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The Morning Fix: HLN prepares for life without Tot Mom. Sun Valley invaded by moguls. Twitter is worth what?

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After the coffee. Before wondering how Nancy Grace slept last night.

The Skinny: Where were you when you heard Tot Mom was innocent? It doesn’t have quite the same ring as, ‘Where were you when JFK was shot?’ or when bin Laden killed or even when O.J. was found innocent. Still, we find a way to try to get a piece of that Casey Anthony web traffic with stories on what all this means for HLN, which made the trial its life.

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What now? The Casey Anthony murder trial has been a ratings bonanza for HLN, the once-serious news network that these days looks like the illegitimate offspring of Lifetime and E! with its bizarre mix of tabloid tales and celebrity obsession. With Anthony found not guilty, HLN needs to find another trial of the century for both its audience and Nancy Grace. In the meantime, with no Tot Mom to rage against, look for ratings to take a hit in the near term. More on HLN from the Hollywood Reporter and Los Angeles Times.

Sun Valley saturation. The next few days will be filled with lots of stories and tweets from investment bank Allen & Co.’s annual summer conference of media and technology big shots. The event is closed to the press and even the bar is off limits to reporters. That doesn’t stop the press from descending on Sun Valley, Idaho, as if Lindsay Lohan is vacationing there. They are up at the crack of dawn to shout questions to executives, most of whom smile and wave as if passing an exhibit at the zoo. A few panelists will offer insights that will become the basis for coverage. With the bar closed, the highlight will be the annual impromptu press conference Google brass holds. Sound like fun? Well, at least it’s pretty there. Coverage from Reuters and All Things Digital.

How much? Imagine that I bought a big wall and let anyone come spray paint on it. Would you think that would be worth $7 billion? Well, that’s what Twitter is being valued at as it goes through another round of private financing. The site, which allows users to post 140-character messages, will have about $150 million in ad revenue, said the Wall Street Journal, which ran a survey asking if Twitter is worth that much. So far, it’s running 80-20 against.

Halfway point. Although this summer has a few hits, ‘The Hangover 2,’ ‘Cars 2’ and ‘Bridesmaids,’ overall Hollywood’s biggest season is off 7% from last year. Variety with a midseason report card. USA Today takes a look at some of this summer’s breakout performances.

ESPN serves up an ace. Walt Disney Co.’s ESPN is shelling out $480 million for exclusive rights to Wimbledon, beating both Comcast’s NBC and News Corp.’s Fox for the rights to the tennis classic. Analysis of how it happened and what it means from the New York Times and Los Angeles Times.

Inside the Los Angeles Times: How so-called dynamic ticket pricing is changing the economics of live theater.

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-- Joe Flint

Follow me on Twitter and we’ll find a way to get some of that $7 billion. Twitter.com/JBFlint

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