Political blogger Andrew Sullivan has made an endorsement among this year’s ever-thinning field crop of GOP presidential contenders, and it’s none other than Ron Paul.

Media mogul Tyler Perry — who has been open about his own childhood experiences with violence and abuse — has penned a letter to the 11-year-old boy involved in Jerry Sandusky‘s widely-reported rape scandal.

Controversial undercover videographer James O’Keefe is under fire from two of his Project Veritas operatives, who complain exclusively to The Daily Beast‘s Howard Kurtz that O’Keefe’s handling of their so-called NPR “sting” made them “feel exploited.” Shaughn Adeleye and Simon Templar accuse O’Keefe of “hijacking” credit for their story in order to “get his ‘comeback’ or his ‘redemption.’”

Let me be the first to offer them some cheese with that whine.

After 23 years, 500 episodes and billions of d’oh!’s later, money disputes have shown Fox studio executives ready to pull the plug on their long running hit series, The Simpsons.

Democratic political analyst Kirsten Powers is not afraid to call them as she sees them, and in a Daily Beast column Wednesday afternoon, she blasted her friend (and ex-boyfriend) Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) for “sociopathic lying,” misogyny, and predatory behavior. In an interview with Mediaite, Powers gives her take on liberal suggestions that Weiner’s resignation should hinge on the disposition of Republican scandals like David Vitter‘s, and the notion that Weiner’s scandal lacks the hypocrisy of Republican sex scandals.

America’s longest-running reality TV show, The Real World, returns tonight on MTV, with the latest group of seven strangers picked to live in a house, this time in Las Vegas. The selection of Sin City as home to the show’s 25th season is timed to help draw the nation’s Spring-Breaking college students to Vegas as a vacation spot. It’s left to be seen whether the MTV staple program still has much influence left on its young audience. No matter, the show has made an indelible mark on TV culture. “The Real World helped birth a genre that has eaten television whole,” says the Los Angeles Times‘ Yvonne Villarreal. But does the show still reside on the same pedestal? Critics debate:

In an interview with The Daily Beast’s Howard Kurtz, NY Times Executive Editor Bill Keller defended the NY Times ability to cover Fox News objectively, despite comments he made that were critical of the cable news network and the people that regularly watch Fox News. Speaking specifically about his media reporters, Keller claimed “they are professionally indifferent to that fact that Fox maintains a stable of commentators who make a good living bashing the Times.” But did Keller compromise the editorial objectivity of his staff and paper by openly attacking an entity so often in the news?

If it seemed like everyone was ganging up on James Franco, Anne Hathaway, and the Oscars yesterday, it’s because they were. In one of many brutal takedowns, Rolling Stone‘s Peter Travers said, “The stirrings I felt from the 83rd annual Oscar show made me want to puke. How could so many stars bore so many people breathless?” Few critics could find anything positive to say about the ceremony, and many echoed the same declaration of “Worst Oscars Ever.” But that phrase may sound familiar – it’s been summoned on several occasions in years past (it’s also somewhat accepted that 1989′s show was really the worst ever). Here, a look at how reviewers of the annual spectacle have summoned the same refrain:

One of the most frequently used short-hand criticisms of Glenn Beck is that he’s nothing but a crazy conspiracy theorist scaring his viewers needlessly. This criticism heated up considerably in the past week as Beck made connections between the uprising in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood, and his usual enemies of Marxists attempting to create a One World Order. An article on Gawker entitled “The Right-Wing Nut’s Guide to Egypt” used him as a poster boy. Reason’s Michael Moynihan called that episode “the dumbest thing ever broadcast on (non-cable access) television.” On Beck’s own network, The Daily Beasts’ Michelle Goldberg called his notions “lunatic theories” on Fox & Friends. Beck played that clip on today’s show and chuckled and promised viewers they’d “feel bad” for Goldberg by the end of the show. But, if he really wanted to hit back at these accusations, Beck should stop trying to prove his theories and start offering solutions.

If you didn’t know any better, you might think that Dancing With the Stars is one of the most polarizing issues in America today. It’s inspired conspiracy theories, threatening mail, and gunfire. You can now add name-calling to the list: on a recent visit The Joy Behar Show, comedian Sandra Bernhard commented on Bristol Palin‘s post-DWTS activity thusly: “She is such a hooker!”

Ten years ago, Arianna Huffington was best known for appearances on the now-defunct Politically Incorrect, and Tina Brown was throwing lavish parties for the now-defunct Talk magazine. Meanwhile, Time was chugging along, covering news and politics just as it had been for decades. It’s this that the publication is trying to seize upon with its new TimeFrames initiative, which begins with a new issue that looks back on the magazine’s coverage of the last decade.

Part Two of Howard Kurtz‘s interview with Fox News chief Roger Ailes is out today, and based on his frank and candid assessment of Jon Stewart, NPR and a defense of conservative bias, no one should ever call Mr. Ailes a shrinking violet. His comments are sure to be received by some as evidence of Ailes malevolent character, but one could just as easily read the enlightening Q & A as a refreshingly plain-spoken conversation in which one of the most powerful media figures of the day isn’t afraid to speak from the heart.

It is true that there is a solid news operation within Fox News, but anyone who works there will tell you that theirs is a clearly cut and bifurcated system of opinion shows and news shows (and never the twain shall meet.) So some might find it odd that Roger Ailes, the leader of the highest rated, and arguably most influential news outlet, chose an interview with The Daily Beast’s Howard Kurtz to attack President Obama, and, shocker, reveal that he isn’t a big fan of this administration.

FoxNews.com has a feature they call “Skype Gripe” in which two talking heads discuss news of the day from different political angles: Ellis Henican represents a left-of-center point of view and Jim Pinkerton comes from a right-of-center perspective. Today’s topic was the new Howard Kurtz Daily Beast report on the “war” between Keith Olbermann and MSNBC president Phil Griffin, a great piece filled with lots of interesting details.

hough the Daily Beast’s upcoming merger with Newsweek drew much fanfare and back-patting on all sides when it was announced last week, not everyone is happy about the imminent marriage. In fact, some people are completely opposed to it—people like the staff of Newsweek.com, an entity that seems unlikely exist once the merger takes place.

The Daily Beast’s Howard Kurtz, who appeared on Countdown during return-from-suspension show #2, has a juicy tick-tock on the inner battle at MSNBC between Keith Olbermann and Phil Griffin (and…basically everyone else at 30 Rock).

Actually, not so much a battle. Apparently it’s “war.”

Last night the NY Observer broke the news that the on-and-off merger plans of venerable weekly Newsweek and hot-shot online property The Daily Beast was back on again. Today, all-star editor Tina Brown confirmed as much in a post published this morning on The Daily Beast that explains what the new media marraige will mean.

Throughout the past few month there have been many whispers that embattled print weekly Newsweek and the red-hot (and well funded) website The Daily Beast were in talks about merging their two businesses. A lot of people thought it made sense, the marraige of a print behemoth (with solid ad revenue) and a hip and cool online entity with a proven editorial hall of famer in Tina Brown. Alas, as Ms. Brown said recently, the two entities could not agree to terms on a prenup and the talks died without a deal. But no so fast – according to The Observer, it turns out that the merger may, in fact, be back on.

By now, it’s common knowledge that people can see Sarah Palin’s Alaska from their living rooms. But as the show’s premiere edges closer, a new question is taking root: can 2012 be seen from Sarah Palin’s Alaska? According to one former aide quoted in The Daily Beast, the answer is yes. “She is running for president,” he said. “And this is a season-long bio ad, free of charge.”

After the initial shock, the media has started to respond to Keith Olbermann‘s indefinite suspension. When asked by CNN whether the move was justified, The Daily Beast’s Howard Kurtz delivered this SEO-friendly response: “MSNBC absolutely had no choice but to suspend Keith Olbermann.” Then, unable to help himself, he added: “I’m tempted to ask whether he’s now ‘The Worst Person In the World.’” We’ll be hearing that joke for at least a few days.

Yesterday, we told you about SPALASKA, Sarah Palin’s Alaska‘s official site. (Its name is so fantastic that we think it should always be written in all caps.) Today, we learned a little more about the people that make SPALASKA tick—and found out that one of its bloggers, Danielle Johnsen, has written some pretty negative things about her new boss.

A month ago, New York Post columnist Keith J. Kelly reported that Tina Brown, magazine editor extraordinaire and Daily Beast founder, was in talks to become Newsweek‘s new editor-in-chief. According to Kelly, she’d be able to make the move without abandoning her beloved website; supposedly, The Daily Beast would be combined with Newsweek‘s online operations, forming one giant super-site.

Alas, the merger wasn’t meant to be.

The fallout from Carl Paladino‘s crash and burn anti-gay remarks over the weekend continues. In today’s news even his adviser appears to want nothing more to do with him: “Eccentric” Republican political consultant Roger Stone (he has a Nixon tattoo on his back) says he was “astounded” by the comments.

I think it’s fair to say this news caught most people by surprise. Longtime Washington Post media reporter Howie Kurtz is leaving the paper to join Tina Brown‘s Daily Beast as the site’s Washington Bureau Chief.

The Daily Beast’s Shushannah Walshe is reporting that Sarah Palin and her team are making definitive steps toward a 2012 Presidential run.

Through Palin has resisted making concrete statements about her intentions, the opinions of those closest to her are a good indicator. Those involved in her crew, SarahPAC, are a loyal bunch and no one talks to the press without the approval of the boss. Her top aide Rebecca Mansour says, “She respects her team and her team respects her and we’ve learned that she knows what she’s doing.” A former 2008 staffer put it more bluntly, “she is attracted to people who are going to take a bullet for her because she really will ask you to one day.”