Mediagazer: What book publishers should learn from Harry Potter (Mathew Ingram/GigaOM)

1:10 AM ET, March 28, 2012

Top News:

Murdoch's Scandal

Michael White / Guardian:

Rupert Murdoch: a man of prices, not values — He's a voracious dealmaker and not a very scrupulous one - but if he sold his remaining newspapers, who would buy them? — “Why are you obsessed with Murdoch?” Fleet Street colleagues used to ask in a mocking sort of way.

Neil Chenoweth / Australian Finance Review: Whistleblower made to change his tune

Dan Sabbagh / Guardian:
Investigation will have made interesting viewing for Ofcom's News Corp team

Discussion: Media Decoder, Radio & Television …, BBC and Guardian

James Cusick / The Independent: From Sicily to the US courts - the trail of evidence could hit Murdoch where it hurts

Neil Chenoweth / Australian Financial Review:
Free to air: dirty tricks broadcast for all to see

Discussion: @edgecliffe

Peter Osnos / The Atlantic Online:

Even Old Media Institutions Are Acting Like New Media — 60 Minutes has online games. The Wall Street Journal and The Times produce hours of video per day. Legacy publications have embraced social media. — The loyalty of baby boomers to print publications tends to be deeply rooted …

Elana Zak / 10,000 Words: How The Wall Street Journal Uses Pinterest

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:

Corporation for Public Broadcasting gives NPR $500,000 for foreign news coverage — The money, announced last night as NPR journalist Lourdes Garcia-Navarro was honored with an Edward R. Murrow award, “will help support journalists and producers stationed across five key NPR foreign bureaus …

Discussion: PRWeb

Peter Kafka / AllThingsD:

HuffPo Co-Founder Ken Lerer's Stealthy Startup Aims at CNN, Fox — Ken Lerer helped build an Internet news powerhouse out of thin air. Now he wants to do it again. The Huffington Post co-founder, who sold his site to AOL a year ago, is working on another Web news startup.

Discussion: mediabistro.com, Betabeat and Business Insider

Mathew Ingram / GigaOM:

What book publishers should learn from Harry Potter — After months of anticipation, the e-book versions of author J.K. Rowling's phenomenally successful Harry Potter series are now available through Rowling's Pottermore online unit, and as my PaidContent colleague Laura Owen has noted …

Discussion: Digital Spy, Wired, Techdirt, paidContent and paidContent:UK

Press Gazette:

NoW's James Desborough released without charge — Former News of the World US editor James Desborough was today told he faces no further action in Scotland Yard's phone-hacking probe. — Desborough was held in August last year on suspicion of conspiring to intercept communications for the now defunct Sunday tabloid.

Discussion: @hughes_mark, Guardian and Journalism.co.uk

Andrew Pugh / Press Gazette:
Blackhurst: Why Leveson Inquiry is ‘deepy flawed’

Discussion: @skynewsbreak, @hughes_mark, Digital Spy, Guardian and Journalism.co.uk

Associated Press:

Perelman Drops out of Philly Newspaper Group — Business magnate Raymond Perelman says he's dropping out of the investor group looking to buy Philadelphia's two main newspapers. Perelman told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he left the group of local powerbrokers and philanthropists because he wanted to be a majority owner.

David Gambacorta / Philly.com:
35 more jobs in jeopardy at papers, website

Discussion: Poynter and The Newspaper Guild

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:
Inquirer publishes investigation of possible future owner; also, a report of more layoffs

Discussion: newsworks

Center for Investigative Reporting:

Center for Investigative Reporting merging with The Bay Citizen — Today, we're announcing a merger between the Center for Investigative Reporting and The Bay Citizen. — The merger will create the largest nonprofit organization in the country focused on watchdog and accountability journalism …

Discussion: Center for Investigative …, The Bay Citizen, JIMROMENESKO.COM and Poynter

Lucas Shaw / The Wrap:

Boston Globe Launches ‘ePaper,’ Brings Digital Replica of Print to iPad, iPod — The Boston Globe launched on Tuesday a digital replica of its daily newspaper, “The Boston Globe ePaper,” available both from its subscription-based website and as a standalone app on the iPad and iPhone.

Discussion: Boston Globe, Media Nation and NetNewsCheck Latest

Steven Waldman / CJR:

News Organizations That Lobby Against Their Own Reporters' Interests — Media companies are fighting political transparency while their reporters demand it — The battle playing out over a new government transparency proposal has taken a turn that should concern journalists.

Jim Romenesko:

NYT: 'The ball is now in the Guild's court' — New York Times labor senior veep Terry Hayes tells Times employees that the newspaper has put a “new, comprehensive proposal” on the bargaining table. He says that: — * We are no longer proposing to end the Guild medical plan and put Guild employees in the excluded plan.

Kevin Roderick / LA Observed:

OC Register plans to “news mob” the Angels opener — The Orange County Register is really, really officially excited about the Angels season opening on April 6. Sure, it has happened every April for 51 years already. But this year the team has arguably baseball's biggest star in Albert Pujols.

Discussion: FishbowlLA

Radu Tyrsina / ITProPortal:

Gannett Buys 1,000 iPhones For Journalists — iPhone, an important journalistic tool — The Gannett organisation, considered to be a leader in mobile journalism, bought over 1,000 iPhone 4S smartphones for print and broadcast journalists as day-to-day tools.

Discussion: Politico and Gannett Blog