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12:20 PM ET, January 21, 2010

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 Top News: 
TMZ.com:
Conan O'Brien, NBC Reach $45Mil Settlement  —  Conan O'Brien and NBC worked out their final conflict hours ago and have reached a $45 million settlement ... and we've learned it's a sweeter deal for Conan than anyone thought.  —  Network sources tell TMZ the “mitigation” clause was taken off the table.
RELATED:
Bill Carter / New York Times:
Conan O'Brien and NBC to Part Ways  —  Say farewell to Conan O'Brien.  —  After a last long night of negotiations, the deal to end Mr. O'Brien's short term as host of “The Tonight Show” was concluded with an agreement that will pay him about $32 million and free him up to return to television in eight months.
Adalian / The Wrap:
Exclusive: Conan, NBC Officially Splitsville  —  From an NBC spokeswoman:  —  “NBC confirms a deal is signed and an official announcement will be made this morning.”  —  ORIGINAL POST 3 AM CDT/ 1 AM PST  —  Our long national late-night nightmare is over.
PopEater:
Now It's Personal: Jay Leno Jokes About Dave Letterman's Marriage  —  Dave Letterman teed off on Jay Leno earlier this week in relation to the NBC ‘Tonight’ mess, and now Leno is fighting back directly at his nemesis — only this time, it's personal instead of business.
Discussion: OK! Magazine and Popeater
Adalian / The Wrap:
It's Done: Conan, NBC Sign Exit Agreement (Updated)
Discussion: coverawards.com and Gawker
Stephen M. Silverman / People.com:
Conan O'Brien, NBC Seal the Deal for His Exit
Discussion: The Superficial
People.com:
Tara Reid Is Engaged!  —  Tara Reid and boyfriend Michael Axtmann were having dinner at The Little Door restaurant in Los Angeles on Monday night when Axtmann asked for something not on the menu: Reid's hand in marriage.  —  “Michael surprised Tara with a beautiful round brilliant cut ring,” the actress's rep tells PEOPLE exclusively.
Roger Friedman / The Hollywood Reporter:
‘We Are the World’ Sequel Set to Aid Haiti  —  EXCLUSIVE: This column has learned that Quincy Jones and Lionel Richie are planning a massive 25th anniversary re-recording of “We Are the World.”  —  The timing couldn't be better, sadly enough.  —  The duo is summoning lots and lots of talent …
RELATED:
Rob Shuter / PopEater:
No Haiti Telethon Invite for Kanye West  —  Kanye West sadly will not be helping George Clooney and his pals raise funds for the earthquake victims in Haiti, as the foot-in-mouth rapper's reputation has kept him from getting an invite to the event, according to my sources.  Who can blame the producers for the snub?
David Balls / Digital Spy:
‘Hope For Haiti Now’ lineup confirmed
Discussion: Reuters
TMZ.com:
Jon Cryer - FBI Investigating Alleged Death Threat  —  Jon Cryer — who stars with Charlie Sheen in “Two and a Half Men” — told authorities his life was in danger — possibly by a hitman — and TMZ has learned the FBI is investigating.  —  Cryer sounded the alarm last Friday.
Michael Ausiello / The Ausiello Files:
Ask Ausiello: Spoilers on ‘Lost,’ ‘Glee,’ ‘True Blood,’ ‘Gossip Girl,’ and more!  —  Got a scoop request?  An anonymous tip you're dying to share?  Just want to say hi?  You can send any/all of the above to ausielloscoop@ew.com  —  Question: How about you try something new in Ask Ausiello this week and talk about Lost.
msnbc.com:
Edwards admits fathering child with mistress  —  Former presidential candidate promises to support his 2-year-old daughter  —  John Edwards' attorneys say he's been providing financial support for 2-year-old Quinn for about a year, and just signed a child support agreement with Rielle Hunter.
RELATED:
Cajun Boy / ANIMAL:
Here's a Better Look at the Goods Possessed by Scott Brown's ‘Available’ Daughters  —  A tipster who is friends with Scott Brown's daughter Ayla was nice enough to send us this photo of her and her sister Arianna posing with their now-Senator Dad while clad in sexy bikinis.
Discussion: Mediaite, Gawker and The Superficial
Kristin Dos Santos / E! Online:
Gossip Girl Catastrophe: The Spoiler That Will Break Your Heart  —  Do not under any circumstances read this item if you love Gossip Girl and you don't want to be spoiled for a huge/major/giant tragic plot twist that's coming toward the end of the season.  —  No one is getting killed off …
Discussion: X17 Online and Gossip Girl Insider
Perez Hilton:
Casey Johnson's Sex Tape!!!  —  And now everyone can hear about it on E!  —  In the wake of Casey Johnson's death, former girlfriend Courtenay Semel has come forward to discuss the existence of their sex tape.  —  “We had our own sex tape,” said Semel.  “It was either listen to our families …
Discussion: E! Online
Kendra Wilkinson:
HOW CUTE?!?  —  OMG he's just so cute while he sleeps I couldn't help myself!!!  All I want to do is sit around and look at him all day long lolol.  Love my lil jock
Dave McNary / Variety:
Epstein, Friedman to direct ‘Lovelace’  —  Pic is based on iconic porn star from 1972's ‘Deep Throat’  —  Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman have lined up indie biopic “Lovelace” as their second directing gig, just before the premiere of “Howl” — which the duo wrote and directed — at Sundance.
Steve ‘Frosty’ Weintraub / Collider:
8 New High Resolution Images from THE RUNAWAYS Starring Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning  —  Earlier this morning I posted a high resolution image from The Runaways.  It was an image that had been previously released, but I figured some of you might not have seen it in high res.
Michael Schneider / Variety:
Adult Swim orders lots of ‘Chicken’  —  Cabler renews ‘Robot’ for 40 more episodes  —  Adult Swim has locked in its top-rated franchise for another two seasons, handing a whopping 40-episode order to “Robot Chicken.”  —  The mega-renewal keeps “Chicken” on the channel for a fifth and sixth season.
Us Weekly:
Rosie O'Donnell Snaps: Jay Leno is a “Bully” Who Can't “Let Go”  —  Rosie O'Donnell is definitely not on Team Leno — and she has elaborate comparisons to explain why.  —  At Tuesday's Manhattan screening of A Family is a Family is a Family: A Rosie O'Donnell Celebration, O'Donnell tore into Jay Leno …
Discussion: Gabby Babble and ImNotObsessed.com
Michelle Tauber / People.com:
Brittany Murphy's Husband: Prescription Meds Were Mine  —  The husband of Brittany Murphy says the late actress had “laryngitis and flu-like symptoms” at the time of her sudden death on Dec. 20 - but was not suffering from seizures, as has been reported.  —  In his first interview since …
TMZ.com:
‘American Idol’ Hooligan — Cuffed and Released  —  The guy who was led out of “American Idol” in handcuffs on last night's show got a lucky break after the cameras stopped rolling — producers let the guy off the hook.  —  TMZ has learned 28-year-old Jarrod Norrell …
Discussion: Gawker and mjsbigblog
Starpulse:
Ben Affleck Wants A Son; Jennifer Garner Reluctant To Get Pregnant Again  —  Ben Affleck is begging wife Jennifer Garner to get pregnant one more time and give him the son he's desperate for.  —  The couple have two daughters, Violet, four, and 12-month-old Seraphina, and Affleck is keen for a baby boy to complete the trio.
Kristin Dos Santos / E! Online:
Insiders Reveal Why Rob Estes and Jennie Garth Are Leaving 90210  —  Jaimie Trueblood/The CW; Patrick Ecclesine/The CW  —  He's a goner.  —  The CW confirms that Rob Estes will no longer be a part of 90210 as of next season.  —  Though widespread reports have it that Rob Estes has …
Hollywoodreporter / The Live Feed | THR:
NBC orders more ‘Trauma,’ ‘Parks,’ ‘L&O,’ more  —  NBC is ordering more of, well ... just about everything.  —  The network is picking up additional episodes of 10 p.m. dramas “Law & Order” (three more) and “Law & Order: SVU” (two more), which can help fill gaps created by the departing “Jay Leno Show.”
 
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 More News: 
Adam Rosenberg / MTV Movies Blog:
EXCLUSIVE: ‘Tron Legacy’ …
Us Weekly:
Kimora Lee Simmons Thinks Kenzo “Takes After Dad”
Discussion: Celebrity Baby Blog
PopEater:
Jessica Alba Reveals She Has a Thing for Craigslist
Discussion: ImNotObsessed.com
Mike Moody / Digital Spy:
'Grey's Anatomy' characters ‘recast’
Discussion: omg!
Access Hollywood:
Did Heidi Montag's Quest For Beauty Nearly Kill Her?
Discussion: Anything Hollywood and PopEater
 Earlier Picks: 
Kaiser / Cele|bitchy:
Did Angelina Jolie have an affair with a dialect coach?
Us Weekly:
EXCLUSIVE: As Kids, “Khloe Was Cuter” than Kim Kardashian, Says Pal
Discussion: Anything Hollywood
Tina Jordan / EW.com:
Exclusive: Twilight, The Graphic Novel
Richard Johnson / New York Post:
Kelly Bensimon to pose in Playboy
Will Welch / GQ Magazine: GQ:
Victoria's (Best Kept) Secret
 

 
From Mediagazer:

The Guardian:
How China is using AI news anchors to spread its propaganda on social media; Microsoft: some AI anchors were created using ByteDance's video editing app CapCut

Renee DiResta / The Guardian:
How a rightwing smear campaign against NPR and its CEO Katherine Maher, who is on Signal Foundation's board, led Elon Musk to malign Signal

Nitish Pahwa / Slate:
How bots monopolizing DeviantArt's promotional and revenue apparatuses and the platform's unwillingness to address the issue are driving artists to abandon it

 
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