(1) On Natalya Estemirova:

C.H. Chivers in the NYT: "Her executioners forced her into a car in front of her home in Chechnya and sped away with her on Wednesday morning. She managed to shout that she was being kidnapped, her last known words documenting the beginning of the crimes against her, just as she had documented crimes against uncountable others."

Katrina Vanden Heuvel, on the Nation's blog: "For journalists, Russia has become -- according to the International Union of Journalists -- one of the most dangerous countries to work in. More than thirty journalists have been murdered for their work or have died under suspicious circumstances since Boris Yeltsin came to power; the pattern continues under Vladimir Putin and Dmitrii Medvedev. In only one case have the killers been convicted."

(2) The Committee to Protect Journalists: This year, 19 journalists have been killed as a result of their work, with an additional 15 unconfirmed cases.

(3) How should freelance reporters obtain funding for a project written on spec? The NYT public editor looks at ProPublica and other nontraditional sources of support.

(4) Rules for would-be travel writers (page 2 of the Q&A): the gist is, if you ever want to write a feature for the NYT, do not ever accept freebies or discounts related to the locale in question.

(5) The Scene's annual "You Are So Nashville If..." issue is out, and of the three entries that made me laugh the hardest, two were potshots at our local daily: "You feel like Gail Kerr and Ms. Cheap are the last two contestants on Survivor: Tennessean" and "Your weekday daily newspaper doubles its thickness by virtue of being in a plastic bag" (both by Clifton Kaiser). (The third was Dan McNamara's "You drunkenly tried to order a chicken taco from an unfortunate tourist in a Winnebago" [Mas Tacos catered yesterday's shindig].) Seriously - the Monday editorial page now consists of two advertorials and a half-dozen letters, and it is sad. If only I was allowed, I'd read out every last blessed line item in the sports section instead. (On the bright side, the sports assignments have worked out nicely - the shift captain prefers baseball and hockey, which means I usually get the lead basketball or tennis article.)