Media-Whore D'Oeuvres

"This week at the White House, President 'Yes, I can' will sit down with Prime Minister 'No, you won't.' The main agenda item will be the future of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, an enterprise that might be best described -- at least for now -- as the walking dead. But no matter. When you're the change president, you must believe even when reality tells another tale. Energized by transformative changes in the Arab world and genuinely worried that no negotiations spells trouble for America, President Barack Obama wants to push for big things on the peace process. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is equally determined to push back against big ideas that cross his own ideology, gut instincts, and coalition constraints. The recent Palestinian unity accord and the Syrian-orchestrated Palestinian demonstrations along the Israel-Syria border will only help him parry any American pressure. It would be nice to imagine that out of this American-Israeli yin and yang might come a common way forward. And if this were some more enlightened parallel universe, Bibi and Obama just might find it." (ForeignPolicy)

"When George W. Bush declined President Barack Obama's invitation to a ceremony at New York City's Ground Zero after Osama bin Laden was killed, the former president cited his desire to keep a low public profile. But Bush has been high profile on the private, paid speaking circuit: he has raked in millions of dollars since he left office by making scores of speeches that typically earn him six figures a pop. In the week after Obama's Ground Zero event, the nation's 43rd president made time for three separate speeches to hedge fund executives, a Swiss bank sanctioned for keeping secret bank accounts,and a pro golf event underwritten by the accounting firm involved in the Tyco International financial scandal. Bush's standard speaking fee is reportedly between $100,000 and $150,000. David Sherzer, a spokesman for the former president, told iWatch News that since Bush left office he has delivered almost 140 paid talks, at home and abroad. Those speeches have earned Bush about $15 million, a conservative estimate, following in the golden path blazed by his predecessor, Bill Clinton. Almost all of Bush's speeches are closed to the press." (iWatch)

"One of the most high-profile media courtships may soon be consummated: Katie Couric is closing in on a deal with Walt Disney Co.'s ABC to host an afternoon talk show. Couric, who anchored the CBS Evening News for the last time Thursday night, would begin her new syndicated show in the fall of 2012, according to people familiar with the negotiations who were not authorized to speak publicly about them. Some of the major deal points have been hammered out, although there are still outstanding issues surrounding compensation. The agreement is not expected to be finalized for at least a week. Couric's contract with CBS ends June 6. CBS, which until a few weeks ago had also been vying to distribute Couric's proposed syndicated show, has the right to match any offer to Couric before her contract ends. The network has not yet waived that right, nor is it expected to make a counteroffer, said these people with knowledge of the situation. Disney Chief Executive Robert A. Iger has been 'very involved' in the deal, the people said. He has been particularly interested in bringing Couric to ABC, in part, to fill the programming void that will be created by the departure of the queen of daytime TV, Oprah Winfrey." (LATimes)

"Recently, I made a split second decision to take a hedonistic trip to Paris for 5 days in pursuit of simple pleasures. Meaning: spending time with a close girl friend, walking around the city streets, and being completely sans reason d'etre. No business meetings, no social schedule, just a driving desire to be in Paris fancy free, so to speak ... So I booked a flight (using miles) and set off for this beautiful city without a dash of guilt. As a young girl, I attended school in Switzerland, and came to Paris on a regular basis. When my stepfather, Felix Rohatyn, was the U.S. Ambassador to France under President Clinton, I visited my mother and Felix at the U.S. Residence countless times, with my young daughter, Lily. I speak what passes for fluent French, albeit of a conversational manner, best left in secular realms rather than in discussions of politics! In other words I feel totally at home in this wonderful city ... By now it was 3:30 pm and I was feeling the effects of jet lag, so after 2 hours of ambling along, I returned home to finish unpacking and get ready for dinner. This evening we had a plan to have dinner with Carolyne Roehm, who had rented an atelier in the Marais for the month of April. I had asked Joy to book a table at La Voltaire (27, Quai Voltaire) as it is one of my favorite places to dine. Thursday night outside of La Voltaire. Carolyne Roehm and Joy Hendricks. Still looking well after a major feast. It is not an accident that I am absent from this image!! I have frequented La Voltaire for several decades, and the head waiter Thierry is the glue! He is the repository of all gossip in Paris and never forgets a face (unless he elects to)." (NYSocialDiary)

"When Sienna Miller settled with News Corp. for the modest sum of about $160,000, News Corp. executives privately crowed that they were shutting down the growing list of more than two dozen phone-hacking lawsuits. After all, Miller's lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch's News of the World had been a devastatingly effective tool in unraveling the phone hacking cover-up at the London tabloid. Material unearthed in Miller's lawsuit spurred Scotland Yard to launch its latest investigation into phone hacking. Not so fast. This is a tag-team effort. They may be former lovers, but Sienna Miller and Jude Law are partners in the courts. Law is gallantly picking up right where his ex left off. While Law was busy judging films in Cannes, his lawyers (the same team that represented Miller) were working on Law's own suit against News of the World. Law and Miller were likely targeted in the same way and for many of the same stories. Law's case was added Friday morning, along with Labour MP Chris Bryant, to the initial group of 'test cases' given priority to go forward. The judge also identified a secondary list of five claimants to replace anyone else who may settle with the newspaper. They are: comedian Steve Coogan, former soccer star Paul Gascoigne, publicist Nicola Phillips, former MP George Galloway, and Mary-Ellen Field, a former advisor to model Elle Macpherson. And then there's Miller's stepmother, Kelly Hoppen, another 'test case. Hoppen's case could be particularly damaging for News Corp." (VanityFair)