All Stories | The New York Observer

The Saddest of All Newspaper Wars, Dateline: San Francisco

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:16:42 -0400

Over the years, Mike Lacey, the charismatic and sometimes prickly alt-weekly executive, and his pals at Village Voice Media (ne New Times) have generated no shortage of amusing media stories. And for those of us with a taste for the genre, Eli Sanders' feature in this week's The Stranger about the 15-year battle and end-of-times legal brinksmanship between The San Francisco Bay Guardian and the V.V.M.'s SF Weekly is a must read.

Among other things,...

Elsewhere: The Meaning of Levy

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:12:30 -0400

The Times corrects Paterson.

Lazio is the "original Kanye."

Gerstein says Lazio is "especially ill-suited for this anti-insider mood."

Mike Long doesn't like how long it took Levy to flip.

Jay Jacobs isn't happy.

Conservatives may wait.

Ben Adler sees Levy's defection as bad news for suburban Democrats.

Schaffer disagrees.

Ira Fusfeld may just recognize that guy with the mustache from now on.

Steve Israel...

Levy Claims He's Poached Lazio Supporters

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:09:40 -0400

Steve Levy goes after Rick Lazio.

From an advance transcript of his interview on Capitol Tonight

"He is saying he has 67 or 70 percent. Many of those people who claim to be on his list are going to be standing with me when I announce my candidacy, tomorrow. Saying they endorse my...

Items! More on Spielberg's WTC Series, Apple's iPad Still Seeking Partners

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 17:43:55 -0400

More details on Steven Spielberg's Ground Zero documentary series. [Architectural Record]

Apple would like to some more partners for that iPad it's shipping soon. [WSJ]

Meanwhile, Amazon launches 'Kindle for Mac.' [WSJ]

Chuck Schumer and Lindsey Graham co-wrote an immigration editorial. [WaPo]

President Obama put off his Asia trip again. [NYT]

Another Harlem condo project is going belly up. [Crain's]

Lehman Brothers would like $11 billion from Barclay's, please. [Dealbook]

ProPublica now tells you which investigations you need to read each...

Hassan Nemazee Pleads Guilty

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 17:29:05 -0400

Hassan Nemazee, a former finance chair for the presidential campaigns of John Kerry and Hillary Clinton and a finance chair for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, pleaded guilty today to defrauding three banks and a friend out of $290 million in loans and proceeds.

Mr. Nemazee's arrest in August stunned the New York donor community. Mr. Nemazee had bundled more than half a million dollars for Barack Obama in 2008 and had used part of...

Christiane Amanpour Named Next Host of ABC's This Week; Tapper Takes Over During Interim

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 17:13:16 -0400

In the end, perhaps somewhat predictably, David Westin went with the biggest star.

Today, Mr. Westin, the president of ABC News, officially announced that the network had hired Christiane Amanpour as the new anchor of the Sunday public affairs program, This Week.

The high-profile D.C. gig has been vacant since the fall when George Stephanopoulos replaced Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America.

During the intervening months, speculation has been rampant about who would fill the job made famous...

Cox Joining Levy, Republicans Fume

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 17:09:57 -0400

The State Republican Party chairman Ed Cox will be in Albany tomorrow to join Democrat Steve Levy when he announces he's joining the G.O.P. and running for governor.

Some Republicans, like City Councilman Eric Ulrich, aren't happy about Cox's move.

"Absolutely disgraceful," Ulrich said via email.

Republican Rick Lazio's spokesman said they've gotten lots of calls from Republicans "saying how bizarre and weird it is." When I asked who specifically has made that complaint, spokesman Barney Keller...

Time Warner Eyes MGM

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:43:47 -0400

Time Warner Inc. might offer as much as $1.5 billion dollars for MGM, according to Bloomberg News.

What do you get for that?

Well, a 4,100-title library, the James Bond franchise, the Pink Panther franchise, part of the upcoming Hobbit movie, some television channels, and the rights to the show Stargate.

Last year, according to Bloomberg, the historic studio made only one film, a re-make of Fame. There are plans to release a Bond film in 2011,...

Lazio Says Levy is Really a Liberal Democrat

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:19:44 -0400

Rick Lazio has a strategy for dealing with Steve Levy.

Call him a Democrat. A liberal Democrat!

Standing in a cramped midtown office for a hastily-called press conference, Lazio described Levy as "someone who's been a Democrat his whole life, supported Eliot Spitzer and Shelly Silver, and Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama, and switches simply--I think he's been very clear that this individual would have ran as a Democrat if he felt that was an easier...

Report: New York a Global Leader—Except in Livability, Air Quality, Housing Costs, Crime, Transit, Etc.

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 15:17:11 -0400

The Partnership for New York City and PricewaterhouseCoopers have a new study out measuring global cities, and New York scores high, leading many categories with cities such as London, Tokyo and Paris.

The report, which does not rank overall but rather ranks cities on an array of different categories, is worth a read, as it tries to quantify a long list of qualities that add to a city's global strength.

While New York scored at or...