MySpace made Ross Levinsohn in many ways. The acquisition of the social network a year and a half ago was a prescient move for News Corp., ultimately making Levinsohn’s Fox Interactive Media unit into a major Internet player. So, last night, after News Corp. sent out word that Ross’s cousin, Peter Levinsohn, would replace him (how bizarre is it that there’s a House of Levinsohn at News Corp.?), Ross took to his MySpace profile to announce his departure via a clip from A Few Good Men. Clues about the surprise departure abound: The clip is from the “Excuse me, I didn’t dismiss you” scene when Col. Jessup gets his comeuppance from a then-sane Tom Cruise. What’s more, Ross is piping in “Midnight Cowboy” from the Allman Brothers, a possible sign he’s caught the Web 2.0 fever to do his own thing, suggests Valleywag. The good news is, Ross has made friends: He’s up to 69, from 40 back in June.
—Posted by Brian Morrissey
