In your hot wet Friday media column: Keith Olbermann vs. the NYO, Instapaper vs. Business Insider, everyone in America hates the media, Pinch Sulzberger's birthday party, and Time International's new editor.

  • The best media feud of the day today: Keith Olbermann vs. the New York Observer and its editor, Elizabeth Spiers. Keith Olbermann thinks the NYO is stupid for not covering the Wall Street protest, except they did, except Keith still thinks they're stupid so shut up, I know you are but what am I? Breaking: Keith Olbermann is a dickhead who needs to stay off the Twitter. I'm worried about you Keith, really. It's unbecoming.
  • Second best media feud of the day: Instapaper founder Marco Arment vs. Business Insider. One guy whose business is based on the content of others objects to other guys who profit off the content of others! Can't we all just link to each other nicely, and get along? (No.)
  • According to a new Pew survey, more Americans than ever have a negative view of the media. Vast majorities of Americans believe that news stories are inaccurate, biased, and influenced by the powerful. Well. On a factual level, yes, that's all true. On the other hand: fuck you, Americans. When will the media start standing up for itself against the real enemy—the people?
  • New York Times publisher Pinch "Pinch" Sulzberger is having his 60th birthday party tonight. You know who will be there? Bill Keller's wife. You know who won't be there? You. Probably a shitty party anyways.
  • Time has named Jim Frederick the new editor of Time International, the magazine you have to read in Latvian dentists' offices. The full memo:

  • September 23, 2011
    To: Time Inc. Employees
    From: John Huey and Richard Stengel
    Re: Staff Announcement

  • On the recommendation of Rick Stengel, I am pleased to announce that Jim Frederick is the new editor of Time International.

  • As always, I will defer to Rick to tell the story:

  • Jim has been an exceptional leader of TIME.com. As its managing editor, he oversaw a dramatic expansion of content and traffic. But more than that, he helped unify print and digital in a way that we had once only imagined. Under his guidance the site has launched new verticals and apps and extended our content to pretty much every platform under the sun – so much so that we were named by the L2 Digital Think Tank and NYU's Stern School of Business as the No. 1 brand in the magazine industry for digital excellence, the only brand of 87 surveyed to earn a "genius" distinction. But the word that jumps out to me is excellence, for Jim brought that standard to everything that he did, from managing people to dealing with the business side, and it is those qualities that he will now bring to Time International.

  • He's ideally suited to lead international. Jim knows our European and Asian editions from firsthand experience. As a former senior editor for TIME in London, he helped coordinate coverage of Europe, Africa and the Middle East for both the magazines and TIME.com; as Tokyo bureau chief, he reported on and wrote about Japanese culture, society, government, economics, and international politics. He did two reporting tours in Iraq for his book Black Hearts: One Platoon's Descent Into Madness in Iraq's Triangle of Death, which the Guardian called "the best book by far about the Iraq war – a rare combination of cold truth and warm compassion."

  • Jim has brought to his leadership roles all the advantages that Midwestern roots and an MBA can provide. An Illinois native, he majored in English at Columbia but went on to get his MBA from NYU. His passion for excellence, his gift for collaboration, his ability to see around corners and plan for the long term while remaining nimble in the face of breaking news, have all served TIME digital well and will be essential as he helps lead Time International to new growth and strength.

  • Plus, he just married Time International alumna Charlotte Greensit, a testimony to his charm, sound judgment and brand loyalty.

  • Please join Rick and me in congratulating Jim on his new role.

  • J.H. R.S.

[Photo: Getty]