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Flash bulbs don't always indicate news. The media's light show yesterday around former Enron CFO Andrew Fastow threw its high beams on an arrest that had been anticipated for months. But the analyses spotlighted an executive team that can only be described as the Marx Brothers of business, with no insult meant to the Marxes.

That Fastow's arrest was long expected didn't stop it from making news. The London Times packaged its coverage with an excerpt from a forthcoming book on Enron's last days authored by one of the company's less lucky employees. The BBC Web site featured an audio clip from an observer who wryly shrugged off the arrest as a "deliberately manipulated event." Still, who can blame the government for bragging about the arrest -- Britain's Independent referred to yesterday's action as the Justice Department "landing its biggest fish" -- or the media for playing it up?

Officially, alleged bamboozler Fastow is charged with fraud, money laundering and conspiracy in connection with Enron's collapse. The government has 30 days to complete its investigation and present its case to a grand jury for indictment. Fastow faces more than 140 years in prison if convicted of those charges, according to federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann. Most tantalizing to reporters was the notion that the government's decision to file a criminal complaint rather than seek a grand jury indictment is a sign that a plea agreement with Fastow is in the works, possibly leading to the arrests of even bigger Enron fish, like ex-CEOs Jeffrey Skilling and Ken Lay.

Working in Enron's backyard, the Houston Chronicle probe into the charges reports that investigators are also now targeting chief accounting officer Richard Causey. The Chronicle offered a comprehensive analysis of the government's case. The New York Times' analysis held its nose as it did an admirable of job of teasing through Enron's various "absurd" schemes and "foolishness." No doubt the ex Enron boys are craving a power outage and muttering that sometimes its better to curse the darkness than light a candle. - Deborah Asbrand

Fastow Turns Himself In To Face First Enron Charges (Telegraph)
http://tinyurl.com/1rk8

Top Enron Executive Charged With Fraud
http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/story.jsp?story=338976

Last Goodbyes At Enron As Flak Starts Flying
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,630-434108,00.html

Enron Finance Chief Charged With Fraud
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/2292733.stm

Audio Clip: Professor John Coffee, Columbia Law School (BBC)
http://tinyurl.com/1rka

Video Clip: BBC's Patrick O'Connell (BBC)
http://tinyurl.com/1rk9

Fastow Surrenders to FBI (AP)
http://www.msnbc.com/news/815958.asp

Ex-Enron Exec Charged
http://money.cnn.com/2002/10/02/news/companies/fastow/

Documents Draw Probe Roadmap
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/front/1601320

An Ex-Official Faces Charges in Enron Deals
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/03/business/03ENRO.html

Flinging Billions of Dollars to Buy Assets No One Else Would Touch
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/03/business/03FAIL.html

From Enron Fast Track to Total Derailment
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/03/business/03FAST.html

In the airline business, the Internet is busy doing what it does best: disintermediating, removing layers, costs, and jobs. The current contract flap between online travel booker Expedia and Northwest Airlines epitomizes the fight that airlines are waging to lower costs, often at the expense of established online booking sites and travel agents.

At midnight Monday, Expedia pulled Northwest flights from its listings without publicly saying why, and everybody ran Northwest's explanation. The airline said that Expedia had refused to extend to it the same fees and distribution terms offered by Orbitz, the rival travel booker backed by Northwest and four other airlines.

The AP coverage of the Expedia-Northwest contract dispute, which many news outlets picked up, pointed out the stakes for the airlines. "The cost of distributing tickets is the industry's third-largest expense behind labor and fuel," the AP wrote, without citing a source. Expedia had become Northwest's "highest-priced distribution outlet, both online and off," the report continued, citing a letter released by Northwest on Tuesday.

The New York Times added that Northwest was not fond of Expedia's practice of giving higher visibility to airlines that pay more for the privilege, a bias claim that Expedia denied. "We do all kinds of marketing and promotional activities with any carrier that wants to," the Times quoted an Expedia spokesman.

The Wall Street Journal ran the AP copy yesterday, and today took the opportunity to look indepth at the underlying battle between the airline-backed Orbitz and the rest of the ticket-distribution industry. The Journal's Stephen Power described the tactics the two sides have used, beyond the campaign contributions and Washington lobbying one might expect.

Both Orbitz and its opponents have contributed money and other considerations to the influential think tanks that politicians turn to for ideas on legislation. Power was careful to point out that no one was accusing the think tanks of selling their influence -- in all the cases he cited, the contributions followed the think tanks' decisions on which side they favored. Power concluded with a sketch of the many federal investigations into Orbitz its opponents have spurred. So far none has found Orbitz to be operating against the interest of consumers -- but watch for a report from the Department of Transportation's inspector general due within the next few weeks. - Keith Dawson

Expedia and Northwest in contract dispute (AP, SFGate)
http://tinyurl.com/1rjz

Expedia Drops Northwest Air in Fee Dispute
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/03/technology/03TRAV.html

Orbitz and Rival Web Firms Enlist Intellectuals for Duel
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1033595809313527273,00.html
(Paid subscription required)

Expedia grounds Northwest over contract
http://news.com.com/2100-1017-960456.html

Deal Imminent on Web Radio Royalties
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28764-2002Oct1.html

Yahoo marketing angers store owners
http://news.com.com/2100-1017-960533.html

In Patent Lawsuits, Microsoft Is Frequently the Defendant
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1033601360520839433,00.html
(Paid subscription required)

It's a Bug, a Bear and a Worm
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,55532,00.html

SANS/FBI Names Top 20 Network Threats
http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/1474281

Breakthrough made in satellite encryption
http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/559741p-4408024c.html

Feds Subpoena Firm Controlled by News Corp.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-nds3oct03,0,948366.story

Goldman Gave Hot IPO Shares To Top Executives of Its Clients
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1033598320397980873,00.html
(Paid subscription required.)

Broker's Assistant Pleads Guilty in Stewart Case
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/03/business/03MART.html

Rosie Rips G+J, Plans to Sue
http://www.nypost.com/business/58735.htm

Copyedited by Jim Duffy (jimduffy86@yahoo.com).

Advertising: Erik Vanderkolk (erikvanderkolk@yahoo.com).

Editor and publisher: Jimmy Guterman (guterman@vineyard.com).

Media Unspun is produced by The Vineyard Group Inc.
Copyright 2002 Media Unspun, Inc., and The Vineyard Group, Inc.
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