In Media Res: Anthony Weiner’s misfiring media strategy; getch yer Garden & Gun!

Weiner media: We'll begin this post by saying that if you haven't watched yesterday's awkward, evasive, cringey, and combative exchange between Anthony Weiner and two CNN reporters who were pressing the Democratic New York congressman to answer several simple questions about the Twitter crotch-shot controversy that's enveloped him, do so now. (Video here.) Then go and read Capital New York editor Josh Benson's incredulous and astute analysis of the ill-fated press conference.

"It is not possible that Weiner, who is actually incredibly skillful at dealing with the press, thought that these journalists would respond to his stated desire to move on by thanking him and duly moving on to questions about the national debt. Nor is it possible that he thought that going out there and yelling at them for asking him questions would put the matter to rest," Benson writes. "It is, however, possible that Weiner, who knows something about providing viral-video grist to liberals, hoped to incite a backlash against the stupid old MSM for badgering him about a dirty mystery-tweet when there are so many important issues to discuss." You can read the rest over at Capital New York.

And now the update: Weiner was ever-so-slightly slightly more forthcoming with MSNBC's Luke Russert about whether or not the boxer-brief-sheathed male anatomy depicted in a photo tweeted at one of his college-age, female followers, was his own. "You know, I can't say with certitude," said Weiner. "My system was hacked. Pictures can be manipulated. Pictures can be dropped in and inserted." (Weiner was about to sit-down for an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer at the time of this posting.) So, the plot thickens.

Schiller to NBC?: A few weeks after she was ousted from her perch as chief executive of NPR, Vivian Schiller announced that she was "not done" with her career in the press. "I certainly plan to stay in journalism," she told Susan King of the International Women's Media Foundation. "I feel passionate about it." If Peter Kafka's sources are correct, Schiller indeed hasn't wasted any time lining up her next gig, which will reportedly be at NBC News overseeing digital projects. "If she shows up at NBC, I wouldn't be shocked to see yelps from partisans who will argue that her hiring proves that the network is biased toward the left," Kafka writes.

Getting away with murder: On a more somber note, the Committee to Protect Journalists has released its latest Impunity Index, an annual report on "the world's most murderous countries for the press." Iraq, Somalia, and the Philippines remain at the top of the list, while Colombia and Russia have moved further down on the list--indicating progress in reducing reporter fatalities within their borders. "The findings of the 2011 Impunity Index lay bare the stark choices that governments face: Either address the issue of violence against journalists head-on or see murders continue and self-censorship spread," said Joel Simon, CPJ's executive director, in a statement. You can view the index here. In related news, as our sister blog The Envoy reports, Pakistan's intelligence services have denied any involvement in the death of a Pakistani investigative journalist found murdered this week.

Southern hospitality: If Garden & Gun's breakout win at the National Magazine Awards didn't make you want to buy a subscription, Amy Wicks' profile of the up-and-coming Southern lifestyle glossy will. "The Garden & Gun following is more like a Vanderbilt class reunion, where they are deeply connected to each other, the South and Southern traditions," she writes. "Even the name is connected to a more rarefied era: The magazine's moniker comes from the old Garden & Gun nightclub in Charleston, a Southern-style Studio 54, filled with mix of louche characters and the old line, drinking gin and tonics." Sign us up! More over at WWD.