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The Morning Fix: Google under the microscope, upfront mania and a cat with more followers on Twitter than you

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After the coffee. Before the call to New York.

Getting tough with Google? The New York Times says the Obama administration’s push to be more aggressive on the anti-trust front could mean big headaches for Internet search giant Google. ‘The new antitrust leadership, legal experts say, is likely to scrutinize networks — technology platforms that become so dominant that everyone feels the need to plug into them,’ the Gray Lady reports. The Wall Street Journal weighs in on the subject as well with its own take.

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It’s the start of upfront week when the broadcast networks unveil their fall lineups to advertisers, and that means lots of curtain raisers. The Los Angeles Times says the ad market could be off by 15%, while The New York Times looks at some of the riskier schedule moves by the networks including NBC’s gamble on Jay Leno in prime time. TV Week has an extensive interview with ABC’s entertainment chief Steve McPherson, who takes a shot at Nielsen, saying ‘there’s something of a disconnect between what really seems to be happening and the Nielsen measurements.’

Wither Miramax? With several movie studios getting out of the specialty film business, Hollywood observers are beginning to wonder how long Disney will remain committed to Miramax. Disney tells The Los Angeles Times that Miramax is safe, but it has been awhile since the art house had a hit and the whispers continue.

Sony’s ‘Angels and Demons’ had a solid, but not spectacular opening weekend of $48 million in the U.S. However it was huge around the globe, taking in $104.3 million outside the U.S., the biggest international launch since the last ‘Indiana Jones’ movie. ‘Star Trek’ beamed up an impressive $43 million its second weekend. Variety.


Maybe it’ll be easier to get Rupert Murdoch to speak at commencement this way. Bloomberg reports on Harvard University’s recent investments, which includes buying almost 1.5 million shares of News Corp.

If you are insecure about having only a handful of followers on Twitter, then skip this Tech Crunch post on a cat with more than 500,000 followers. Yeah, but can he open his own cans of cat food?

Also in today’s Los Angeles Times: The producers of ‘Ugly Betty’ talk about how they hope to turn around a ratings slide. NBC’s Chuck has been renewed for 13 episodes, although at a much lower budget which could mean a smaller cast. CBS is hoping to wrap a deal to bring back its drama ‘Cold Case.’

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--Joe Flint

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