Good morning. Here are nine media stories.
- High profile, low risk
Monday’s news that NBCUniversal was severing its business relationship with real estate tycoon-turned presidential aspirant Donald Trump over his racist remarks was covered widely. But the choice probably wasn’t a painful one for NBC, Paul Farhi writes. “Celebrity Apprentice” was already scheduled to proceed without The Donald, and the beauty pageants the network aired in partnership with The Trump Organization have declined in popularity in recent years. (The Washington Post) | But the decision still drew many headlines, several of which used Trump’s own catchphrase against him. (Poynter) | He accused NBC of being “weak” because it stood behind former “NBC Nightly News” anchor Brian Williams but not Trump. “As he rattles off his insistence that there’s nothing to amend, he proves that he’s way below the level of even one of journalism’s most damaged names.” (The Washington Post) | Jimmy Kimmel: “Instead of cutting ties, I wish they would cut his hair.” (The Hollywood Reporter)
- Arianna Huffington doesn’t surf the Web
Arianna Huffington, one of online journalism’s pioneers, doesn’t actually surf the Web for news, according to several staffers interviewed for a new profile of the Huffington Post founder for The New York Times Magazine. “‘Arianna doesn’t surf the web,’ the former A-Teamer explained. ‘She reads stories that people send on her iPhone, and she sends and receives emails on her BlackBerry. But I’ve never seen her on a computer, surfing the web.’ Huffington said that this is not true, and stated that she ditched her BlackBerry nearly two years ago. But more than a dozen former and current Huffington Post staff members said they had never seen her so much as open a web browser.” The profile, which contains details of Huffington’s life and the breakneck metabolism of her company, is worth a read. (The New York Times Magazine)
- ‘Don’t call him Mr. Hogan.’
As professional wrestler Hulk Hogan and Gawker Media prepare to square off next week for an invasion-of-privacy lawsuit, a Florida judge has laid out some rules for the contest. Hogan is to be referred to by his real name, Terry Gene Bollea. He is allowed to wear one plain bandana. And, despite the high-profile nature of the case, the judge admonished its litigants that the courtroom is not to become a “carnival,” Anna Phillips writes. “There will be judicial serenity and calm, to which the parties are entitled.” (Tampa Bay Times)
- Rebekah Brooks poised for a return to power
Rebekah Brooks, the former newspaper executive who was cleared of charges relating to News Corp’s phone-hacking scandal, is on her way back into the Murdoch media fold, Joe Pompeo writes. The latest News Corp chatter says she will likely return as chief executive of News U.K., where she would oversee The Times of London and The Sun. (Capital New York) | Rumors have been swirling about her return to News Corp for months. A March 1 Financial Times article said she was heading to Storyful, and a report from The Guardian cast doubt on a rumor that she was returning to The Sun.
- Speaking of Gawker…
The city of McKinney, Texas wants to charge the Manhattan-based blog network nearly $80,000 to produce emails related to the conduct of an officer who was recorded pointing his service weapon at a group of unarmed black teenagers. “The city arrived at that extraordinary figure after estimating that hiring a programmer to execute the grueling and complex task of searching through old emails would cost $28.50 per hour, and that the search for emails about Casebolt would take 2,231 hours of said programmer’s time.” Gawker plans to appeal. (Gawker) | Elsewhere in FOIA news, Vice News investigative reporter Jason Leopold — also known as the “FOIA Terrorist” — this month won a victory when a judge ordered the Department of Defense to release records after nearly a year of repeated requests and litigation. (The Washington Post)
- Sudden agreement amid the tabloid war
The New York Post and New York Daily News are well-known rivals, dueling for scoops, staffers and the most colorful large-point headlines on a regular basis. But on Monday, there was a rare — and unintended — concurrence between the two warring tabs: Both papers ran the same front-page hed in response to the capture of prison escapee David Sweat. Both papers went with “Blood, Sweat and Cheers,” although they did feature different subheds. (The Huffington Post)
- Opinion: Chris Christie should stop snubbing the press
Politico’s Jack Shafer argues that presidential hopeful Chris Christie could benefit from an even-handed relationship with the press, rather than a pugilistic one. “Some of Christie’s grudge-talking against the press is linked to the beating he took following the Bridgegate episode. He might be justified in holding this grudge, and snarling at the press might make him feel better, but extending those reflexes into his presidential campaign would be short-sighted.” (Politico Magazine) | Related: “Christie to N.J. reporters at roast: We don’t give a s–t about you.” (Politico)
- Front page of the day, selected by Kristen Hare
Express led with the Greek debt crisis and what it could mean for the rest of Europe. (Courtesy the Newseum)
- Job moves, edited by Benjamin Mullin
Jose Valle is now president of political and advocacy sales at Univision. Previously, he was president of Univision Radio. (TV Spy) | Melissa Block will be special correspondent at NPR News. She hosts “All Things Considered.” (Poynter) | Emory Thomas Jr. is now publisher of the Puget Sound Business Journal. He is chief content officer of American City Business Journals. (Talking Biz News) | Karen Mahabir is now managing editor of news at The Huffington Post. Previously, she was digital products producer for The Associated Press. (Capital New York) | Job of the day: Quartz is looking for breaking news reporters. Get your résumés in! (Mediagazer) | Send Ben your job moves: bmullin@poynter.org.
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