Scientologists buy Governing magazine

Governing magazine, the ubiquitous periodical of the nation's city hall and state house offices, will be sold this week to a Sacramento-based company called e.Republic. The sale has drawn an unusual amount of attention because the prospective buyer is run by Scientologists and the magazine's current owner, Poynter Institute, owns the St. Petersberg Times, a newspaper that won a Pulitzer Prize for exposing the inner workings of the Church of Scientology.

Staffers at Governing - the new owners plan to whittle the staff down to 12 from 27 - have real concerns about working for a company that so closely ties management and religion. The New York Times reports:

Some of the anxiety among the staff stems from a 2001 article in the Sacramento News and Review, an independent weekly, about e.Republic. That article, which has been widely read by Governing’s reporters in the last few days, reported that e.Republic’s staff members are required to read a book on management called “Speaking From Experience,” written by L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology.

“There is concern,” Mr. Harkness said. “Unquestionably, there is concern.”

Officials at e.Republic say its all business, but the meltdown at the Unification Church-owned Washington Times, where attempts to raise journalism standards led to a bloodletting of top staff, has staffers understandably nervous.

Saturday shorts

Cops create zone of silence around Scientology retreat in Riverside

This town ain't big enough for the two of us

Reason magazine's Matt Welch rants about whining newspaper journalists (warning: several straw men were harmed in the writing of this column)

City life causes attention deficit disorder

'Anonymous' hacker to plead guilty

An 18-year-old New Jersey man has agreed to plead guilty to hacking the Church of Scientology's official website in the name of an anti-Scientology group that calls itself 'Anonymous.' He faces up to 10 years in prison. The Department of Justice press release is here.

"something's fucked up"

Tired of people railing about newspapers? Bored with the story you're writing today? Take a break and listen to actor Jason "Let me meet a motherfucking clear" Beghe talk about Sceintology. (Warning: Use your headphones. He's got a salty vocabulary.)

More from the bridge

Watch Tom Cruise salute a picture of L. Ron Hubbard. Watch "COB" David Miscavige hint that he's a higher being than you. Hear Cruise speak about psychiatrists as if they were Jews in Nazi Germany.

It's all here, and more. Hip Hip, Hooray!

Wild and woolly

After watching this video, I now know Tom Cruise will stop and help me if I ever get into a car accident.

Other than that, I don't know what the fuck he's talking about. But it's sure funny to watch.