge:

New York Times Introduces Beta620, a Public Site for its Experimental Projects — Consumers Can Test Smarter Search Bar, New Crossword App and Other Ideas — The New York Times has introduced its long-delayed Beta620, a public beta testing site where web surfers can experiment with new products …

Discussion: Fast Company, eMedia Vitals, the Econsultancy blog, paidContent, Chrisgillbard.com, New York Times and Future of Journalism, more at Techmeme », Thanks:steverubel

Adweek:

First Mover: Frank Rich — How is it being back with New York editor Adam Moss? — It's great. Our editorial relationship dates back to when he was essentially a kid at Esquire in 1987, when he called me up out of the blue. I didn't want to do the assignment; he convinced me to do it.

Eric Pfanner / New York Times:

After Much Ado, a Google Book Deal in France — PARIS — France has caused plenty of headaches for Google. Its politicians have denounced the U.S. Internet giant as a cultural imperialist; its publishers have called it a copyright cheat. — Yet France is suddenly the only country …

Discussion: Softpedia News

Zeke Turner / WWD Media Headlines:

The New Yorker Under the Microscope — Last week, The New Yorker ran a play-by-play about the Navy SEAL raid on Osama bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. It was quickly accepted as one of the most impressive pieces of magazine journalism so far this year — ASME bait and bound to be a major motion picture screenplay.

Discussion: FishbowlNY, Poynter and The New Yorker Blog

New York Times:

Ad Money Reliably Goes to Television — The economy is faltering and consumers are scared, but you wouldn't know it by watching television, where advertisers are still pouring in money. — Last week, companies like Viacom, CBS and Time Warner reported windfalls in television revenue, much of it from growing ad spending.

Discussion: digiday:DAILY, more at Techmeme »

Steve Outing:

The stupidity of our current media age (print-digital edition) — I just renewed my subscription to Wired magazine. $12 for another year of the print edition, plus I get the tablet edition for free to read an enhanced edition on my iPad. What a deal! — Alas, I don't want the print edition!

Discussion: Future of Journalism

Russell Adams / Wall Street Journal:

Magazine Publishers Cast Wide Tablet Net — As magazine publishers cast a wider net around the tablet universe, certain hardware makers remain on the outside looking in. — Last week Time Inc. said all its 21 titles will be available on all “leading tablet platforms” by year end.

Discussion: eMedia Vitals

Kevin / Strange Attractor:

Tottenham riots: Data journalists and social scientists should join forces — In the wake of some of the worst riots in London in more than a decade, Ben Goldacre has said on Twitter: — the other sad thing about these riots is that we're going to have to read opinion columnists telling us why they think they happened.

Discussion: Guardian, One Man & His Blog and Jon Slattery

Paul Sawers / The Next Web:

20% of the UK online population use iPlayer. Here's how the BBC plans to grab the rest. — There's been a few big developments on the BBC iPlayer front this year. Back in February, dedicated apps for iPad and Android were announced, whilst just last week, a new global iPlayer app for iPads was launched in eleven countries.

Discussion: ZDNet, more at Techmeme »

Jason Horowitz / Washington Post:

Facing their own troubles, Berlusconi and Murdoch square off — Milan — At the British parliamentary hearing into News Corp.'s phone-hacking scandal last month, Rupert Murdoch defended his family, arguing that it oversees a vast media empire — one that extended to Italy, where, he noted …

Jeremy W. Peters / New York Times:

Paying for News? It's Nothing New — IN April 1912, the surviving operator of the Titanic's wireless communications system was paid a handsome sum for his account of narrowly escaping death aboard the sinking ship. — It will probably surprise some journalistic purists to learn …

Discussion: TVNewser and Kirk LaPointe's …