Hearst and NBCUniversal inked a deal to rebrand NBCU's former gaming cable channel G4 the Esquire channel, "a move expected to take place during the first half of 2013, according to sources," writes Lacey Rose. New programming will feature cooking, fashion and travel topics "to capture a growing, upscale demographic that isn't being reached through other male networks, including adrenaline-heavy Spike and History."

The 130-year-old Good Housekeeping's "major face-lift" begins with its January issue, with revamped logo (less emphasis on the word "Housekeeping," which research found "was a major turn-off for" potential younger readers), layout, graphics and edit content, with fewer parenting and more beauty stories, writes Emma Bazilian. The "concept of service" is redefined as the "'service of discovery,' which [editor in chief Rosemary] Ellis describes as 'a really useful piece of information that doubles as cocktail party information.' (Fun fact: Did you know that you can use chalk dust to keep silver utensils from tarnishing?)" (Um, does that sound …

Clear Channel, which owns 850 radio stations around the country, laid off about 3% of its regional staff members -- almost 600 positions, according to one estimate. However, "Clear Channel stations in New York were not affected," writes Claire Atkinson.

Ad inventory for the second annual live-streaming of the Super Bowl is almost sold out, with "only have a few packages remaining," David Morris, chief client officer of CBS Interactive, tells Brian Steinberg. "Ads will primarily come in the form of video commercials that appear during breaks in the game and 'companion' advertising that is placed around the CBSSports player during game time," writes Steinberg.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Thompson Reuters are both potential bidders to buy the Financial Times and a half interest in The Economist. Since both companies compete on sales of  "financial data-splicing computers that sit atop traders’ desks on Wall Street," either deal could mean that "one of the world’s most respected and distinctive financial newspapers could end up as a trophy to help sell more computer terminals," writes Amy Chozick and Michael Barbaro. Bloomberg is ambivalent, though -- and the paper so far is not for sale, though at least "one media banker with knowledge of the company …

With profit margins still running from 25% to 50%, TV stations have largely avoided setting up hyper-local news operations.  But, just as newspapers have needed to face the decline of their legacy businesses, the day of reckoning is coming for local TV broadcasters, according to this commentary by Matt Sokoloff of the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute.  Investing in staffing and content is part of the problem, but Sokoloff also points to the ad sales side: “most TV station sales reps couldn’t imagine living off the commission garnered from selling to hyperlocal advertisers.”

"Whole Living, the 10-times-a-year spiritual/lifestyle magazine owned by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia since August 2004, folded on Dec. 6," according to Steve Cohn.  Open Gate Capital had been in negotiations to buy the title, but decided against it because "the business was losing too much cash and need[ed] a lot more to operate as a going concern," according to CEO Andrew Nikou. The pub's final issue will be January/February 2013.

The Chicago Tribune has resumed using content from hyperlocal provider Journatic -- but only for such editorial as community listings, not for news coverage. Five months ago, the Tribune stopped using Journatic for its TribLocal suburban newspapers amid charges of plagiarism and other “ethical breaches.”  The listings and other “informational items” from Journatic will start appearing in 11 TribLocal editions over the next few weeks, with more editions to follow afterwards, writes reporter Robert Channick.  All bylined news stories, he notes, will come from Tribune staff reporters and freelance writers.  And even Journatic’s listings will be double-checked by independent copy …

The Wave, the weekly newspaper for the New York Rockaways, put out its first print edition last Friday, weeks after Superstorm Sandy shut down its offices. “Wave of Fire, Wall of Water,” was its headline.

This month Time Warner Cable, which has been testing usage-based billing for broadband customers since February in southern Texas, will roll it out to all states it serves, except for Hawaii. "Subscribers that choose the usage-based option and take an 'Essentials' version of its broadband service can download just 5 GB of data each month," writes Steve Donohue. "Customers who exceed 5 GB of data usage are charged $1 per GB that exceeds the allotment, with the overage fees capped at $25 each month."