Fairfax’s ‘fair, reasonable’ offer. Staff at The Age have ridiculed Fairfax’s latest offer in the battle for a new enterprise agreement, after metro CEO Jack Matthews sent out a “fair, reasonable and appropriate” version of what the company considers to be its final pitch.

A stop work meeting of House Committee members late yesterday resolved to keep pushing on outstanding issues of the company’s anaemic, below inflation pay offer and Fairfax’s dogged position on arbitration, which prevents journos from having disputes arbitrated by Fair Work Australia. (Currently, other Fairfax arms The Canberra Times and non-metro dailies have the arbitration clause written in to their contracts). There is also consternation over how “merit” pay, worth an additional 3% for some senior hacks, is going to be measured.

One journo in the thick of it told Crikey this morning: “There was definitely a feeling that the company had given some ground on issues that were important to staff. People feel the pay offer is too low, and they want arbitration — right now those are the sticking points.” However, another House Committee veteran remarked simply that the “demoralised” mood was “quiet and a bit dim”.

In what some staff have read as a veiled threat, Matthews is demanding an agreement by September 1 or the company will “not be able to guarantee back pay”. He urges staff to get on board for “the task of building a successful, modern media business”. The current agreement lapsed on June 30. — Andrew Crook

The eyes have it for Addy. Not only does today’s Adelaide Advertiser front page have an often-used but clever headline pun in “POLL DANCE” that refers to SA premier-in-waiting Jay Weatherill’s unfavourable polling, it also has some of the best crazy eyes …

Beat-up of the week? Hard to go past today’s Gold Coast Bulletin op-ed by Robyn Wuth in which, in 550 words, she lambasts a little-known Facebook group set up to rally for the marriage of Sesame Street characters Bert and Ernie who have just 3293 “likes” and 137 members. If that’s how we rate coverage, the Gold Coast Bulletin has 7364 “likes” in comparison. The stinger of the opinion piece is this line at the end:

“And who could forget Golliwog and Little Black Sambo who disappeared from children’s toy chests and the pages of their stories amid howls of racism? Now they want a gay wedding? Give me strength.”

We await the “Restore Golliwog and Little Black Sambo” Facebook group with much anticipation.

Vox pop of the day. You can’t accuse NT News of not asking its readers the tough questions …

Front page of the day. Having fun with the current US financial crisis is not easy. Unless, that is, you have a brilliant photo — and you are the New York’s Daily News …

Print sales heading down but paid digital sales rising

“Total print newspaper sales fell 4.2 per cent in the six months to June compared with the same period last year, as publishers wrestled with the weakest retail environment in 50 years and a drop in consumer spending.” — The Australian

Abundance of news, but mixed sales for US mags

“The first six months of 2011 brought the kind of news explosion that can be a boon for major news organizations. But newsstand sales for the top weekly news magazines told two different stories.” — New York Times

Borders’ store closings spell trouble for niche titles

“While Borders’ closing has prompted various reflections about the future of the book industry, magazine publishers, particularly smaller outlets, have also been forced to consider their future.” — Columbia Journalism Review

Grazia admits digitally slimming Duchess of Cambridge

“Grazia has admitted that it inadvertently slimmed down the waist of the Duchess of Cambridge by digitally altering a controversial cover picture of her in her Alexander McQueen wedding dress.” — The Guardian

Beer-swilling Facebook CEO warned against expansion

“In 2005, Facebook had 5 million users rather than 500 million. And instead of being at the center of an Oscar-winning Aaron Sorkin movie, CEO Mark Zuckerberg was answering questions from a goofy guy with a camcorder—and explaining the perils of growing Facebook beyond the college market.” — Gawker