Crikey

Copy killing laughs at Stock & Land. It seems the anonymous author behind the “Blowflies and Bulldust” column in the Fairfax-owned Stock & Land is a closet Body Count fan. The Cop Killer rappers famously glorified pinging the pigs in their 1990s Los Angeles hood, but the sentiment never really took off in Middle America. Luckily rural Australia is around to pick up the slack — here’s this week’s hilarious police murder joke, as relayed on page 50 of the farmer’s bible…

 — Andrew Crook

I may sell houses, doesn’t mean I don’t want to buy them too. In yesterday’s story about the Brisbane property market, The Oz reveals that confidence in the Brisbane (and Perth) housing market has been taking a drastic fall for the past 12 months. The Oz quotes “potential home buyers” who can now take advantage of the low housing prices: “We’re getting into the market now basically because we can”.

A simple Google search “Place Real Estate Brisbane” for the Sales team reveals the “potential home buyer” (Laura Kavanagh) is, in fact, a real estate agent with Place Estate Agents. Sure, there’s nothing specifying that members of the Place sales team cannot have a vested interest in the housing market, but in this case, the journalist has been especially lazy because he then proceeds to quote the agent’s boss, chief executive Damien Hackett. — Crikey intern Anokhee Shah

Al Jazeera suspends Syria bureau after crackdown

“Al Jazeera’s Arabic bureau in Syria has been suspended for safety reasons, the broadcaster today confirmed.” — Journalism.co.uk

Phone hacking: Wayne Rooney considers suing NotW

“Wayne Rooney is considering taking legal action against the News of the World for breach of privacy after Scotland Yard detectives warned him he may have been targeted by Glenn Mulcaire, the private investigator who was on the paper’s books.” — The Guardian

CBS reporter Lara Logan recounts ‘merciless’ assault

“Lara Logan thought she was going to die in Tahrir Square when she was s-xually assaulted by a mob on the night that Hosni Mubarak’s government fell in Cairo.” — New York Times

Michael Arrington makes a mockery of AOL-Huffpo ethics

“It’s a policy at the Huffington Post Media Group (of which TechCrunch is now a part) that editors and writers can’t invest in companies they cover — but that Michael Arrington is exempt from that restriction.” — Forbes

News Corp is selling MySpace for $100 million

“Struggling social networking site MySpace is looking for a new owner and hopes to have one by this week’s end. According to The Wall Street Journal, News Corp is seeking $100 million for MySpace, much less than what they paid.” — Social Times