Quietly, without chalkboards or bluster, Bret Baier has cemented his position as one of the top talents at Fox News, often eclipsing the ratings of some of the network’s more high profile stars, like Sean Hannity and yes, Glenn Beck. With Beck’s future now taking him away from the 5 p.m. slot he’s held, Baier represents a part of the Fox News story that usually gets overshadowed by the drama and excess that surrounds stars like Beck. For the most part, Baier does news.

Nina Totenberg is speaking out about her controversial Jesse Helms remarks from 15 years ago. NPR’s legal correspondent has come under some heavy Fox News fire following Juan Williams dismissal for remarks she made on a television show called Inside Washington in 1995.

Perhaps taking a page from Jon Stewart‘s relentless criticism of Fox News’ coverage of the proposed Lower Manhattan mosque NPR’s David Folkenflik is further investigating the money connection between Fox News and Park 51′s Imam Rauf: Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal.

While the Keith Olbermanns and Bill O’Reillys of the world continue to live under the media spotlight, an NPR story today takes a look at another TV-news journalist, who gets considerably less media attention: Savannah Guthrie. In profiling Guthrie, NPR not only reveals more about her, but also examines an overall shift in cable news.

It looks like the long-rumored, much-chattered about New York Times ‘bombshell’ story about Gov. David Paterson may end not with a bang but a whimper. The fact the damaging rumors even began in the first place is all Twitter’s fault. Or so say some disgruntled media folks.

It’s entirely possible the now week-long debacle over the rumored but not-yet-seen NYT “bombshell” story about New York Gov. David Paterson may end up being the best thing that ever happened to the Gov. New Yorkers love nothing more than public figures who give as good as they get and Paterson has certainly been doing that this week with a full court press pushback that landed him on Larry King last night. Is the Gov. having a metamorphosis?

Eight days after the earthquake that struck Haiti things appear to be getting worse not better for suffering and traumatized Haitians. Anderson Cooper’s frustration was particularly apparent last night as he discussed the situation with a seemingly overwhelmed Sanjay Gupta: “They are giving Motrin to people who have had their limbs amputated!”

GQ is apparently none too keen to make available their Sept. article about Russia (‘Vladimir Putin’s Dark Rise to Power’) to the Russians. In fact they are so serious about keeping it out of Russia one wonders if the piece contains U.S. nuclear codes. But what about that pesky Internet?

Yesterday’s Sunday New York Times featured two stories without bylines. One piece recounted Times reporter David Rohde‘s Saturday escape from Taliban captors following a seven month ordeal (and accompanying news blackout). The other piece was datelined Tehran.