Mediagazer: Howie Kurtz accused of interfering with story to protect Anderson Cooper's sexuality (Dylan Byers/Politico)

3:25 PM ET, January 15, 2013

Top News:

Jon Russell / The Next Web:

The Atlantic backtracks and removes controversial Scientology advertorial — The Atlantic has U-turned on its controversial paid-for feature article from the Church of Scientology. The publication had sparked a debate on media ethics and business models after allowing the advertorial …

Jeff Bercovici / Forbes:

The Atlantic On That Scientology Advertorial: ‘We Screwed Up’ — Advertising's easy when the world loves you. When the pitchforks are out — when you're BP after the Deepwater Horizon spill, say, or Coca-Cola amid the sugary drinks backlash - that's where it gets tricky.

Discussion: Media Decoder, @jackmirkinson and Erik Wemple

Taylor Berman / Gawker:

The Atlantic Is Now Publishing Bizarre, Blatant Scientology Propaganda as ‘Sponsored Content’ (UPDATE) — The Atlantic — the one time publisher of Mark Twain, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Edith Wharton — is now publishing Scientology propaganda. The “sponsored content”</a …

Mark Sweney / Guardian:

Guardian News & Media to launch digital Australia edition — Katharine Viner, the Guardian's deputy editor, to lead digital venture which is backed by internet entrepreneur Graeme Wood — The Guardian is to launch a digital edition in Australia, backed by internet entrepreneur and philanthropist Graeme Wood.

Discussion: Journalism.co.uk, Sydney Morning Herald, Radio New Zealand, The Drum, @revdancatt and @iburrell

Andrew Miller / Lean Back 2.0:
Why the Guardian is launching a digital edition in Australia

Discussion: pressgazette.co.uk

The Huffington Post:

Aaron Swartz's Lawyer: Prosecutor Stephen Heymann Wanted ‘Juicy’ Case For Publicity — WASHINGTON — The federal prosecutor who reportedly insisted on jail time for the late Aaron Swartz was “very, very difficult to deal with,” Swartz's lawyer told The Huffington Post.

Discussion: New Yorker, The Daily Beast, Fast Company and The Verge

Jessica Roy / Betabeat:
IBM Exec Husband of Aaron Swartz Prosecutor Takes to Twitter to Defend His Wife

Discussion: MediaShift, New York Magazine, nbcnews.com, Mashable! and Hillicon Valley

Rosie Gray / BuzzFeed: Iranian Government Promotes Aaron Swartz Conspiracy Theories

Mackenzie Weinger / Politico:

Bill Press on future of Current TV hosts — As Current TV vanishes, the progressive media talking heads that called the network home are left with one major question: What's next? — What's next for each host professionally once Al Jazeera America takes the place of Current in millions of homes across the country?

Dylan Byers / Politico: Al Jazeera America: Will they watch?

Peter Kafka / AllThingsD:

Former Yahoo Boss Ross Levinsohn Has a New Gig, and a Digital M&A War Chest — Ross Levinsohn, who wanted to run Yahoo but didn't get the gig, has a new perch. He's heading up a new digital media company backed by Guggenheim Partners. — Guggenheim already controlled several media trade titles …

Discussion: Folio, The Wrap and AdAge

Hollywood Reporter:

Hollywood Reporter Parent Company Names Ross Levinsohn CEO — The former Yahoo and Fox Interactive Media executive will lead Guggenheim Digital Media, a new umbrella company that includes THR, Billboard and other brands - with an eye toward growth. — The Hollywood Reporter's parent company …

Discussion: Adweek, Business Insider, VentureBeat and DealBook

Erik Wemple / Washington Post:

Journal News deploys Fifth Avenue firm to reject interview requests — Last week, the Erik Wemple Blog pressed Kathy Moore, an editor at the Journal News, for an interview regarding the newspaper's very controversial maps of gun-permit holders in Rockland and Westchester counties.

Discussion: Washington Post

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:
James O'Keefe tries to get reporters to advertise their gun-free homes

Discussion: Twitchy

Lucia Moses / Adweek:

WSJ to Bow New Magazine — Whether it's taking stock of one's own wealth or gawking at others,' people's interest in money seems limitless. So says The Wall Street Journal, which is giving personal finance the glossy treatment with a new magazine insert, WSJ. … Money is a spinoff of WSJ.

Discussion: FishbowlNY

Chicago Tribune:

Tribune Co. bankruptcy: Warning signs before the buyout — As pressure built to make a deal, an army of bankers and Tribune Co.'s top executives saw red flags but forged ahead — with huge fees and other payments as incentives — When Bank of America credit officer Dan Petrik and his team sat …

Chicago Tribune: Tribune Co. bankruptcy: Sam Zell's big gamble

John Plunkett / Guardian:

BBC boosts Britain's economy by £8bn, new report claims — Study commissioned by the corporation shows that broadcaster gave back nearly twice its licence fee spend — The BBC boosted the UK economy by more than £8bn - nearly twice its licence fee spend …

Discussion: About the BBC

Dylan Byers / Politico:

Howie Kurtz accused of interfering with story to protect Anderson Cooper's sexuality — CNN media critic Howard Kurtz is being accused of pressuring an editor at the Daily Beast, where he is a columnist, to kill a story that would have outed CNN's Anderson Cooper as gay — an accusation Kurtz strongly dismisses.

Discussion: TVNewser, Capital New York and Chickaboomer

Vadim Lavrusik / Facebook:

How Journalists Can Use Facebook Graph Search for Reporting — Today we're announcing Graph Search, a new way for people to navigate their connections to people and content on Facebook. It launches today with a limited beta. To sign up for the waiting list, see the bottom of the Graph Search about page.

Discussion: AllThingsD, VentureBeat, Facebook Newsroom, Poynter, Washington Post, TechRadar.com, The Verge, BBC and Pocket-lint

Deadspin:

Hot Stove: Deadspin, Gawker Swap Managing Editors — Deadspin has traded managing editor Tom Scocca to Gawker for managing editor Emma Carmichael. The sign-and-trade deal makes Scocca the deputy editor at Gawker, second in command to new editor John Cook, and it returns Carmichael …

Jeff Bercovici / Forbes:

Lance Armstrong Interview Could Be Worth Millions to Oprah Winfrey Network — Considerable as it may be, Oprah Winfrey's personal celebrity isn't enough to build a cable network on, as the early struggles of OWN showed. Her unmatched ability to get other celebrities to open up to her?

Discussion: mediabistro.com, Yahoo! News, Mediaite, tyndall report posts, Speakeasy, AdAge, Broadcasting & Cable, CBS News and The Daily Beast

David Carr / Media Decoder:
Armstrong and Winfrey: Familiar Names in a Time-Honored Ritual

Discussion: BBC, The Week, The Daily Caller and Softpedia News

Laura Hazard Owen / paidContent:

54% of U.S. kids have never read an ebook: New report — Scholastic, the world's largest children's publisher, released its biannual report on children and reading Monday morning. The study, conducted in partnership with the Harrison Group in fall 2012, surveyed 1,048 U.S. children ages 6 …