Wednesday morning headlines

Dow 12,000: The crossover came just a little before 7. Another milestone.

Oxy earnings: Despite the pullback in oil and gas prices this summer, L.A.-based Occidental Petroleum reported a 16 percent increase in third-quarter earnings, excluding one-time items. That beat analysts estimates by a penny (funny how that works).

Time Warner IPO: Interested in owning stock in your cable company? Time Warner Cable Inc. just filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The shares being offered are those of the late Adelphia Communications.

Real estate peaking: That's commercial real estate, which according to a new survey has reached the top of the cycle as an appreciating asset and returning to its normal role of an income-producing instrument. In other words, a little less buying and selling, and a little more holding and leasing. The study lists five U.S. cities as "global pathways" with bright futures for real-estate investment: New York, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Washington.

Dick Wolf unplugged: The former ad man turned "Law & Order" honcho is great fun to talk to because he'll almost always say what's on his mind. In a WSJ Q&A, he talks about TV advertising. A sampler:

The Wall Street Journal: We see producers trying to come up with ideas that will play well on mobile phones or the Web. Are these ventures worthwhile?

Mr. Wolf: I'm feeling that maybe I'm totally out of touch. I've been pitched Webisodes. I've been pitched everything. ... C'mon. Please, you think ringtones are going to be a major revenue stream for studios or networks? ... Unfortunately, the business model is irreparably broken, and people are going to have to figure out something new. ... I'm 59 years old. I don't think the world is going to come crashing down in five to six years, but I guarantee you, if anyone tells you what the television business is going to look like a decade out, they are on drugs.

WSJ: The CW recently unveiled two-minute-long themed ad breaks known as "Content Wraps." They're meant to be as entertaining as the programs they interrupt. As a producer, how would you feel if an advertiser ran something they hoped was as compelling as one of your programs during one of your programs?

Mr. Wolf: I'd love nothing better than to have people be watching interstitial moments in the show, so they didn't go channel surfing. In reality, I think it's an absolute pipe dream. Look, the bottom line is Americans don't like commercials. ... I don't think anybody wants to watch two-minute spots, but the wonderful thing about show business, television and advertising is nobody knows nothing. ... When I got into the advertising business, they still sold 60 [second commercials]. Then it went to 30s. ... The idea that people in their chairs want to watch something six times as long as that, I don't buy it.

Blue Cross paying: The big insurer agreed to settle more than 70 lawsuits and claims filed by patients who say their coverage was cancelled after they got sick. No doubt the company was shamed into settling - that, plus the prospect of regulatory scrutiny and courtroom showdowns, which would probably be very ugly.

Speaking of shameful: Surprise! Those affordable houses in Orange County aren't so affordable after all. A handful of prospective homeowners for low-cost homes being built on the former Marine Corps Air Station site in Tustin discovered that the homes were indeed priced at a fraction of the market price ($55,100 to $311,400). But then they discovered that the down payments were nearly 50 percent of the purchase price. Needless to say, a bunch of folks are steamed.

South Bay strong: Employment growth of 1.5 percent this year and 1.7 percent next year will outpace the rest of L.A. County, according to a forecast by the Office of Economic Research at Cal State Long Beach. A rebound in manufacturing, which covers a number of higher-paying defense and aerospace jobs, is behind the good numbers.

Wal-Mart CEO honored?: And, weirdly, Lee Scott is getting the recognition at a gala organized by movie producers and assorted media types - not a group you would associate with the Bentonville crowd. The event is being put on by movie producers Bob and Harvey Weinstein. Among the co-hosts are talk show star Charlie Rose, NBC Universal Chief Executive Bob Wright, MTV creator Robert Pittman and investment banker Steven Rattner.

Lacter on "Which Way L.A.": I was on Tuesday's show talking about the L.A. economy and our disappearing middle class - subjects covered in my piece in October's Los Angeles magazine. Columnist Harold Meyerson questioned whether the economy is as good as the numbers would indicate.