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“Take Back The LA Times”: Back To What?

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Saturday July 26, 2008 @ 4:41pm PDTTags: LA Times

This shows just how much the Los Angeles Times is at war with itself. This 3-story-high banner (below) showed up on the side of the LA Times building before it was quickly removed security guards. Here is the explanation for why people risked their careers, and arrest, to put it up. “It’s big. It’s bold. It’s a first step toward prying the LA Times out of the tight, greedy fingers of billionaire Sam Zell,” according to the website TellZell which, along with LAObserved, has been chronicling the newspaper’s demise. (I’ve given up trying to cover every twist and turn. It’s a full-time job. And I already have one covering the business of Hollywood.) It sucks that real estate mogul Sam Zell so far has laid off or fired over 200 reporters, photographers, copy editors and editors. Few of the cuts have affected the TV and movie departments — yet. But I’m sure the time is coming soon when the moguls dictate their own coverage, and the reporters and editors merely act as stenographers. Oh wait: that began happening before Zell took over.

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Yes, It’s True: Geffen “Over” LA Times

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Thursday July 24, 2008 @ 3:25pm PDTTags: Geffen, LA Times

Now that others are hinting at this, I can confirm what I’ve known for two months: that David Geffen isn’t interested anymore in buying the Los Angeles Times.

David Geffen Goes After LA Times Again?

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UPDATE: Chuck Phillips Exiting LA Times

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Monday July 14, 2008 @ 8:06pm PDTTags: Journalism, LA Times, Media, Pellicano, Scandal

There’s now official confirmation. I’m told tonight that, in today’s latest round of layoffs and firings at the Los Angeles Times, the newspaper has shown the door to Chuck Phillips, the paper’s most controversial writer. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his investigative journalism about a scandal in the music industry, but then he became … Read More »

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Who’s Sorry To See LA Times Publisher David Hiller Go? (Anyone? Anyone?)

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Monday July 14, 2008 @ 1:39pm PDTTags: Big Media, LA Times, Media, Moguls

Probably Hollywood is because he was the most mogul-friendly of any Los Angeles Times publisher in a long time. But not me because of precisely that reason. I was out of the office when the news broke. But the Big Media moguls needn’t worry. It’s more than likely that Hiller’s successor will be … Read More »

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What A Waste Of A Tree…

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Thursday July 3, 2008 @ 12:45pm PDTTags: Agents, DH update, Hollywood, LA Times, Other Media

UPDATE: I warned you that talent agency tally was going to be a waste of time, and it was. Especially regarding actors, directors, or writers who recently left their talent agencies. Because the old tenpercentery that booked the job, and therefore gets the money, should get the credit. Not the new agency … Read More »

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A Meaningless L.A. Times Film Survey…

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Tuesday July 1, 2008 @ 5:03pm PDTTags: Agents, Broadway, DH update, Hollywood, LA Times, Movies, Other Media, Scandal, Summer Movies

UPDATE: I warned you the article was going to be a waste of time, and it was. Especially regarding actors, directors, or writers who recently left their talent agencies. Because the old tenpercentery that booked the job, and therefore gets the money, should get the credit. Not the new agency which doesn’t have … Read More »

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Los Angeles Press Club Awards…

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Monday June 23, 2008 @ 9:23am PDTTags: Agents, Awards, Hollywood, Journalism, LA Times, Other Media, Reviews, Trailers

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Last year the Los Angeles Times‘ Patrick Goldstein graciously handed off the Los Angeles Press Club’s Entertainment Journalist Of The Year title for print, broadcast or online to me, and now I fittingly hand it off to the L.A. Times‘ John Horn after Saturday’s 2008 … Read More »

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Reason #257 Why L.A. Times Sucks…

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Saturday June 14, 2008 @ 6:15pm PDTTags: Journalism, LA Times, Media, Other Media, P.R., Pellicano, Scandal, Trailers, TV

Chalk up yet another instance of the Los Angeles Times losing its journalistic integrity and credibility. The latest example comes today when the newspaper changed a Letter To The Editor in order to edit out direct criticism of Calendar staff writer Rachel Abramowitz. Long considered yet … Read More »

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If You Liked the Los Angeles Times’ Awful WGA Strike Coverage, Then You’ll Love…

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Thursday May 29, 2008 @ 11:59pm PDTTags: Hollywood, Journalism, LA Times, Media, Moguls, Sallie Hofmeister, WGA, Writers, Writers Strike

…The newspaper’s announcement today that Sallie Hofmeister is the new Business Editor. She’d overseen entertainment and technology stories, including the Los Angeles Times‘ embarrassingly weak coverage of the writers strike which new editor Russ Stanton effusively praises in this memo about her appointment. So let … Read More »

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Anatomy Of A Showbiz News Inaccuracy: How Reputable Reporters Screwed Up…

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Tuesday May 27, 2008 @ 2:07pm PDTTags: Agents, Blogs, CAA, Celebrity, Fox, Hollywood, Internet, Journalism, LA Times, Media, Trades

UPDATE: A Fox spokesperson issued a public denial tonight. ”The Defamer.com story about the Studio banning CAA from the Fox lot, is categorically untrue. The exchange, which took place well over a year ago, between a Fox executive and a CAA agent — that supposedly triggered the ‘ban’ — never at any point … Read More »

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AFTRA Having Difficulty On AMPTP Deal: Preparing Members For Clips Cave-In?

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Sunday May 25, 2008 @ 1:49pm PDTTags: AFTRA, AFTRA AMPTP Negotiations, AMPTP, Guilds, LA Times, Nick Counter, SAG

The message below went out from AFTRA’s leadership to its membership just now. In my opinion, it sure looks as if the union is preparing members for a major cave-in on the clips issue. But I must say that hiding behind … Read More »

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NYT Music Industry Reporter Laid Off

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Friday May 9, 2008 @ 5:22pm PDTTags: Journalism, LA Times, Media, NY Times

I’ve just been told that Jeff Leeds, the Los Angeles-based music industry reporter who was poached by The New York Times from the Los Angeles Times back in 2004, newyorktimes_logo.pngis now a victim of the … Read More »

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David Geffen Goes After LA Times Again? Is He In “Serious Discussions” With Zell? Or Have They Not Spoken In Months?

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Friday April 11, 2008 @ 9:39am PDTTags: Big Media, David Geffen, Geffen, Hollywood, Journalism, LA Times, Media, Moguls, NY Times, Sam Zell, Studios

I’ve written here again and again how much David Geffen wants to own the Los Angeles Times and put it back under local control as well as make it a real must-read. logo_latimes.gifBut the … Read More »

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Bert Fields Defends Brad Grey Against Garry Shandling’s Pellicano Testimony

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Monday March 17, 2008 @ 2:38pm PDTTags: Bert Fields, Brad Grey, Courts, Garry Shandling, LA Times, Law, Pellicano

Famed Century City entertainment litigator Bert Fields today issued this statement in response to some of the charges leveled by comedian Garry Shandling in his Pellicano trial testimony last week as well as the coverage of it by the Los Angeles Times. Fields defended Grey during Garry Shandling’s conflict of … Read More »

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LA Times Names Montorio Replacement

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Friday March 7, 2008 @ 10:44am PSTTags: LA Times

wolinsky2.jpgIt’s unclear if this is a temporary appointment or a permanent one. (Well, as permanent as things get at the beleaguered Los Angeles Times where people are coming and going like it’s LAX…) From the new top editor Russ Stanton: … Read More »

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Three Film Writers Are Leaving LA Times

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Wednesday March 5, 2008 @ 2:13pm PSTTags: LA Times, Movies, Writers

latpalm.jpgLongtime movie news staff writer Robert Welkos, film feature writer Gina Piccalo and second-string reviewer Kevin Crust won’t have bylines soon at the beleaguered newspaper which is offering some voluntary and some not-so-voluntary exit packages. Just in case you’re still reading Calendar, … Read More »

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TOLDJA! John Montorio Axed By LA Times

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Saturday February 16, 2008 @ 12:09pm PSTTags: Journalism, LA Times

MONDAY AM: Here’s the memo sent to his Los Angeles Times staff from Managing Editor for Features John Montorio who doesn’t hide the fact that he was fired.

Friends,
These last seven years have been among the most rewarding of my life. Together, we have renewed and reshaped The Times’ Features report

… Read More »

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Finke To Goldstein: Do The Write Thing

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Tuesday January 22, 2008 @ 4:47pm PSTTags: Guilds, Journalism, LA Times, Media, Moguls, Writers Strike

Patrick, you and I are longtime pals. We like each other personally. But professionally we usually find ourselves on the opposite sides of the Hollywood spectrum. You rarely write about a mogul or exec you don’t like. I rarely write about a mogul or exec I like. You think the … Read More »

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John Ridley Weakly Defends Going Fi-Core

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Tuesday January 8, 2008 @ 12:54pm PSTTags: AMPTP, Journalism, LA Times, Media, WGA, Writers Strike

Oh, I can’t wait to see the comments reacting to this Op-Ed. Meanwhile, the clueless Los Angeles Times chalks up yet another anti-WGA screed in its opinion pages while the anti-AMPTP rants are very few and far between. Get this — an editorial pages editor there was under the … Read More »

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