Mediagazer: Times-Picayune editors: ‘The transition has been difficult for us’ (Andrew Beaujon/Poynter)

8:25 AM ET, October 4, 2012

Top News:

Andrew Kirell / Mediaite:

Romney To Lehrer: ‘I Love Big Bird’ But I Would Cut Federal Subsidies For PBS — “I love Big Bird.” — That's how Mitt Romney couched the blow to PBS reporter and tonight's presidential debate moderator Jim Lehrer when the GOP candidate said that he would like to end federal subsidies to the Public Broadcasting Service.

Discussion: Splice Today, The Wrap, Guardian, The Daily Beast, BuzzFeed, Gawker, Speakeasy and Hillicon Valley

Julie Moos / Poynter:

Jim Lehrer target of Twitter criticism while moderating his 12th presidential debate — Heading into Wednesday night's debate, PBS Executive Editor Jim Lehrer was expected to moderate his 12th presidential debate with a firm hand. But that is not how debate watchers saw him:

Discussion: Forbes and Mediaite

Brian Stelter / New York Times:

Not Waiting for Pundits' Take, Web Audience Scores the Candidates in an Instant — Presidential debates are customarily scored and picked apart the instant the moderator says “good night” at 10:30 p.m. But the Web is speeding up time. When the first of this season's debates started on Wednesday in Denver …

Discussion: CNET and CBS New York

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) …

Discussion: @cswa_news, @mikeyslezak, @bendwilliams and @jayrosen_nyu

BBC:

BBC denies Savile cover-up claims — Sir Jimmy Savile is alleged to have abused young girls at the height of his fame, in the 1970s — The BBC has said there is “no evidence” to suggest Newsnight was urged to drop an investigation into allegations of sexual assault by Sir Jimmy Savile.

Discussion: PressGazette, @tomjharper and Guardian

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

Josh Halliday / Guardian:
Former BBC Radio 1 boss ‘knew about Jimmy Savile sex abuse claims in 1970s’

Discussion: Telegraph and PressGazette

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:

Times-Picayune editors: ‘The transition has been difficult for us’ — The first “expanded” edition of the New Orleans Times-Picayune appeared Wednesday, and Nola Media Group Editor for Print Terry Baquet and Director of Metro Content Mark Lorando took questions online about the shift to a three-day-a-week print paper.

Discussion: NetNewsCheck Latest, businessreport.com and Updates

Laura Hazard Owen / GigaOM:

Kindle Paperwhite sold out until November — Amazon's new front-lit e-reader, the Kindle Paperwhite (our review here), only started shipping on Monday to those who'd pre-ordered it, but it's already sold out. If you order a Kindle Paperwhite today, it won't ship for four to six weeks.

Discussion: Me and My Kindle, New York Times, AllThingsD, TechCrunch and Business Insider

Brent Lang / The Wrap:

Movie Buzz More Likely to Spread by Word-of-Mouth Than Social Networks — In an increasingly interconnected world, people still favor good old fashioned word-of-mouth to Twitter and Facebook to share their thoughts about upcoming movies, according to a new study on social media buzz by Ipsos MediaCT's Motion Picture Group.

Janko Roettgers / GigaOM:

YouTube revamps content ID, defaults to DMCA in case of unresolved disputes — YouTube's Content ID program, which allows rights holders to either monetize or take down their content, just received a significant tweak: The video hosting site added a more comprehensive appeals process …

Discussion: YouTube Blog, Softpedia News, Techdirt and Wired

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

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

Discussion: @eileentso

Guardian:
Pearson chief executive Marjorie Scardino to step down

Discussion: AdAge, paidContent and Media Week

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.

Discussion: FishbowlNY

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.

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 …

Discussion: Crikey