The only way the New York Times can escape the clutches of a Mexican billionaire is by successfully instituting a paywall. Who has it chosen to manage this treacherous path? The publisher's nephew. He used to run a DJ school.

"Two sources at the Science Times section of the New York Times have told me that a majority of the section's editorial staff doubts that human-induced global warming represents a serious threat to humanity." -Science writer John Horgan.

In your bulleted Tuesday media column: the TV industry is mean to women, Jeff Goldberg escapes the PLO, Justin Rocket Silverman's new job, and Rupert Murdoch loses hundreds of millions, haha.

CNN, America's Favorite Source of Dumb Guys Reading Twitter Out Loud, has signed conservative blogger Erick Erickson to their "Best Political Team." This is a wonderful hire, as it provides yet another excuse to avoid CNN entirely.

In your rainy Monday media column: God tries to kill celebrity news using the weather, the New York Times is a totally great newspaper!, and USA Today arrives in Starbucks.

"When Breitbart's favorite radio station started playing grunge-which he despised-he flipped to talk radio instead. 'At first it was like a foreign language to me. But over time, it started to make sense.'" [Slate]

Everyone expected Twitter to unveil an advertising strategy at the South by Southwest conference in Austin today; instead, the microblogging startup plotted further media domination Actual revenue is "going to take experimentation." Oy: That's a billion-dollar company talking. (Pic)

The Fox News brand used to be defined by the lying and fear-mongering of Sean Hannity and the bullying pseudo-common man narcissism of Bill O'Reilly, but now it is defined by the operatic self-aggrandizing paranoia and fear-mongering of Glenn Beck.

Here's a totally friendly memo from the New York Times that went out to all their freelancers, apropos of nothing in particular, reminding them to please not accept free stuff. Looks like someone is in trouble!

Today was ABC White House correspondent Jake Tapper's birthday! He got a Dora the Explorer cake. And then he made mean jokes about Robert Gibbs, who was just trying to have some fun.

Close to 100 Times newsroom employees were laid off at the end of 2009. (Another 1,300 accepted a pay cut last May.) NYT CEO Janet Robinson did a lot better! She collected $6.2 million in total compensation in 2009.

Howell Raines hit out at Fox News for ruining political debate. But it's not just Fox. By softballing and coddling interviewees, all of television news has helped politicians get away with appalling lies, distortions and… being Sarah Palin.

"They're an elitist pestilence," Andrew Breitbart says of liberal Hollywood celebrities in this Wired profile of the conservative internet publisher. And then, after saying that, Andrew went to a Manhattan nightclub to drink Cristal with rich people.

In your sober Thursday media column: another round of layoffs hits BusinessWeek, Sulzberger Jr. goes to court, a cop fired for helping a drunk newsman, and Adam Nagourney may be headed to LA.

Democratic Rep. Patrick Kennedy totally reamed the national press corps as a bunch of "despicable" scandalmongers in a screamy speech on the House floor yesterday. The media sprang into action to prove him right.

In your wicked Wednesday media column: Dan Rather apologizes for not understanding the Twitter, looming BusinessWeek layoffs, the Ellies go to the usual suspects, and Jason Mulgrew's book is here.

Gossip about a book about about gossip about books and whatnot! Lately we've said to ourselves, "What this city needs is another thinly-veiled fictionalized tale of various media types doing their dramatic NYC thing." Hello, we hear one is coming!

Joshua Newton, the director who thought a $400,000 Oscar campaign in Variety would buy his movie a positive review, has made good on his threat to sue the Hollywood trade.

Tribune Company CEO Randy Michaels decided to micro-manage in the weirdest way possible — by banning words like 'authorities', 'diva' and 'manhunt' from the mouths of reporters or anchors at flagship news/talk station WGN-AM (720) in Chicago.

You'd think the Twitter fight with Adam Lambert would've been a trial by fire, but tragic, handsome Aaron Hicklin was confused and forlorn on his cellphone last night, tweeting messages that appear to be intended for email or text.