Media-Whore D'Oeuvres

"Arianna Huffington and the liberal online juggernaut bearing her name have been tough on a lot of Republican presidential candidates, but when it comes to Newt Gingrich, the knife has cut a little deeper. Since the former House speaker emerged as the front-runner for the GOP nomination, Huffington has used her media megaphone — including the 37 million-visitor-a-month Huffington Post — to excoriate him as an insincere, self-serving flip-flopper, sometimes in biting personal terms. In a recent HuffPo column, for instance, she compared Gingrich to 'the crazy uncle' who tries to persuade you to bet your retirement savings on an Alpaca farm. Since the former House speaker emerged as the front-runner for the GOP nomination, Huffington has used her media megaphone — including the 37 million-visitor-a-month Huffington Post — to excoriate him as an insincere, self-serving flip-flopper, sometimes in biting personal terms. In a recent HuffPo column, for instance, she compared Gingrich to 'the crazy uncle' who tries to persuade you to bet your retirement savings on an Alpaca farm. And in a Sunday show interview this month, which was quickly posted on the site, she compared him to Microsoft, in that 'the more he iterates, the worse he gets.' But it wasn’t always this way. Back in the 1990s, when Gingrich helped the GOP recapture the House and took on the Clinton administration as speaker, Huffington was one of his strongest supporters. 'She was a big champion of the Newt Revolution,' Tony Blankley, Gingrich’s press secretary at the time, told POLITICO. 'She was a friend and an ally.'" (Politico)

"From the Americas Society, I traveled ten blocks south on Park Avenue to the apartment of Jill Spalding who was hosting her annual holiday cocktail party. Jill, who is a writer and very active in New York social life always has a large but cozy crowd in her art filled apartment. I made it just inside the door, signed the guestbook and was immediately in conversation with several people including Jeanne Lawrence (who writes our Shanghai Diary) and Sharon Bush whose daughter Lauren recently married David Lauren at his parents’ ranch in Colorado. Crowded cocktail parties are often easy for conversation and Jill Spalding’s guest list always includes a lot of interesting people. Everywhere I looked people were engaged in conversation. I remained in that same spot for the entire time as people passed by on their way out such as Suzette Smith, Betsy Perry, Judy and Archie Cox, and Beth DeWoody and Firooz Zahedi, by a little after 8 when I had to leave to go on to dinner, it looked as though few others were ready to leave – always a sign of a good party." (NYSocialDiary)

"ABC 'This Week' anchor Christiane Amanpour is expected to leave the program in the coming weeks, a source familiar with the decision confirms to TVNewser. Update: It is official, Amanpour will become 'global affairs anchor' for ABC, host occasional primetime specials and will host a program on CNN International. Her statement, and a statement from CNN Worldwide president Jim Walton, after the jump. Amanpour joined ABC as the anchor of the network’s flagship Sunday public affairs program last March, after more than 25 years as a correspondent at CNN. 'This Week' has struggled in the ratings over the last year, and currently finds itself a regular third behind NBC’s 'Meet the Press' and CBS’ 'Face the Nation.'" (TVNewser)

"If publishers could collage a portrait of their ideal consumer of novelty gift books, it would probably look something like this: begin with a hapless urban 20-something whose life is 'out of control' (Fuck! I’m in My 20s). She has an iPhone and sends a lot of text messages (Damn You, Autocorrect!). She continues to find the idea of the hipster amusing (Stuff Hipsters Hate, Look at this Fucking Hipster, Hipster Hitler, Hipster Puppies). This imagined reader thinks her parents are darling, whimsical creatures (Dads Are the Original Hipsters; My Mom, Style Icon), worthy of affection on the basis of their ineptitude, outdated tastes and bluntness (When Parents Text, Crap at My Parents’ House, Sh*t My Dad Says). Her sexual desire is infantilized (Hot Guys and Baby Animals, Bangable Dudes in History) but it might be because her male counterparts (Fuck Yeah Menswear, Bike Snob, Total Frat Move) fail to inspire lust, perhaps since they favor lunch food to libidinous interactions (Scanwiches, Insanewiches). She has a knowing love for old-timey things like thank you notes (ThxThxThx) and used books (Forgotten Bookmarks). She cares about grammar enough to make fun of people who don’t (The Book of 'Unnecessary' Quotation Marks) and has a well-developed sense of irony (Awkward Family Photos, White Girl Problems, Rock Your Ugly Christmas Sweater) and sarcasm (Dear Blank Please Blank, Passive Aggressive Notes, Humble Brags). Most important, she shops at Urban Outfitters. Welcome to the world of the memeoir." (Emily Witt/Observer)

"'This is the event of the holiday season,' Alina Cho told Style.com at Friday night's annual Winter Wonderland Ball at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx. 'I always wear something light-colored with sparkles or feathers. Or both—it's a princess sort of night.' Cho wasn't the only one in plumage. As guests such as Chris Benz and Charlotte Ronson glided in through the entryway of the Victorian-style crystal palace, they couldn't help but notice one dress in particular. Bill Cunningham quickly made his way over to the wearer of the feathered white ball gown, Susan Krysiewicz, for a photo. As he went to adjust the hem of her skirt, she said, 'Careful, Bill, that's about $10,000 worth of feathers right there.'" (Style)