Mediagazer: Post-Google acquisition, Frommer's keeping book editors and laying off online staff (Rafat Ali/Skift)

5:15 PM ET, August 13, 2012

Top News:

Michael Shain / New York Post:

Saving CNN — Suffering its worst ratings in 20 years, CNN is going Hollywood. In the past few weeks, the No. 3 cable news channel has started seeking out reality-show ideas and big-name stars not afraid to talk politics. They have even begun working on a late-night talk show, The Post has learned.

Discussion: Business Insider, The Huffington Post, Mediaite, JIMROMENESKO.COM, Deadline.com, Daily Mail, Capital New York, Top Digital Journal News, @brianstelter, TVNewser and TVWeek.com

Bill Carter / Media Decoder:

CNN to Promote Nonfiction TV, not Reality TV, Network Says — CNN says it is not getting into the reality television business, though it is considering adding weekend programs that are similar to a documentary-style travel show hosted by Anthony Bourdain that it will begin showing next year.

Discussion: AdAge and New York Magazine

Jeff Bercovici / Forbes:

Google Buys Frommer's. Can We All Just Agree It's A Media Company Now? — Every few months, some Google watcher pens a chin-stroker asking whether it's fair to call the Mountain View, Calif.-based internet giant a media company. See, for instance: — GigaOm, 2007: “Is Google A Media Company?”

Discussion: Media & Entertainment, Wall Street Journal, TechCrunch and AllThingsD

Rafat Ali / Skift:

Post-Google acquisition, Frommer's keeping book editors and laying off online staff — Layoffs have already started following the announcement of Google's acquisitionof the Frommer's brand from John Wiley & Sons, Inc. — Our sources say all of the Frommers.com team was gutted today as editors …

Discussion: Wiley, GigaOM, paidContent and ReadWriteWeb

John Clarke / Forbes:

Despite Criticism, NBC Scores Big Ratings With London Olympics Closing Ceremonies — Despite criticism for cutting acts and interrupting the London Olympics Closing Ceremonies with a comedy series preview, NBC scored high ratings Sunday night. — NBC's prime-time games coverage drew …

Discussion: Speakeasy, Hollywood Reporter, Rolling Stone, Radio & Television …, The Wrap, Deadline.com, Home Media Magazine and Digiday

Chelsea J. Carter / CNN:
Viewers outraged after NBC cuts away from closing ceremonies

Discussion: Bleacher Report, Poynter, www.wnyc.org, @jayrosen_nyu and Seattle Times

Peter Kafka / AllThingsD:

AOL Bets Big on Web Video News With HuffPost Live (And on Tape) — After a very long drum roll, the Huffington Post launches HuffPost Live, its streaming Web video news operation, this morning. — If you've watched the streaming video that other newspapers and Web sites have put out …

Mark Leccese / Gatekeeper:

Fareed Zakaria: Another plagiarism scandal, another wrist slap — Those of us in journalism had barely finished wincing our way through The New Yorker's Jonah Lehrer fabrication scandal — he got fired — when the eminent and ubiquitous Fareed Zakaria got caught plagiarizing.

Discussion: Politico, The Daily Beast and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:
Yale reviewing relationship with Fareed Zakaria after plagiarism

Discussion: artsblog.dallasnews.com and Poynter

Albany Times Union:

Legendary editor Helen Gurley Brown dies — Helen Gurley Brown, editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazines' 64 international editions and one of the world's most popular and influential editors, died today at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center. She was 90.

Discussion: Associated Press, AdAge, Speakeasy, Capital New York, Poynter, Bloomberg, Forbes, The Wrap, FishbowlNY, JIMROMENESKO.COM, The Awl and Media Decoder

Jim Romenesko:

Times-Picayune reporter jumps off the ‘sinking ship’ — The Times-Picayune reporter who shared with Romenesko readers the letter she wrote to her bosses in early July ("I can't just keep my mouth shut and pretend everything is okay or that it doesn't matter") has left the paper.

Discussion: Erik Wemple

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:

Candy Crowley will be the first woman to moderate a presidential debate in 20 years — CNN's Candy Crowley will moderate one of this fall's presidential debates. The three New Jersey teens who've been campaigning for the Commission on Presidential Debates to name a woman moderator …

Discussion: Mediaite, The Wrap, Hot Air, The Huffington Post and www.wnyc.org

Steve Myers / Poynter:

Science writers: Jonah Lehrer's scientific errors worse than fabricated quotes — Jonah Lehrer's fake Bob Dylan quotations detract from a more serious problem flagged by scientists while he was a rising star: his habit of misstating and mischaracterizing scientific facts.

Kara Swisher / AllThingsD:

Not All Yahoos Headed Out Door: Mayer Makes Filo a Direct Report and Bell Permanent GC — While new Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer has ushered some longtime employees out the door of late — most recently, HR head David Windley last week, with more to come — that does not mean she is not keeping some longtime Yahoos around.

Discussion: Forbes

David Carr / New York Times:

Wondering How Far Magazines Must Fall — Making a weekly newsmagazine has always been a tough racket. It takes a big staff working on punishing deadlines to aggregate the flurry of news, put some learned topspin on it and package it for readers. But that job now belongs to the Web and takes place in real time, not a week later.

Discussion: PandoDaily, LA Observed, Parse.ly Blog and eMedia Vitals