• Three years ago today, the Times published its Jayson Blair, and things went from bad to worse for Howell Raines (and from good to better for Seth Mnookin). [E&P]
• A short (and very Maer-friendly) history of Radar magazine. [NYRM]
• Incoming Pulitzer chairman Paul Steiger wants more focus on online web-based journalism. We'll be waiting for our public-service award. [E&P]
• The coolest kids at the Ellies didn't go black tie. [WWD (second item)]
• Even more Reege, now on NBC, too. Sigh. [B&C]

David Vigliano on Jayson Blair, in "Hey, Victim, Want a Book Deal? Jill Carroll's Post-Trauma Choice," by Sheelah Kolhatkar, NYO, today:

• John Huey is finally initiated as the successor to Norm Pearlstine's editorship at Time Inc. The ceremony involved branding, hazing, and some tasty swag.
• Daily News EIC Michael Cooke barely lasts 10 months before scampering back to the Windy City. At least he'll be taking a nice, new pair of shoes home with him.
• The Upper East Side's finest brats open their own under-18 Chelsea nightclub, where they won't be drinking or blowing rails.
• Fabulist Jayson Blair returns to the Times building, but naturally lies about the incident.
• Actor Chris Klein attends the Condé Nast holiday luncheon!
• We haven't sold out to the New York Times Company, but can you imagine if we did?
• Body-armor magnate David H. Brooks breaks all records for nauseating indulgence by throwing his daughter, Elizabeth, a $10 million bat mitzvah at the Rainbow Room, complete with A-list entertainment and princess costumes.
• Woody Allen graces Lincoln Center, prompting us to recall when his films were consistently good.

• Irate supermodel Naomi Campbell, having had more than her fair share of niceties on Tyra Banks's show, turns her wrath on Nicole Richie, who "disobeyed" Campbell by hanging out with Nicky Hilton. Wait — Nicole is still friends with Nicky? Does Paris know? And how do they acheive such a dangerous balance? [Lowdown (2nd item)]
• As it turns out, Long Island's body armor king David H. Brooks — he who just gave his daughter a $10 million Bat Mitzvah with 50 Cent and Aerosmith at the Rainbow Room — is under investigation by the SEC. But at least his little princess is happy! [Fox411 via Page Six]
• Rapper Jay-Z spends two years writing his memoir with writer Dream Hampton, only to freak and refuse its publication. We appreciate being thus spared. [R&M]
• Jayson Blair overheard at a hotel bar in Columbus, Ohio: "I kept rooting for Judy [Miller] to fuck up the paper more than I did, but not even she managed that." At least someone's rooting for Judy. [Page Six]
• Houseboy Kevin Federline refuses to see a therapist with wife Britney Spears, opting instead for a far more traditional session with a psychic. [Scoop]

This arrived last night from a Times source:

As we mentioned in Gossip Roundup this morning, Rush & Molloy reported in today's News that Jayson Blair paid his first visit to 43rd Street since unleashing the unpleasantness of 2003. Here's how Blair described the scene to the gossipmongering duo:

• The day Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey announced their separation, Star and Celebrity Living had covers suggesting the couple's pregnancy. Surely they'll save face by giving Simpson a miscarriage next week. [Page Six]
• Lindsay Lohan's reign of fucking continues towards its inevitable end: Johnny Knoxville. [Lowdown (last item)]
• At the Australian Film Industry Awards, Russell Crowe mocks his phone-throwing incident by bringing an old phone on stage and threatening the audience with it. Those who didn't laugh were promptly beaten. [IMDb]
• The Lower East Side is far from perfect, but its denizens still scare off Ashlee Simpson. [Page Six]
• Jayson Blair returns to 43rd street to film a Swedish interview outside the Times building. Some editors reportedly opened their windows and said hello, presumably with water baloons and shaving cream-filled condoms. [R&M (2nd item)]

• Syd Schanberg says journalism's big problem is insufficient transparency — that is, not enough journalism about journalism. In next week's "Press Clips," we fill him in on the existence of Jim Romenesko. [VV]
• Amid yesterday's newspaper-circ horror show, Post gains on News. Yay! [NYP]
• Yet the News is still ahead. Yay! [NYDN]
• Never mind the Judy mess; NYT still hasn't fulfilled post-Jayson promises. [PR Week]
• Why'd Andrew Heyward stick around CBS News for so long after the Memogate debacle? For his pension to kick in, of course. [Radar]
• Can't figure out why you should care about the recent sale rumblings at Knight Ridder? Because no less is at stake than — cue ominous music — the entire future of print journalism. Well, fuck. [LAT]
• Ted Koppel is leaving Nightline, in case you didn't know. [WP]

The Times and the Newspaper Guild finally worked out their differences on ethics training for newsroom employees, and now each employee must take and pass the big ethics testby next Monday. The Observer's Gabriel Sherman scored a copy of the exam.

Imagine applying for a new job. You've gone through all the channels, you've met with your potential boss, you've said the right things, you've even complimented him on his vomit tie. All you have to do now is go see the HR department. You walk in the door, and there, waiting for you, is ... Jayson Blair! (You'll have to look close. He's very tiny.)

Folio's Dylan Stableford reveals that the egregious Jayson Blair has a brand new gig writing a column for BP a magazine for people who suffer from bipolar disorder. Blair now claims the disorder, combined with "trying to accomplish my job while I was sick without letting anyone know (what) was wrong with me," led to "the dangerous territory of mania high risk behavior in the form of fabricating and plagiarizing stories." His describes a recovery that includes medication and speaking engagements. Like Icarus, I soared like an eagle, Blair writes, but fell with a shattered wing. Eagle, eh? Isn't flying cockroach more like it?—MG
Shattered Wing? Jayson Blair Returns with Bipolar Magazine Column [Folio}

Why are so many "ex-library" copies of Jayson Blair's Burning Down My Masters' House available in the Used Books section of Amazon?