Apple has turned a routine refresh of Steve Jobs' obituary into an occasion for a full blown media war, asking Jobs' associates to stonewall the Associated Press and allowing it to be known that they are "furious" about commonplace journalism.

Ginormous Wal-Mart alternative Target is the subject of a unionization campaign at one of its New York stores. Because Target is a virulently anti-union company with a well-known reputation for ridiculously simplistic corporate propaganda, it's only natural they're bombarding their workers at this particular store with scaremongering documents. Which we have.

Facebook's craftiness has backfired—again. The company just admitted it was behind a shadowy PR effort to plant negative stories about how Google is destroying your privacy.

In your ardent Monday media column: accountability comes to punditry, PR replaces journalism, the NYT's front page quick change artistry, longer newscasts tonight, and everybody loves People.com.

To refute intense criticism that iPhones track their owners' every move, Apple today announced that "the iPhone is not logging your location," just what Wi-Fi stations you're near. Too bad Apple already admitted there's no difference.

Yesterday, Tech Crunch writer Alexia Tsotsis did a noble thing: she more or less told her parent company to fuck off, in public, after a Moviefone/ AOL rep emailed her suggesting that the "snark" be "toned down." That was entertaining. But the response of Moviefone is even more entertaining! If you like unbelievable things.

In your trampled Tuesday media column: rumors of blog consolidation at AOL, Darell Issa's spokesman canned for leaking to the NYT, Dan Abrams is a proud television journalist, the new NYT Magazine considered, and fairness is dead.

Fox News science columnist Gene Koprowski has a long history of standing up against this "global warming" foolishness. Today, he's seeking sources to to explain the "ridiculousness" of the idea of global warming causing snow. Can you imagine?

Wal-Mart, unsated by every last drop of Middle America's lifeblood, plans to break into the NYC market, whether we like it or not. Today, the company rolls out its all-powerful propaganda tool: a website! Bow before its persuasive powers!

Last year, the U.S. government banned "flavored" cigarettes. Since then, the real fight has raged on: whether to ban menthol cigarettes as well. The end of Newports? Can you imagine? The company that makes Newports says: that's racist!

Why is our economy in the predicament that it's in today? High unemployment, sluggish growth...who's to blame? The unions, of course. The unions are the enemies of the working man. The working class must destroy unions for their own good.

A research firm working on behalf of the oil industry is offering DC journalists more than $500 an hour to share how they "feel about policy." The real story is how many reporters could freely say yes to that offer.

Incompetent superflack Ronn [sic] Torossian has a very, very, very exclusive invitation for you, if you have $40.

This is fun: Greenpeace is suing Dow Chemical and two of its PR firms, claiming that they hired private investigators "who stole documents, tapped phones and hacked into computer networks between 1998 and 2000." They have lots of documents!

Brian Tierney got rich as a much-hated (by journalists) Republican PR man in Philadelphia. Then he led a group that bought Philly's newspapers and went bankrupt. Now, he's going back into PR. Philadelphia thanks you for your service, Brian. [NYT]

If you've ever wondered how PR firms work to neutralize a damaging news story, here you go.

It is time to hear the latest tale of media relations mastery by Ronn [sic] Torossian, incompetent superflack CEO of sock-puppet specialist firm 5WPR. Ronn Torossian's business strategy is to send angry emails to everyone, about everything, damn the consequences.

The latest action from anti-corporate pranksters The Yes Men: an elaborate fake advertising campaign for Chevron, complete with fake ads, a fake website, and even fake trade magazine coverage. To detect the fakery, you have to read the fine print.

For a man who assiduously avoids the news media, Steve Jobs is incredibly skilled at exploiting his leverage with the press. So skilled, it's alleged, he turned a top newspaper into a key tool of Apple's public relations.

Apple's PR staff would be well advised to reach out more to bloggers, or even blog on their own. So the mysterious overture Apple made to a TechCrunch editor at a Cupertino, California brewhouse could be a big positive step.