Foxtel spin: you’ll probably pay more. A classic example of spin by Foxtel in its press release yesterday headed “Background brief — Foxtel aligns regional and metropolitan subscription packages”:

“In March we will introduce a standardised price and package structure (see attachment) which will create a simple and unified national system. Naturally, as we are aligning different and quite complex pricing structures, there will be some customers who will pay a little more and some who will pay the same or less than they currently do. This will be true for both regional and metropolitan customers.

“Approximately 25% of subscribers will save money, around 25% will experience no change in their price and fewer than 1% will receive an increase of more than $3.05. The total monthly recurring revenue Foxtel receives from subscribers will not increase as a result of these changes.”

That might be the case, but look at the stats. In stating 25% of subscribers will save money and 25% will pay no more or less, it’s really saying half the company’s 2.3 to 2.4 million subscribers will pay more. As a result, 50% or so of Foxtel’s subscribers will effectively be subsidising the price cut for 25% of subscribers who will pay less. That sounds a bit too democratic for the likes of a company half-owned by News Corporation and the Murdoch family. — Glenn Dyer

Summer sillies. Crikey‘s search for the silliest summer stories continues with some ripsnorting entries from Fairfax’s metro websites yesterday. First up: entertainment and lifestyle reporter Jenna Clarke took a fresh angle on the Presidential inauguration in her piece “Michelle Obama goes Canberra chic”. How so? Apparently the bangs favoured by Mrs Obama have long been in vogue in our national capital. The story speaks for itself:

“Bangs and blow dries are back but it seems the hairstyle sweeping the brow of Michelle Obama never left Canberra.

“‘Her look is nothing ground breaking it is a very neat layered bob that has been straightened then blow dried smooth, my clients have been doing that for years,’ senior stylist at Kingston’s Form Haircutters Chad Wijayatilake told Fairfax.

“The Canberra market is very safe and professional especially with a lot of my clients in the public service you can’t have anything to ‘out there’.”

Then there was this piece, “Two flat whites and a bawling child please”, which we admit seems to have been a hit with the Herald‘s commenting crowd. Writer Jodie Noyce recounts the traumatic experience of having her morning latte spoilt by a crying baby before ending with the poignant, and unanswered, question: Do we even have a right to comment on others’ parenting? Alas, the sound of the world’s smallest violin playing couldn’t be heard over the baby’s sobs. — Matthew Knott 

Exclusive watch. As phony exclusives go, The Daily Telegraph‘s front page story on Prince Harry today is up there for chutzpah. Newly-released comments from the prince about his time in Afghanistan were run by virtually every news service around the world yesterday (here’s a piece from the UK Daily Mail). The yarn also featured in bitter rival The Sydney Morning Herald.

Pollie photoshop watch. While on the Tele, the paper is refusing to let a ban on Photoshopping images taken in Parliament stop it from taking a whack at its favourite punching bags. Here’s what the tabloid dished up to Stephen Conroy today.

Media release of the day. It speaks for itself …