Invite Richard Simmons on your morning show, and he will not only bring the flair/"issues," but will also become your devoted manservant.

It's a late-breaking story, and CNN's American Morning clearly thought it had a big "get" — a live interview with the brother of Bruce Ivins, a federal biodefense researcher who killed himself as the government prepared to charge him in the anthrax mailings of late 2001. Host John Roberts was prepared, no doubt, to delicately question a grieving sibling — not for the increasingly surly conversation that ensued. Of course, it's hard to fault him for not having a followup question ready for statements like, "I'm a paratrooper." The logical reply is a bit insensitive: "Are you entirely sober?" Click the video icon to watch a distinctly bitter sort of grieving.

CNN's American Morning has a thing for cheesy rock-and-roll intros, and the Daily Show tonight showcased the most embarrassing among them, including Scorpion's "Rock You Like A Hurricane" for a story on Tropical Storm Bertha or "Changes" by David Bowie for everything from credit cards to reform in China. But the best part comes at the end, when host Jon Stewart reveals how American Morning host John Roberts, once considered heir apparent to Dan Rather at the CBS Evening News, learned to pair pop hits with headlines. Hint: Think Adam Curry. Click the icon for video. UPDATE:

CNN fired American Morning producer Chez Pazienza yesterday for blogging on the side. The network says Pazienza was canned for not having his blog posts vetted by higher ups. He disagrees. "It's not that I've been writing," Pazienza told thePoMoblog. "It's WHAT I've been writing." On his blog, Pazienza writes that he "fell into TV news 16 years ago and been stuck there ever since (proving that the business really is a bottomless pit)." Thump!

Profanity, Live on CNN? [Philadelphia Will Do]

• CNN's American Morning moving from street-level studio to CNN newsroom, leaving Midwestern tourists with a mere four street-level morning shows in Midtown to flock to. [NYDN]
• Finally, a prosecutor decides against subpoenaing a Times reporter. [Miami Herald]
• The Wen Ho Lee case against the Times and others, however, continues. And could be much worse for journalists. [Boston Phoenix]
• Rumor has it a Times reporter is skulking around Philadelphia, looking for sources on a "sixth borough" story. Anyone know Jenny 8.'s whereabouts? [Philebrity, third item]
• Now Trump's blogging, too. Is the shark finally jumped? [TechWeb]
• Apparently we're not making sweet love to anyone at Page Six. (We're not? That was all so long ago that at this point, we've forgotten the details.) In other breaking news, it seems we work in our pajamas and like cheap drinks. Who knew? [RS]

Surely a moment for the CNN scrapbook.

While we were busy watching Al Roker interview some genius about real estate being pricey, there was some climactic shuttle coverage on CNN: