A disputed tip to a tabloid about MTA employee contact talks could deal a damaging blow to negotiations -- according the MTA Transit Authority's top honcho, Joseph J. Lhota.

In today's New York Post, an article claims that the MTA "has caved to several costly union demands," including "one concession agreeing to give subway operators three paid days off when they hit someone."

An exasperated-sounding Lhota fired back with a statement this morning, disputing the paper's reporting.

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The New York Daily News launched a blog about literature and publishing today called Page Views. So far it has three posts: one introductory post from each editor and also a nude photo of Truman Capote lounging in a towel. As if a tabloid with a lit blog wasn't novel enough!

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The New York Post rubs its hands gleefully today with a new "scoop": they've found two people connected with Occupy Wall Street who stayed in a fancy hotel. Therefore, the entire movement is a sham.

Peter Dutro, "one of a select few OWS members on the powerful finance committee," and Brad Spitzer, a guy from California who seems to have gone to a couple OWS events on a business trip, were caught red-handed by the Post's intrepid reporters staying at the W Hotel. Gotcha!

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The headline inside the paper is "GOONS OCCUPY BRAWL STREET." After weeks of borderline-derisive coverage of Occupy Wall Street, the Post has finally taken the gloves off and the earrings out.

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A Yankees fan. No more, no less. Just a dictator-slaying Yankees fan, doing his job.

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The Onion is a satirical newspaper. As in, the stories that it publishes are jokes. Duh, you're saying, but today they got in a bit of hot water when they tweeted about congressmen holding kids hostage in the Capitol building: "BREAKING: Witnesses reporting screams and gunfire heard inside Capitol building." It was in connection to this story on their website. People got upset!

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That's quite the photo.

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In this late Tuesday edition of Press Clips, our daily media column, every New Yorker's favorite (or at least second favorite -- any News fans out there?) trashy tabloid is now going to cost 75 cents more than Metro and AM New York combined. In other small losses for the media-centric public, a judge ruled that a whole article reposted without permission was still within the "fair use" rules, but the court had its reasons. Elsewhere, a journalism student evangelizes on the evils of the internship and some folks at the New York Times dress even snazzier than usual. Get all the good dirt inside.

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Alas, it was not Charlie Rangel or David Paterson saying goodbye last night, but Mort Zuckerman, who had barely even said hello.

There was a brief shining moment when it looked like Zuckerman, publisher of the Daily News and real estate mogul extraordinaire, would run against Kirsten Gillibrand for the U.S. Senate. The instant this news hit, several score of Zuckerman's News employees -- current and former -- volunteered to cover his race. "Count me in!" bellowed a typical e-mail from an ex-Newser who goes under the handle "Tab Lloyd."

Zuckerman sent his regrets via an un-bylined article that went up on the News' own website last night. He also granted a brief interview to the Times. "I was encouraged by many major political figures in New York to look closely at running for Senate," Zuckerman told his anonymous employee. "However, at this time, it is very difficult to see how I can devote the necessary time to either a campaign, or to working in Washington, if I were to win."

Not that he thought victory was a long shot. He told the Times' Michael Barbaro that he would have been a shoe-in. "I really thought this was something I could have won, without question," he said.

The News' "No Byline Please!" reporter added a personal note as well: "Mr. Zuckerman pointed out that he has a young family, which is the most important focus in his life."

As well they should be, whoever they are.

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Release the newshounds! New York's tabloids quickened their pursuit of hapless David Paterson this morning, calling on the governor to immediately flee the scene of his accidental reign.

It's a foregone conclusion that Paterson won't run for election. (He scheduled a presser for later this morning). But it's probably just a matter of days (or hours) until Paterson resigns and accidentally-on-purpose Lieutenant Governor Dick Ravitch takes over the statehouse.

Both the Post and Daily News issued editorials. The stiffer harrumph comes from Mort Zuckerman's Daily News.

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