FIRST CUTS: ‘Sense of drift’ at The Daily; Cooper dishes about daytime

Our list of stories that should be on your morning media menu:

• Guido Fawkes' smoking gun on Piers Morgan's alleged phone-hacking connection is not quite the smoking gun me made it out to be. (Forbes)

• Though Morgan does seem to have admitted that some Daily Mirror stories were based on phone hacking. (The Telegraph)

• With the spotlight aimed on News Corp.'s news outlets, why isn't anyone talking about iPad tabloid The Daily? Staffers "describe a sense of drift and uncertainty." (New York Observer)

• Here are the cable news ratings from President Obama's debt ceiling speech Monday night--Fox News finished on top. (TVNewser)

• Anderson Cooper dishes on his forthcoming daytime show. (Broadcasting & Cable)