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The New York Times is drawing “a clear line” against the practice of news sources being allowed to approve quotations in stories after the fact. The practice, known as quote approval, “puts so much control over the content of journalism in the wrong place,” the executive editor Jill Abramson said. “We need a tighter policy.”

A memorandum says that “demands for after-the-fact quote approval by sources and their press aides have gone too far.” “The practice risks giving readers a mistaken impression that we are ceding too much control over a story to our sources,” it says. “In its most extreme form, it invites meddling by press aides and others that goes far beyond the traditional negotiations between reporter and source over the terms of an interview.” It includes this firm directive: “So starting now, we want to draw a clear line on this. Citing Times policy, reporters should say no if a source demands, as a condition of an interview, that quotes be submitted afterward to the source or a press aide to review, approve or edit.” Abramson said that she never wants to put obstacles to news-gathering in front of reporters but that “anodyne or generic quotes that are scrubbed or changed don’t add anything” to stories.

Under rising pressure from Wall Street to show it can make money, Facebook will soon begin charging businesses to target users with special offers and deals. Facebook Offers is a program that lets businesses target their Facebook fans with deals. It launched earlier this year as a free service. But in coming weeks, Facebook will begin requiring businesses to create an ad to promote their special deal to fans and friends of fans in their News Feeds. The total cost of the paid ad will depend on how large a fan base the business has.

James Murdoch is being lined up to take direct responsibility for News Corp’s US television businesses, even as his record in the UK was attacked by media regulator Ofcom. The Financial Times has learned that News Corp is preparing to expand Murdoch’s role to include responsibility of the Fox Networks Group. Under the role being discussed between News Corp and Murdoch, Peter Rice, the Los Angeles-based head of News Corp’s Fox Networks Group, will report directly to Murdoch, currently the deputy chief operating officer at the company. Fox Networks includes the national Fox network, as well as cable channels such as FX and National Geographic. It does not include News Corp’s Fox News Channel.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) established a division to mitigate cyber threats on the electric grid, but noted it still lacks many of the enforcement capabilities it needs from Congress. The office will let FERC set best practices and communicate with private-sector firms about cyber vulnerabilities through “existing statutory authority,” the regulator said. Joseph McClelland will leave his post as director of electric reliability to head the new division. While FERC Chairman Jon Wellinghoff said forming the new Office of Energy Infrastructure Security is unrelated to developments on Capitol Hill and in the White House, he has consistently lobbied Congress to give a federal agency more enforcement and monitoring power on the electric grid.