Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) had no choice but to ask HBO head Chris Albrecht to resign following his arrest over the weekend for domestic violence.

If the world's largest media company had done nothing to Albrecht, it would have sent the message that what he was accused of doing wasn't a big deal when clearly it was quite serious. This isn't like the celebrities who get busted for drunk driving. They could have theoretically hurt someone. He actually is accused of hurting his girlfriend.

To be sure, Albrecht is a gifted executive who helped bring classic shows such as "The Sopranos," "Sex in the City" and "Deadwood" to the pay TV channel. HBO will not be the same without him, particularly as it looks for its next hit after the end of "The Sopranos."

Albrecht ran a business that was very important for Time Warner's bottom line. He is close to both Chief Executive Richard Parsons and President Jeffrey Bewkes.

But media reports indicate that he's got a volatile temper.

"His resignation comes on the same day that the Los Angeles Times reported that in 1991, HBO paid a settlement of at least $400,000 to a subordinate of Mr. Albrecht's, who contended that he tried to choke her during a confrontation in her office," according to the New York Times, which also confirmed the report. The woman involved in the incident had directly reported to Albrecht.

Let's hope that Albrecht gets his life straightened out and that his girlfriend gets the support she needs.

The New York Post reports that plans to make AOL email addresses free for high-speed customers are only the tip of the iceberg; in fact, they say, the Time Warner board is considering much more radical moves. Carl Icahn wanted to spin off underperforming units? Well, then, why not give shareholders what they want?!?

The plan the Post discusses seems much less radical than any Icahn could truly get excited about: they say Time Warner has been talking to the biggie media and internet companies about partnerships, and if that doesn't work out, the board might consider spinning off 20% of AOL to shareholders.

What is 20% of AOL worth? And which 20% might be released into the wilds? This seems an odd proposal, I'd be interested to hear any scuttlebutt you Time Warner watchers have heard on this rumored deal. But even more interesting is the balance of power between Time Warner president Jeffrey Bewkes -- perhaps heir to the Time Warner throne -- and AOL CEO Jon Miller, who the Post says is "playing second fiddle" to Bewkes in the upcoming board meeting discussions about AOL. Will Miller be given the axe, the Post intimates slyly? I hardly even dare ask the question.

Jeffrey Bewkes, president of Time Warner, told his Sports Illustrated magazine division to go take a flying leap when they wanted to partner with AOL's sports channel to build a giant sports web site. Synergies, he told the Wall Street Journal, are bullshit.

As someone who made part of her career not just believing in synergies but putting solid numerical values to them and offering them up, like holy sacraments of PowerPoint, to the strategists at gigantic corporations: this is a hard pill to swallow. And though I see it not working more often than not, I also see so many areas -- yes, within Time Warner, where I work today -- where it does work. Heck, everyday I make my bucks on the back of the synergy.

But instead of calling them "synergies," now, Time Warner is calling them "adjacencies." Sumner Redstone split up Viacom and CBS because the "clout" he was supposed to get from his company's huge size "got us nowhere." Is the day of the synergy over and done with?