Mediagazer: Dismantling of Righthaven appears under way with loss of website (Steve Green/VEGAS INC)

11:15 AM ET, December 24, 2011

Top News:

Alexia Tsotsis / TechCrunch:

Over 40 Internet Companies Come Out Publicly Against SOPA (Including Us) — Since the list of 120 or so SOPA supporting companies hit the Internet yesterday, the lines have been drawn; People are publicly promising to pull thousands of domains from domain registrar Godaddy after it appeared on the list as a supporter.

Paul Tassi / Forbes:
The Great SOPA Conspiracy Theory

Discussion: TechCrunch and Techdirt

Mike Masnick / Techdirt:
Prominent Rightwing Blogger Promises To Work Hard To Defeat Any Rightwing SOPA Supporters In Congress

Discussion: Erick's blog and Hit & Run

Steve Green / VEGAS INC:

Dismantling of Righthaven appears under way with loss of website — The court-authorized dismantling of Las Vegas copyright company Righthaven LLC appeared to be under way Thursday, with the company losing control of its website to a receiver. — As noted by the Righthaven Victims website critical …

Discussion: Boing Boing

Timothy B. Lee / Ars Technica:

Google tries to kick Authors Guild out of court in book case — It's as if the last four years hadn't happened. In 2007, Google's legal dispute with a coalition of authors and publishers over Google Books was put on hold while the parties hashed out a settlement agreement.

Discussion: The Digital Shift, Electronista and TeleRead

Julie Moos / Poynter:

WUSA removes story from website after discovering parts of it came from the Washington Post — WUSA President and General Manager Allan Horlick says the station has removed a story from its website after learning that portions of it were taken from a Washington Post piece on the same subject.

Discussion: Fairfax News, @mathewi, Washington Post and Gannett Blog

Claire Atkinson / New York Post:

Former NBC vet Marc Graboff set to run 'American Idol's' parent company — After a six-month search, “American Idol” owner CKX is close to naming a new boss, The Post has learned. — The entertainment company, which also owns the “So You Think You Can Dance” TV brand …

Discussion: TVWeek.com

Edward Schumacher-Matos / NPR Ombudsman:

Is NPR Doing Too Many Stories About Catholicism? — Pope Benedict XVI during his weekly general audience at the Vatican on Dec. 14, 2011. — When the Catholic Church changed its liturgy in late November, All Things Considered, Weekend Edition, Morning Edition, and Tell Me More, covered the story.

Bloomberg:

FCC Plan to Ease Cross-Ownership Rules Points to Consolidation — Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) — The Federal Communications Commission agreed to propose easing limits on one owner holding a television station and newspaper in a top 20 U.S. market. — The FCC plan keeps existing caps on TV and radio station ownership.

Merrill Knox / TVNewser:

Bloomberg Hires CNBC Producer For ‘Street Smart’ — Jason Farkas will join Bloomberg TV as a senior broadcast producer in January. His hire was announced today by Ted Fine, Bloomberg's executive producer for afternoons. — Farkas will focus on helping the “Street Smart” editorial team ahead of the program's re-launch on January 9.

Peter Kafka / AllThingsD:

Maybe Apple's Newsstand Really Was a Present for Publishers — When Apple launched its Newsstand feature in iTunes this fall, the idea was that giving newspaper and magazine publishers their own dedicated shelf space — for those who signed on to Apple's subscription program - would boost sales.

Discussion: CJR, TUAW, MacRumors, Business Insider, @pkafka and Electronista, more at Techmeme »

Adam Clark Estes / The Atlantic Wire:

It Costs a Fortune for The New York Times to Cut Costs — The New York Times is finishing up a new round of buyout packages for veteran employees, but with the report that the paper is paying $15.4 million to remove former chief executive Janet Robinson and a look at how much the paper …

Discussion: New York Post, FishbowlNY and CJR

Michael Calderone / The Huffington Post:

How Ron Paul's Newsletters Got Back In The News — NEW YORK — On Thursday night Reuters reported on a solicitation for Ron Paul's political and investment newsletters from the 1980's and 90's; the direct-mail ad warned of a “coming race war” and included incendiary rants about blacks …

Discussion: The New Republic, Big Journalism and Reuters

Jason Del Rey / AdAge:

Former TechCrunch Staffer Sarah Lacy Set to Close Funding Round for PandoDaily — Netscape Co-Founder Marc Andreessen Joins Michael Arrington and Other Investors In Tech News Site — Former TechCrunch Senior Editor Sarah Lacy is expected to close a round of funding in the next two weeks …

Discussion: Future of Journalism and Business Insider