Web entrepreneur Jason Calacanis' prank claims about the Apple tablet yesterday were so over the top, we had to laugh. Until prestige media started reprinting them like they had merit, and our good humor turned to amazement.

President Obama delivered his State of the Union address last night, mere hours after Steve Jobs' momentously hyped unveiling of the Apple iPad. Obama's speech was praised for its delivery, while Jobs' presentation fell flat. Here's how to fix it.

In your shiny Thursday media column: internecine squabbling at the Washington Post (is fun), new hires at the WSJ, The University of Florida is a Mac, and the government has always run the media.

Last night's Colbert Report was filled with topical jabs at new legislation allowing corporations to freely sponsor political figures, parties, and campaigns. Colbert jokingly pleaded for his own corporate gifts addressing the day's other major story: the iPad release.

• The iPad may be cool and all. But don't expect it to revolutionize newspapers. Or magazines. Or even book publishing. [AdAge, NYT, Reuters, NYT]
• The WSJ is getting ready to take on the Times. Three dozen staffers (and $15 mil.) will go into creating its new NYC edition, which debuts in April. [NYO]
• NBC and Conan O'Brien are back in business (sort of): The network is picking up a pilot from Conaco, O'Brien's production company. In less surprising news, Jay Leno says he hasn't spoken to Conan since the late-night drama unfolded; and Comcast's chief says he's behind NBC CEO Jeff Zucker (officially-speaking).
• ABC has decided to bring Ugly Betty to an end after this season. [LAT]
• MSNBC wasn't planning to air last Friday's Haiti telethon. But then Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow got involved and things changed. [NYO]
• Harvey and Bob Weinstein are looking to buy back the Miramax name. [DH]
• Louis Auchincloss, chronicler of WASP culture, is dead at 92. [NYT]

Think back an hour or so to the iPad unveil. Jobs is on stage. He reveals his tablet, and then the price, $499, to rabid applause from everyone. Everyone, that is, except people who knew better.

ABC News reports that John and Elizabeth Edwards are "legally separated." Not divorced, yet. FYI. Also omg a big ol' iPhone! What a weird time to announce your separation from your wife—who will even notice?

CNBC's coverage of the Apple iPad went downhill when a female anchor equated the tablet to the types of products that women use once a month. The male anchors couldn't hold back their distaste for the comparison.

Forget about whether the Apple Tablet will save a struggling publishing industry — today, Gawker.TV looks at how Steve Jobs' shiny new toy may change the way we consume video.

One of the great modern pastimes — speculating and rumormongering about the Apple Tablet — will come to an end today when Steve Jobs finally unveils his messiah device. It's a game few are ready to stop playing.

[via Soup]

In the span of one week, Steve Jobs will unveil an Apple tablet; ABC will premiere the final season of Lost; and some guy named Barack Obama will address the "State of the Union." Which event will make your year?

The New York Times Company is launching new "Reader Applications" division, according to an internal memo. This is probably the first corporate re-organization motivated by an external product that doesn't officially exist. The new business-side group will oversee products for non-Apple devices like the Kindle, Sony Reader and Barnes & Noble Nook. In fact, the word "Apple" appears nowhere in today's memo from Times Company president Scott Heekin-Canedy. But the timing of the announcement just days before Apple is expected to unveil its own tablet device is not lost on company insiders. We're guessing newsroom staff will be watching Apple's tablet event as obsessively as any Apple fanboys later this week, if only to get details on the "continued growth in this new and important segment of" Times business.

It'd appear that Apple has a very, very strict no-call-no-show policy: three times, and you're done. A Genius Bar employee volunteering with an NGO emailed his whereabouts, but it wasn't enough.

The Jesus Tablet Blog recently uncovered documents deep within the US Patent Offices suggesting that the iPad was the Apple Tablet's name based on their battles against Fujitsu for it. Now they're moving ahead with a U.S. trademark battle.

Deep in the bowels of the Trademark Office is some fresh evidence that Steve Jobs intends to name his messiah machine the "iPad": the company is in a fight with Fujitsu over the trademark.

• Negotiations between Conan O'Brien and NBC didn't wrap up today, as expected. Conan is holding out for more severance for the employees who will lose their jobs. Or "posturing" as part of a "PR ploy," to use NBC's words. [NYT]
• Related: Conan has a big lineup planned for the rest of the week, which will be his last. And NBC's Jeff Zucker played defense with Charlie Rose last night.
• Larry King's celebrity telethon for Haiti last night raised $9 million. [Us]
• Speaking of Haiti, do there really need to be hundreds upon hundreds of reporters on the ground covering the disaster from every angle and also gobbling up very precious resources in the process? Good question. [TNR]
• Rumor has it the Times is going to begin charging for online content soon. The plan comes with some pros and cons, as you might expect. [AdAge, PC]
• Apple will probably unveil its tablet computer on Jan. 27. [WP, ZDNet]
• Related: HarperCollins is in talks to put its books on the tablet. [WSJ]
• It's been a full year since Glenn Beck started spewing on Fox News. [HP]
• Obits: Mystery writer Robert Parker died yesterday. Kate McGarrigle, the Canadian folk singer and mother of Rufus Wainwright, has died, too.

The publisher, according to the Wall Street Journal, has been discussing enhanced e-books to run on the tablet that is all but officially in stores, if rumors/facts about a launch at the January 27th Apple event are to be believed.

On January 27, the president of the United States will outline plans for pressing issues like the deficit, immigration, maybe global warming. The same day, the CEO of Apple will hold up new, expensive plastic gadget. Who wins?