Mediagazer: Art.sy Is Mapping the World of Art on the Web (Melena Ryzik/New York Times)

5:45 AM ET, October 10, 2012

Top News:

Variety bought by Deadline owner Penske Media, Third Point — The Hollywood trade paper Variety has been acquired by Penske Media Corp. and its financial backer, private equity firm Third Point, for about $25 million, in a power shift for the world of show business and a transformation of the industry's most famous news brand.

Ben Fritz / Los Angeles Times:

Jay Penske discusses plans for Variety — Jay Penske has emerged as one of the most powerful figures in the world of entertainment news for industry professionals. A virtual unknown in Hollywood just over three years ago, the 33-year-old son of auto magnate Roger Penske acquired editor …

AllThingsD:

Twitter Buys Vine, a Video Clip Company That Never Launched — If Twitter ends up running its own video service, this should help: The messaging service has bought Vine, a video-sharing start-up. — We don't have terms for the deal, but this looks a lot like an “acqhire” …

Discussion: Business Insider, VatorNews, SocialTimes, TechCrunch, The Next Web, WebProNews, Mashable!, Softpedia News and The Verge

Hunter Walker / The New York Observer:

Is The Daily Beast Becoming a Halfway House For Wayward Hacks? — Newsbeast editor in chief Tina Brown seems to have developed a redemptive streak, at least when it comes to the bad boys and girls of the media world. Her website has recently published several pieces by otherwise disgraced journalists.

Melena Ryzik / New York Times:

Art.sy Is Mapping the World of Art on the Web — Any music fan knows that there are myriad ways to find new songs online: a scroll through digital playlists and streaming radio services like Pandora, which serve as musical recommendation engines. Likewise, Netflix subscribers are regularly showered …

Discussion: Fortune, TechCrunch, NYConvergence.com, Open Culture, The Verge and PandoDaily

Jim Romenesko:

New York Times to make ‘final offer’ to guild on Thursday — A message sent to New York Times guild members on Tuesday evening says management answered staffers' “demonstration of profound unhappiness” — a brief Monday afternoon walkout — “by throwing a tantrum and taking two provocative actions Tuesday.”

Discussion: LA Observed, New York Magazine, The Huffington Post, JIMROMENESKO.COM and Capital New York

Jeff Bercovici / Forbes:

Jack Welch Quits Columnist Gigs Over Tweet Blowback. Too Bad He Wasn't Fired. — In the end, Fortune and Reuters didn't have to grapple with whether to fire Jack Welch for spreading conspiracy theories on Twitter. Welch did them a favor and fired himself.

Discussion: JIMROMENESKO.COM, CJR, Fortune, AdAge, The Wrap, 9to5Mac, FishbowlNY, Reuters and Media Decoder

Josh Constine / TechCrunch:

Founder Tim Westergren Says Some Musicians Earn Up To $3 Million A Year From Pandora — Pandora founder Tim Westergren denied claims that musicians earn peanuts from streaming services and said today at SF MusicTech that lower royalty rates would bolster innovation.

Discussion: GigaOM, Pandora, Forbes, CNET, SocialTimes and Business Insider

Laura Hazard Owen / paidContent:

Berlin's Txtr introduces €9.90 e-reader subsidized by mobile carriers — In an effort to turn mobile phone users into ebook readers, Berlin-based Txtr announced a tiny, cheap e-reader, the Txtr Beagle, at the Frankfurt Book Fair Tuesday. While the Beagle is very light …

Discussion: Publishers Weekly

Hazel Sheffield / CJR:

U-T San Diego CEO accused of threatening city official over vote — Voice of San Diego reports on the daily paper's “uncomfortably strident stance” — The investigative news site Voice Of San Diego has raised ethical concerns about the CEO of the city's major daily newspaper …

Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism:

Dean Nicholas Lemann to step down after 10-year term — Columbia University announced today that Dean Nicholas Lemann will step down at the end of June, 2013, at the conclusion of the school's centennial year, after a 10-year term. Following a one-year sabbatical, Lemann plans to return …

Discussion: JIMROMENESKO.COM, Bloomberg, @evgenymorozov, @carr2n and Media Decoder

Ambarish Kenghe / The Official Google TV Blog:

Google Play Movies, TV shows, and Music now on Google TV — Starting today more of the Google Play experience will come to your Google TV. Google Play Movies, TV shows, and Music will be rolling out to your Google TV over the next few weeks. You'll be able to buy or rent content directly through …

Discussion: CNET, Engadget, WebProNews and TechCrunch