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Gawker: Chris Lee Was Searching for Cross-Dressers on Craigslist

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 17:09:23 -0500

Gawker, which brought us the emails and shirtless photo that brought down Congressman Chris Lee's career, is out today with another bombshell, and one that helps explain why Lee resigned so abruptly.

Apparently after the original story broke two transgender women contacted the website with separate stories about exchanging emails with Lee. In one, Lee allegedly posted an ad in the "casual encounters" section of Craigslist describing himself as a "sexy classy guy" in search...

Gawker's Ban on 'Shiny Bauble' Share Buttons Lasted One Week

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:12:10 -0500

Three weeks ago, newly-relaunched Gawker hit the web with a curious omission: the row of social media widgets frequently attached to blog posts across the web (examples below and to the right of this post).

"These sites festooned with social media buttons—they look like primitive tribesmen clutching pathetically onto shiny baubles they believe to the symbols of modernity," Nick Denton told The Observer at the time. Facebook was by far the most significant source of...

News Alert: Weiner Releases Bar Mitzvah Photo

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:11:53 -0500

Earlier this month Anthony Weiner promised via a Twitter that if he were to hit 10,000 followers he would release a photograph of his 1977 Bar Mitzvah.

Well, a deal is a deal and apparently Weiner has now reached that social media plateau, he has to pay up. And Weiner, ever the master media manipulator, wisely chose to blast out that photo on a Friday afternoon, just the moment when the press isn't paying attention.

This...

Paladino: 'All Pigs Are Equal, But Some Pigs Are More Equal Than Others'

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:04:02 -0500

The election is long since over, but Carl Paladino continued to keep the hear on Andrew Cuomo, accusing him in a Facebook post published today that slammed him for accepting a plea deal from former Comptroller Alan Hevesi and going above the head of the state's judicial system. The release accuses Cuomo of corruption during his time as Attorney General and vilifies the "shallow press" for its lack of scrutiny into the matter.

The case...

Recasting Parker-Spitzer... Phonetically [UPDATED]

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 14:04:51 -0500

UPDATE: Eliot Spitzer will have his own show, called "In the Arena," with rotating guests and in the same timeslot. reports The Cutline.

Kathleen Parker is leaving her post as co-host of CNN's Parker Spitzer, reports The Daily. Can't say we didn't see it coming, but The Daily has some additional details of interest. Parker had been hand-picked by former CNN President Jon Klein, who left the network a month before it launched. Apparently the...

Douglas Durst: 'Showings' Afoot for Conde Space; China Trip for 1 WTC 'Like Davos'

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 13:50:02 -0500

Now that Conde Nast is headed south, the publishing giant's landlord, Douglas Durst, reveals there is already active interest in Conde's current digs in 4 Times Square.

"It's a good building and a good space," Mr. Durst, chairman of the Durst Organization, said Wednesday, following a lecture to an overflowing room with members of Columbia's Real Estate Development Program. There have been "showings," for the several thousand square feet of 4 Times Square space, which will open up in 2015 once...

Local News Site Goes Facebook-Only

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 13:43:00 -0500

Rockville Central, a local news site in Rockville, Maryland, is ditching its entire website for Facebook.

This makes a lot of sense for a community news site. People check Facebook frequently and are accustomed to commenting, liking, sharing and otherwise engaging with content there. It's similar to what Anthony De Rosa and Richard Blakeley are doing on Tumblr with Neighborhoodr, a network of blogs/Tumblrs that surface news and items of hyperlocal interest.

Obvious problem: Neighborhoodr can...

A 'Clarion Call' Music Video in Support of the Bronx [VIDEO]

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 13:17:55 -0500

In the wake of Glenn Beck's comparison of the Bronx Co-op City to a failed socialist state and American Idol's unflattering portrayal of the borough, Bronx nonprofit group Bronxnet has released a music video with an "Original Bronx Anthem" calling on borough residents to support and defend their neighborhood.

The video, which kicked off Borough President Ruben Diaz's State of the Borough Address yesterday, features footage of Bronx landmarks, scenery, community events, and famous...

It's Free to Look: Just in Time for Kate and William's Wedding!

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 12:56:01 -0500

According to Corcoran, this Upper West Side co-op in the El Dorado boasts the finest views not only in Manhattan, but apparently "in all 'Earth's Kingdoms.'" For a little over $8.8 million, it and its four bedrooms and three bathrooms (and 360-degree panorama of Central Park, the Hudson River and the skyline of Fifth Avenue) can be yours.

SLIDESHOW: Your Own Private...

Broadway Man Robert Nederlander Prefers Park Avenue

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 12:35:05 -0500

Broadway producer, theater operator and former Yankees owner Robert Nederlander never staged Young Frankenstein in his numerous venues, but he has nonetheless decided it's time to put on the ritz at home. He has just purchased a colorful two-bedroom co-op in the Ritz Tower for $2.25 million, city records show. This is a month after he sold his three-bedroom home four blocks north at 510 Park Avenue, where he had lived for decades with...