News Corp.'s (NYSE: NWS) Fox News channel received praise from an unlikely source: former CNN anchor Aaron Brown.

In an interview with TV Newser, Brown described Fox as "very disciplined, ratings-directed news organization, or whatever they are" and CNN as "an organization that is trying to figure out if it can be all things to all people."

Though Brown is bitter about his departure from the Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) network, he does have a point. Fox didn't only win the cable ratings war because of politics. It hired better broadcasters and put out more memorable shows. Roger Ailes figured out early that people tune into cable expecting opinions and that's what Fox gave them.

CNN has fought back though, adding blowhards such as Glenn Beck and Nancy Grace, CNN Headline News does decently in the ratings. Lou Dobbs' crusade against illegal immigration also has resonated with the public, which is kind of scary. It's also scored its share of scoops including Larry King's Paris Hilton interview. (Yeah she's horrible, but people are interested).

If people connected with the Virginia Tech tragedy are annoyed with the media now, they are going to be furious in the coming months and years.

Now that the family of Virginia Tech killer Seung-Hui Cho has issued a public apology, the media circus around the worst mass murder in U.S. history will kick into high gear as print and television reporters, talk show hosts, lawyers and Hollywood agents descend upon anyone even remotely connected to the shootings.

Though reputable news organizations don't pay for stories, Walt Disney Co.'s (NYSE: DIS) ABC, CBS Corp.'s (NYSE: CBS) namesake network and General Electric Co.'s (NYSE: GE) NBC will make people's 15 minutes of fame as comfortable as possible. If they want to meet the star of their favorite TV show, I'm sure that can be arranged.

In addition, there are cable channels including Time Warner Inc.'s (NYSE: TWX) CNN, News Corp.'s (NYSE: NWS) Fox News and MSNBC along with countless newspapers, magazines, Web sites and local television news broadcasts looking for a fresh angle to tell the story.

Here's how I think the media picture will play out.

First will come, the tearful interview with either the whole Cho family or his sister Sun-Kyung with Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric or Oprah Winfrey. I give Oprah the edge in landing this one because she's Oprah.

Then, will come Seung-Hui Cho biographies as 60 Minutes, Dateline and Primetime Live, find anyone who came in contact with the mass murderer. Dateline is the underdog here given the outrage over the airing of Cho's video confessions by NBC News. Also, keep a look out for multi-part series from the major newspapers.

Instant paperback books about the tragedy with lurid titles should arrive in the next month or two. More serious true crime and non-fiction missives will follow. It will be interesting to see if the Cho family cooperates with any of these projects or finds a ghost writer to tell their story. Is John Grisham busy?

Of course, we can't forget about Hollywood. Sleazy, made-for television movies should hit the networks next year to predictable outrage. In two or three years, more serious films will arrive in theaters. It will be interesting to see who sells their story for what price.

Finally, this all will be replayed on the first, fifth, 10th, 15th and 20th anniversaries of the killings as the media rehashes the tragedy all over again.

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and watch out for more Battle of the Brands posts.

The battle between CNN and Fox News isn't a question of liberals and conservatives. That debate was settled long ago and the conservatives won.

News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) makes a ton of money from Fox News, which continues to dominate. Its ratings have rebounded after slipping last year. CNN parent Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) launched Headline Prime in 2005 as a Fox without Bill O'Reilly, complete with rabid right-wing talk show hosts like Glenn Beck.

One night for fun, I decided to compare O'Reilly and Beck. Boy was I lucky. I picked a night to DVR their shows when both hosts were at the the top of their games.

On his program, Beck railed against all sorts of people bent on destroying the America, including filmmaker Michael Moore, anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan, comedian Rosie O'Donnell, and pop star Elton John.

Elton John? Rocket Man? I was shocked too.

Apparently, Sir Elton is the "high priest of hypocrisy," according to Beck. The singer had a 60th birthday party at St. John the Divine, a big church in New York. Seems John, who has little use for religion, made some changes to the church building for the concert, including removing the pews. To make matters worse, John showed a background of a burning church at his show the next day at Madison Square Garden. Oh yeah, that was on a Sunday.

All of this was too much for the talk show host to take.

"If he wants to drop a few million to desecrate your church than who am I to judge, right? Wrong!" he said of the pop star.