Mediagazer: Fact-checking will play prominent role in tonight's debate (Andrew Beaujon/Poynter)

5:55 PM ET, October 3, 2012

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Mark Sweney / Guardian:

Financial Times sale could raise £1bn — Pearson could offload the Financial Times for as much as £1bn in a “trophy hunt” by potential buyers, after the head of the company's education division was announced as the new chief executive, replacing Dame Marjorie Scardino.

Discussion: @emilybell and @hblodget

Guardian:

Pearson chief executive Marjorie Scardino to step down — Dame Marjorie Scardino, one of the UK's highest-profile female corporate leaders, is to step down as chief executive of Financial Times and Penguin owner Pearson at the end of 2012, and will be replaced by the head of its international education division, John Fallon.

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Kate Holton / Reuters:
Pearson CEO Scardino's departure could lead to FT sale

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Caitlin Johnston / Poynter:

What BuzzFeed's evolution says about the future of longform journalism — It's not often that a job posting creates such a tizzy. But BuzzFeed's search for a longform editor signifies more than just a new hire. — The announcement, which spawned headlines such as “BuzzFeed (yes, BuzzFeed) …

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Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:

Fact-checking will play prominent role in tonight's debate — Along with many other news organizations, The New York Times is marshaling a small army of red pencilers for Wednesday night's debate. Public Editor Margaret Sullivan writes about the preparations:

Discussion: The Hill, The Public Editor's Journal, CJR, Washington Post, mediabistro.com and The Huffington Post

Brendan Nyhan / CJR:

Breaking the pack journalism paradigm — What would happen if reporters covered debates without access to the spin? — NEW HAMPSHIRE — As tonight's presidential debate approaches, the chattering classes are pondering whether it will change the dynamics of the campaign, which currently favor President Obama over Mitt Romney.

Discussion: TVNewser, New York Times, Associated Press and Mother Jones

Josh Halliday / Guardian:

Former BBC Radio 1 boss ‘knew about Jimmy Savile sex abuse claims in 1970s’ — The former head of Radio 1 knew in the early 1970s about accusations of sexual abuse involving Sir Jimmy Savile, an ex-press officer for the station has claimed. Rodney Collins said on Wednesday that an ex-Radio 1 controller …

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Josh Halliday / Guardian: Jimmy Savile abused me as a child, says new accuser

Joe Eskenazi / SFWeekly:

Top 5 Ways Bleacher Report Rules the World! — LAST YEAR, sportswriter King Kaufman stepped up to the lectern at a symposium held on the Google campus. In a 14-year haul at Salon.com, Kaufman earned a reputation as one of the best and most cerebral sports journalists on the Internet.

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Robert Andrews / paidContent:

Google rebooting content micropayments initiative under Wallet — After retiring its experimental OnePass news payments system this spring, Google is now going ahead with a fuller version of its content micropayments platform under the Google Wallet moniker.

Janko Roettgers / GigaOM:

Where to watch the first 2012 presidential debate live online — This Wednesday, President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney are going to face off in the first of three televised presidential debates. The two candidates will meet at the University of Denver to answer questions around foreign policy …

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Dominic Rushe / Guardian:

Rupert Murdoch faces shareholder revolt at News Corp annual meeting — Shareholders have stepped up their campaign to remove Rupert Murdoch as chairman of News Corporation ahead of the media company's annual meeting this month. Hermes, a British fund manager that controls £24.8bn assets …

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Dylan Byers / Politico:

The Drudge hype falls flat — DENVER, Colo. — One night before the first presidential debate, conservatives Matt Drudge, Sean Hannity, and Tucker Carlson hyped footage of a five-year-old speech by then-Sen. Barack Obama, widely covered at the time, in which the presidential candidate suggested …

Discussion: Politico, The Huffington Post, Guardian, Washington Post, @mlcalderone, Politicker, Election 2012, The Daily Caller and Business Insider

Reuters:

Guarantors ask London court to halt Assange bail payout — (Reuters) - Nine people who put up bail guarantees for Julian Assange argued in court on Wednesday they should not be forced to pay after the WikiLeaks founder sought refuge in the Ecuadorean embassy in London.