Will Jessica Simpson survive her dog's death? Did Anna Wintour survive sitting next to Pixie Geldof? Did Lindsay know her burglar? Did Anna Nicole's doctors know pills would kill her? Get some answers in your Tuesday morning gossip roundup!

Barack Obama capped a media push by sitting down with David Letterman to talk to the everyman. Yeah, he discussed serious issues, but those hardly matter, because everyone's going to be talking about a heart-shaped potato.

Katie Couric's first foray into internet interviewing was a success! Well, it's getting some press, at least, because the ubiquitous Glenn Beck admitted a secret love for Hillary and trashed McCain, whom he thinks would have done worse than Obama.

(They are so good at that, by the way! They learned this trick during the election, sending out politically relevant Letterman clips to all the blogs right after the show tapes.)

• Despite all the talk of the impending demise of the TV industry, ratings for last night's Emmy Awards weren't too shabby. The three-hour show was seen by 13.3 million people, which is up 8 percent from last year. [THR]
• Bloomberg LP has officially submitted its bid to buy BusinessWeek. [BW]
• Michael Musto of the Village Voice is hearing rumors that Conde Nast is planning to shutter five of its titles as it looks to slash costs. [VV]
• A group of activists affiliated with The Yes Men handed out copies of a New York Post parody this morning as part of an effort to draw attention to climate change; a number of them were later detained by the NYPD. [DF]
• Despite low ratings and lousy reviews early on, Katie Couric is expected to anchor the CBS Evening News until her contract expires in 2011. [NYT]
• Barack Obama made appearances on just about every Sunday morning talk show yesterday. With the exception of those on Fox News, that is. [LAT, [HP]
• Obama's media tour will continue tonight when he sits down alongside David Letterman on his late-night show, a first for a sitting U.S. president. [NYT]

BIG HOLLYWOOD investigative reporter Patrick Courrielche asks: "Should the National Endowment for the Arts encourage artists to create art on issues being vehemently debated nationally?" Well, yes.

So. Obama sent New York governor David Paterson a letter asking him to not run for governor. Dumb! Because David Paterson is sensitive! And New York needs a governor who does not think everyone is out to get him.

News emerged over the weekend that President Obama has been urging Gov. David Paterson to seriously consider bowing out of the race for governor, since the president and his advisers don't think he has a chance of winning next fall, especially if he goes up against Rudy Giuliani. Paterson rejected the suggestion yesterday, and indicated he plans to move ahead with his campaign. This morning the two men came face to face when the president touched down in Albany to deliver an economic address at a nearby college. So how did that go? It was a little bit awkward, not surprisingly:

Obama thinks that ACORN should be investigated for that whole pimp video thing.

Take that, Dick Cheney! Federal officials this weekend made three arrests in an interstate terror investigation. Sure, it's good news for democracy, freedom and the such, but it could be great news for President Obama.

Sometimes, my parents mistakenly call me by any number of our family's dogs' names. Here's a video of the president talking about flu vaccines, calling one of his daughters by his sister's names. I guess it could be worse:

I can hear it. I hear it between the lines, man. Obama's talking to The Jews, celebrating their version of Ramadan, when they munch on their eucalyptus-like crack-snacks and plot 2010's media domination. Want to know what he's really saying?

Prepare for a bipartisan orgy of political posturing and apocalyptically awful punditry this weekend, as Barack Obama hits the Sunday talk shows while a bunch of Teabaggers pray for Jesus to come home at the Values Voters Conference.

Like any red-blooded American op-ed columnist, David Brooks has joined the cacophony over Jimmy Carter's "racism" remarks. But, sadly, his latest outburst won't allow comments. He's doing us all a great disfavor.

The pictures of Barack Obama brandishing a lightsaber are making the rounds, but they shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who knows that Mr. President is the nerdiest man living outside of his mother's basement.

Despite the fact that Democrats and the White House are distancing themselves from him, Jimmy Carter refuses to budge on his assertion that many of Barack Obama's opponents are racists.

Yet again the nation's embroiled in a race debate. That's not surprising. There was that black-on-white violence that Drudge enjoyed so much. And then silly Jimmy Carter called "racism" on Obama's health care opponents. The only people not talking race?

Politico's Ben Smith almost WON THE DAY with nice little scoop—the video of Barack Obama calling Kanye West a "jackass" during pre-interview banter with CNBC's John Harwood. But someone made him take it down. Why in the world?

[Our Nerd President brandishes a lightsaber after a fencing demonstration on the White House lawn today during a photo op to promote Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympic Games. (Bonus, green-screen-challenge-ready shot after the jump.) Image via Getty]

reacting during a Good Morning America report about whether Barack Obama is overexposed after Jake Tapper suggested the White House "would be happy to deny all of ABC News' interview requests for the president," via TVNewser.