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"That Was the Weekly That Was," (registration required) published yesterday in leftist daily The Guardian, was penned by former New York Press editor Jeff Koyen. While the bulk of Koyen's piece is a strongly worded rehash of the by-now-cliched mainstream media take on the subject, he did add a few original tidbits. For instance, Koyen claims that alt-weeklies "paved the way for day time television, foul-mouthed primetime sitcoms and -- last, but by no means least -- blogs." Daytime TV? Sitcoms? Gotta confess we haven't heard that one before. And then there's his take on prostitutes. According to Koyen, their "revenue is crucial" to the alt-weekly biz, but they're "abandoning these libertarian print outposts as word gets around that their johns are being busted." And I believe this is the first time a journalist has ever hinted darkly about AAN's intentions in amending its bylaws, or reported rumors of a New Times-Village Voice Media marriage based on "fresh reports of closed-door meetings and furrowed editorial brows." Most remarkable, however, is that in an article in which the Voice is often portrayed in a negative light, the Guardian failed to inform its readers that until last month Koyen was employed by the Voice's primary competitor. -- Richard Karpel