Mediagazer: Blair aide's phone ‘hacked by NotW’ (Press Association)

11:45 AM ET, November 1, 2011

Top News:

Lisa O'Carroll / Guardian:

Phone hacking: live — Live coverage of significant new evidence about the News of the World phone-hacking scandal that is emerging from a tranche of documents published by the culture select committee — 3.13pm: Another hand-written note of a conversation between Pike and Mark Lewis, Taylor's solicitor.

Press Association:

Blair aide's phone ‘hacked by NotW’ — A lifestyle consultant who worked with ex-Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife Cherie has said she was told by police that her mobile phone messages were hacked by a private investigator working for the News of the World.

Mark Hosenball / Reuters: Law firm documents add to heat on James Murdoch

David Kaplan / paidContent:

Fas-Fax: Major Newspapers' Total Digital Editions Rise 63 Percent — Digital editions of the top 25 newspapers rose 63 percent to 2,169,843 for the six months ending in September, according to Audit Bureau of Circulations' Fas-Fax tally. For the most part, the numbers reflect newspapers …

Jeff Bercovici / Forbes:

More Proof That Paywalls Work From...Newsday? — A new semi-annual report from the Audit Bureau of Circulations contains yet more evidence that the digital paywall The New York Times erected in March is doing exactly what it's supposed to do. To wit, it's not only getting people to subscribe …

Discussion: The New York Observer

Dan Walker Smith / Adweek:

‘Engadget’ Alumni Launch ‘The Verge’ — Former Engadget editor Josh Topolsky has unveiled The Verge, a new site dedicated to tech. The site launched early on 1st November. — Topolsky says the new site will not just be “a stagnant, fixed entity, but an evolving, growing piece of technology.”

Discussion: The Verge, Nieman Journalism Lab and Business Insider, more at Techmeme »

Staci D. Kramer / paidContent:
With Launch Of The Verge, SB Nation Parent Rebrands As Vox Media

Discussion: AllThingsD, ShortFormBlog, NetNewsCheck Latest and Talking Biz News

Frances Martel / Mediaite:

Politico's Ken Vogel Refuses To Confirm Or Deny Cain Story Came From Rival Camp — As the fallout continues from last night's scandalous Herman Cain exposé, many trying to parse Cain's response to accusations of having had to settle a sexual harassment claim as head …

Discussion: CJR, Erik Wemple and Associated Press

Stephen Engelberg / ProPublica:
Raising Cain: When is a Scoop Ready to be Published?

Discussion: New York Times, The Huffington Post, Jack Shafer, Washington Post, Poynter, St. Petersburg Times, Creative Loafing Atlanta, FiveThirtyEight, Hot Air, Big Journalism, Mother Jones, Washington Wire, The New Yorker Blog and Future of Journalism

Joe Flint / Company Town:

DirecTV and News Corp. reach new deal — News Corp. has struck a new deal that will keep its powerful cable and broadcast channels on satellite broadcaster DirecTV. — The two sides had been bickering over a new contract and DirecTV was set to drop more than two dozen News Corp.-owned Fox cable networks …

Brian Stelter / Media Decoder:
DirecTV and News Corp. Avert Channel Blackout

Discussion: TVNewser, TVWeek.com, rbr.com, Adweek and Broadcasting & Cable

Ernesto / TorrentFreak:

Major Book Publisher Files Mass-BitTorrent Lawsuit — Since early 2010 more than 200,000 people have been sued in the U.S. for sharing copyrighted works via BitTorrent. Thus far these lawsuits have been the exclusive territory of independent and adult film studios, but today they are joined …

Discussion: Free Press, the Econsultancy blog, Softpedia News, The Digital Reader and ReadWriteWeb

Mike Sauter / 24/7 Wall St.:

The Twenty-Five Most Valuable Blogs In America - 2011 — After years in the shadows of major media sites, blogs have come into their own. They now compete directly with the most well-funded online content sites, many of which are owned by the largest media companies.

Discussion: Poynter and Business Insider

Jon Russell / The Next Web:

BBC set to expand Asian presence with new services in Thailand and Taiwan — The BBC is set to launch new channels across Taiwan, Indonesia and Taiwan continuing its expansion across Asia, according to a report from Media Newsline. — The corporation announced that it will introduce …

Discussion: Future of Journalism

Hollywood Reporter:

Brian Williams' ‘Rock Center’ Premiere: What the Viewers Are Saying — The new newsmagazine, which debuted Monday night, included a segment where the host riffed on the trick-or-treating habits of upper-class New Yorkers with Jon Stewart. — Brian Williams, left, and Harry Smith

Discussion: Washington Post and Chickaboomer

Rip Empson / TechCrunch:

Aol's Patch Taps Ad Tech Startup PaperG To Boost Local Ad Sales In Over 100 Markets — Traditional publishers and fledgling digital publications alike are trying to find the best ways to monetize their content on the Web and take advantage of the benefits offered by hyperlocal content …

David Kaplan / paidContent:

Adobe, Looking To Grab Rising Online Video Ad Dollars, Buys Auditude — Adobe (NSDQ: ADBE) is continuing to build its advertising business through major acquisitions and this time, it's buying Auditude, which operates a platform for managing online video ads.

Discussion: Multichannel, Digits and NetNewsCheck Latest, more at Techmeme »

Bloomberg:

Tribune Judge Rejects JPMorgan, Aurelius Reorganization Plans — Nov. 1 (Bloomberg) — Competing reorganization plans for Tribune Co. were rejected by a judge who threatened to put the biggest U.S. media company in bankruptcy under a trustee unless it improved its strategy for ending the case.

Discussion: Guardian

Jeff Bercovici / Mixed Media:

Huffpo's Brand Is Worth Way More Than AOL's, Study Shows — After AOL acquired the Huffington Post in February, CEO Tim Armstrong had some tough decisions to make regarding which of his company's brands to keep and which to discard in favor of the Huffpo versions.

Discussion: NetNewsCheck Latest, Future Journalism Project and Nieman Journalism Lab

Laura Hazard Owen / paidContent:

HarperCollins' Acquisition Of Thomas Nelson Is An Investment In Digital — HarperCollins is acquiring Christian publisher Thomas Nelson—publisher of the mega-bestselling Heaven Is For Real—for an undisclosed sum in a deal that will be finalized by the end of the year.

Discussion: HarperCollins Publishers, Media Decoder and GalleyCat

Paul Tash / St. Petersburg Times:

St. Petersburg Times changing its name to Tampa Bay Times — Since I started here as a reporter in 1978, I have answered my phone with some version of “St. Pete Times.” I will need to learn a new habit. — Starting Jan. 1, this newspaper will become the Tampa Bay Times.

Discussion: The Huffington Post and Poynter

Ed Stych / Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal:

Star Tribune expects $4M in extra revenue from paywall — Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal by Ed Stych, Web Producer … The Star Tribune is joining The New York Times and other newspapers by asking readers to start paying for online content. — That content has been free for years …

Discussion: Minneapolis Star Tribune

Jeff Sonderman / Poynter:

New website builds dossiers on journalists, hopes transparency will lead to trust — Ira Stoll is 38. He has a Facebook page and a Twitter account. His phone number is (718) 499-2199 and his email is ira@futureofcapitalism.com. He went to college at Harvard, has worked at the Los Angeles Times …

Discussion: Future Journalism Project