Newsroom

KCBS-TV Channel 2 reporter Serene Branson smiled uneasily. She was back in the newsroom Thursday for the first time since becoming an instant ? and reluctant ? media sensation after she had infamously garbled her words during a live report at the Grammy Awards. But the 31-year-old journalist wasn't going back to work just yet. Instead she was back to be interviewed by her anchor, Pat Harvey, and to finally view the 17-second clip that triggered ridicule, concern and speculation that she'd suffered an on-air stroke or worse.

HBO's "The Newsroom" and NBC's "Parenthood" are among the productions being honored by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences as programs that have "used the power of television to create social change" and exemplify "television with a conscience. " The sixth annual Television Academy Honors will be presented May 9 at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The ceremony will be hosted by Dana Delaney ("Body of Proof"). Other honorees include: --"Hallmark Hall of Fame: A Smile as Big as the Moon" --"DL Hughley: The Endangered List" --"Half The Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide" --"Hunger Hits Home" --"Nick News with Linda Ellerbee" --"One Nation Under Dog: Stories of Loss, Fear & Betrayal" ALSO: Oprah lands Jason Collins interview 'Rectify' to get second season on Sundance 'Ellen,' 'The Young and the Restless' lead daytime Emmy nominations  

"The fact that everyone is talking about it, for whatever reason: challenged by it; disturbed by it; annoyed by it; loving it; can't wait to see the next one -- all of the above, we absolutely love it. " Jeff Daniels is speaking of the new HBO drama "The Newsroom," in which he stars as insufferable newscaster Will McAvoy, and he wants you to know he's undaunted by the commotion the Aaron Sorkin series has stirred up since its premiere last...

Noel Greenwood, a former senior editor at the Los Angeles Times who helped shape local and California coverage as the newspaper outgrew its modest local ambitions and transformed itself into one of national stature, died Sunday at his Santa Barbara home. He was 75. Greenwood had prostate cancer for seven years, said his daughter, Diana. "He was from the old swashbuckling school of journalism," said Times Sacramento columnist George Skelton. "What he would always tell me was 'You know more about this stuff than the people you're interviewing - so just say it.' He didn't pull any punches.

Alison Pill, a star of HBO's "The Newsroom" whose character Maggie is prone to crashing into all sorts of inanimate objects, crashed into a technological brick wall in real life Wednesday as she mistakenly tweeted out a topless picture of herself. "Yep. That picture happened," Pill wrote in the aftermath. "Ugh. My tech issues have now reached new heights, apparently. How a deletion turned into a tweet... Apologies. " Call us crazy: We're thinking that most of the world would prefer an apology for the fact that she promptly took the picture down - and the folks replying to her tweet seemed to agree.

I wholeheartedly agree with Russell Baker that journalists aren't in touch with our nation's poor ["Affluence Remakes the Newsroom," by Tim Rutten, Dec. 13]. The solution lies at the top. We have to convince those who do the hiring at major papers that "Living Life 101" might actually be a better classroom than those that simply try to teach silver-spoon students how to empathize with the poor, homeless and downtrodden. Sam Johnson Chicago

HBO's "The Newsroom" and NBC's "Parenthood" are among the productions being honored by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences as programs that have "used the power of television to create social change" and exemplify "television with a conscience. " The sixth annual Television Academy Honors will be presented May 9 at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The ceremony will be hosted by Dana Delaney ("Body of Proof"). Other honorees include: --"Hallmark Hall of Fame: A Smile as Big as the Moon" --"DL Hughley: The Endangered List" --"Half The Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide" --"Hunger Hits Home" --"Nick News with Linda Ellerbee" --"One Nation Under Dog: Stories of Loss, Fear & Betrayal" ALSO: Oprah lands Jason Collins interview 'Rectify' to get second season on Sundance 'Ellen,' 'The Young and the Restless' lead daytime Emmy nominations  

HBO's new drama "The Newsroom"got the kind of ratings cable news networks might envy. But unlike CNN, Aaron Sorkin could rely on a little help from vampires. About 2.1 million viewers tuned in to Sunday's premiere of Sorkin's "Newsroom," which depicts the turmoil at a fictional cable news outlet beset by ratings pressures and staffers' tumultuous personal lives. That puts "Newsroom" roughly in line with the 2010 series premiere of the fantasy"Game of Thrones"(2.2 million), which has gone on to become one of HBO's biggest hits in recent years, according to Nielsen.

Alan Poul, executive producer of "The Newsroom," has parted with his house in the Hollywood Hills for $993,000 and purchased another one nearby. Poul's Midcentury Modern-style home sold for more than the asking price of $989,000. The remodeled house features city and mountain views, built-in art and bookshelves, a fireplace, French-style doors, a balcony, three bedrooms, three bathrooms and 1,784 square feet of living space. He paid $750,000 for the property in 2002, public records show.

The Los Angeles Times has named Sean Gallagher to run its online newsroom operations and oversee the Los Angeles Times Media Group's growing portfolio of digital properties. Gallagher will assume the title of managing editor, online, Times Editor Russ Stanton said in a statement. Gallagher had been serving as managing editor of the newspaper's website, latimes.com. "Sean's talent, integrity and command of virtually every facet of online publishing have been crucial to latimes.

Every morning at The Times begins with a meeting. Nothing unusual about that until you consider the depth and breadth of our newsroom. Out of all these opinions come hard facts and insightful journalism.

As lawmakers in Washington debate the possibility of legalization for 11 million immigrants, a more basic question has emerged in the nation's newsrooms and beyond: what to call those immigrants. Most news organizations have long used the term "illegal immigrant," which some people find offensive. They prefer "undocumented," arguing that "illegal" is dehumanizing and lumps border crossers with serious criminals. Some even view "illegal immigrant" as tantamount to hate speech and refuse to utter it, referring only to the "I-word.

The TV newsmagazine "The Insider" was created nearly a decade ago on the premise that viewers couldn't get enough behind-the-scenes looks at television and film stars. That's still true, but these days, celebrity watchers don't need to turn on the TV to get their fix. Fans are awash in Hollywood gossip thanks to social media and the Internet. And in a connected world where reality star Kim Kardashian turned to her own blog to share news of her pregnancy, pop culture no longer waits for an evening TV time slot.

Alan Poul, executive producer of "The Newsroom," has parted with his house in the Hollywood Hills for $993,000 and purchased another one nearby. Poul's Midcentury Modern-style home sold for more than the asking price of $989,000. The remodeled house features city and mountain views, built-in art and bookshelves, a fireplace, French-style doors, a balcony, three bedrooms, three bathrooms and 1,784 square feet of living space. He paid $750,000 for the property in 2002, public records show.

You can almost hear the clanging of the typewriters in the writers courtyard at Hollywood's Sunset Gower Studios, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. The Spanish-style courtyard of offices housed such scribes as Ben Hecht ("His Girl Friday") and Sidney Buchman ("Mr. Smith Goes to Washington") when the facility was home to Columbia Pictures. According to Brent M. Christo, sales and marketing coordinator for Sunset Gower and the neighboring Sunset Bronson Studios, one of the bungalows was the office of Oscar-winning producer-director Frank Capra ("It Happened One Night," "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town")

Alison Pill, who stars as the constantly jittery Maggie in HBO's "The Newsroom," mistakenly tweeted a topless photo of herself on Twitter. Where is Nina Howard of TMI Magazine when you need her?!? The photo, which was tweeted Wednesday, showed the 26-year-old actress sprawled on a bed wearing nothing but thick-framed glasses and chapped lips.  Pill quickly deleted the photo and, rather than having a Maggie-esque panic attack, she addressed the gaffe. "Yep. That picture happened.

You've probably heard about the challenges newsrooms face in today's fast-paced electronics age. Here's one you may have missed. It's hard to say exactly when we first noticed the problem here in our Orange County office, but a key moment was the morning several months ago when reporter Mai Tran returned to her desk from breakfast, let out a shriek and leaped across the aisle onto editor Steve Marble's chair. And then on to his desk. And then across his desk. She'd seen a mouse under her desk.

The only woman in a sea of men in suits, Dorothy Townsend can't help but stand out in the official photograph of the Los Angeles Times team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 1966 for coverage of the Watts riots. The picture also inadvertently documents Townsend's other historic role at the newspaper. After insisting on being reassigned from "the women's pages" in early 1964, she became the first female staff writer to cover local news in a city room long populated only by men. Townsend, who wrote for The Times from 1954 to 1986, died March 5 of cancer at her Sherman Oaks home, said her cousin, Louise Hagan.

Alison Pill, a star of HBO's "The Newsroom" whose character Maggie is prone to crashing into all sorts of inanimate objects, crashed into a technological brick wall in real life Wednesday as she mistakenly tweeted out a topless picture of herself. "Yep. That picture happened," Pill wrote in the aftermath. "Ugh. My tech issues have now reached new heights, apparently. How a deletion turned into a tweet... Apologies. " Call us crazy: We're thinking that most of the world would prefer an apology for the fact that she promptly took the picture down - and the folks replying to her tweet seemed to agree.

Welcome to the new online home of the Los Angeles Times readers' representative. Many of The Times' blogs have already moved to this new platform, so it was time for me to make the leap, too. In addition to a new look, I'm going to try a new approach to the blog. As the title line says above, this will be the place for reader questions and comments. I'll also share news from and about the newsroom. Our social media team will be contributing as well. In the menu to the right, readers will find links to frequently sought information from the newsroom and the company.