In your forthright Thursday media column: Martin Bashir heads to MSNBC, the WSJ says its reporter was wrongly arrested in Chicago, the NYT Co's second quarter earnings, and an angry rant from a retiring sportswriter.

  • Martin Bashir, the Nightline co-anchor best known for harassing Michael Jackson when he was alive, is moving from ABC to MSNBC. Rearrange your viewing schedules accordingly. Also, good excuse to mention this old thing.
  • Important update on yesterday's arrest of WSJ reporter Douglas Belkin, who was roped up by the fuzz for touching some security guard while covering the Blagojevich trial: the WSJ says he was doing his job and the arrest is total bullshit. Right on.
  • In the second quarter, the New York Times Co. saw its operating profit more than double to $60.8 million, though its net income fell. Print ads down, online ads up, as usual. Still cutting checks, that's the important thing! For more discussion see here.
  • Oh, this is fun, for spectators: sportswriter Pete Pelegrin left the Miami Herald in disgust, but posted an angry online rant on his way out the door! It's moderately interesting to read as an artifact of our current, frustrating age of journalism. And it is incredibly interesting if you happen to be a fan of Florida International University sports. It could happen.