WWE executive Stephanie McMahon recently interviewed by bodybuilding website RXMuscle.com and says she’s in the best shape of her life. Aside from her own hard work, Stephanie credits progress to the help of renowned strength and conditioning coach Joe DeFranco and nutritionist Dave Palumbo.

“Literally the day I came home from the hospital after having my second daughter I started on [Dave Palumbo’s] nutrition program. I gained 80lb with my first pregnancy and that was such a struggle to get the weight off. I gained another 60 pounds during the next pregnancy. I knew I had to work my butt off to get back in shape.”

 

“I can honestly tell you, at 36 years old and after having 3 kids, I’m in the best shape of my life. And the best part is that I keep getting stronger.”

Stephanie explains that gaining a lot of weight during her pregnancies, she’s no stranger to exercise:

“I’ve done all kinds of training in my life. I started working out when I was 12 years old learning from my dad and brother. I’ve done the typical bodybuilding split with Chest/Shoulders/Triceps on day 1, Back and Biceps on Day 2, and Legs on Day 3. But I was just doing too much and found myself overtraining. I’ve been working with Joe [DeFranco] for about 18 months. He comes out to the house and puts me through a fast paced functional workout. He likes to have me train in positions with different kinds of weight loads that keep me off balance, forcing me to really use my core.” McMahon said.

DeFrankco, who trains Stephanie twice a week and also works with Triple H, said this about Stephanie’s progress:

“Steph’s body has gone through a major transformation since we started training together. Old wrestling injuries, childhood dance, and being a mother of three created some negative adaptations in her body, which resulted in shoulder, hip, knee and ankle problems. Because of this, my top priority was to get her body functioning and feeling better. To accomplish this, I started training her like an athlete. The goal was to get her body working as a whole, as opposed to separate parts. The program I designed for Steph, coupled with her consistent hard work and attention to detail, have been a recipe for success. She can now train without limitations, while also being stronger and leaner!”

WWE Executive Stephanie McMahon recently took part in a photo shoot for RXMuscle.com.

– WWE.com has posted a video of Stephanie McMahon’s new theme song, titled “Welcome to the Queendom.” The song is also available on iTunes.

– Tommy Dreamer and Joey Styles were together this week working on the upcoming “ECW Unreleased: Volume 2” DVD/Blu-Ray, which will be released July 30th. Here’s a preview of what’s confirmed thus far:

• Taz vs. Tommy Dreamer (October 1993, first ever match in ECW)
• Sabu vs. Chris Jericho (August 1996, their only singles match)
• Cactus Jack vs. Terry Funk

– Ed Leslie (Brutus Beefcake) was interviewed by John Pollock of The Fight Network at WrestleCon last weekend. Leslie took exception to Donald Trump being inducted into WWE’s Hall of Fame before other wrestlers who are more deserving, but mentioned he is friends with Trump.

– WWE’s YouTube channel has posted the following video of the Top 10 WWE Debuts:

– Matches advertised for WWE’s upcoming tour of Europe include John Cena vs. CM Punk vs. Ryback and Kane vs. Big E Langston.

– Mark Henry is scheduled to begin a feud with Sheamus soon. The two were rumored to face each other at WrestleMania before the undercard matches were changed around in the weeks leading up to the show.

– Stephanie McMahon’s recent announcement that The Rock will grace the cover of the new WWE 2K14 video game reportedly angered a lot of people at 2K Sports. 2K executives were “freaking out” over Stephanie’s tweet, because they wanted to make a much bigger deal out of the WWE 2K14 cover art reveal. The Rock’s camp has been in talks with Take Two Interactive and have assured them he will be available this fall to help promote the game.

* News On BATISTA Returning To WWE This Year

(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

As part of WWE’s partnership with CharityBuzz.com to assist with Hurricane Sandy relief, WWE has added a new auction where fans can bid on the opportunity to pitch a WWE storyline to WWE’s Executive Vice President of Creative, Stephanie McMahon..

“Attention WWE fans! This is your chance to change the course of WWE history. This package allows one winner to pitch a WWE storyline to WWE’s Executive Vice President of Creative, Stephanie McMahon! As the mind behind the WWE storyline, this could be your one shot to leave your mark on Stephanie and the WWE universe!”

Bidding at CharityBuzz.com is currently upto $1,300. The auction ends Tuesday, April 9th at 8pm (EST).

2013 WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus spoke to TrishStratus.com this week and revealed why WWE executive Stephanie McMahon is inducting her:

“As the Hall of Fame is a nod to what one has accomplished in their career, my mind naturally went to Stephanie as there would have never been a Women’s Division to win seven championships and create lasting memories in, without her continuous support of the women in our company.”

Stephanie McMahon also spoke to to TrishStratus.com about her longtime friendship with Trish:

“We both started around the same time, we were both ‘green’ as you would say,” McMahon said. “Trish went on to become an incredible Diva in the ring… but we had the opportunity to start in a similar place. To be able to tell the story that we told was quite an amazing opportunity at a really entertaining, attitudinal time in our business.”

WWE executive Stephanie McMahon tweeted the following on Tuesday, revealing her stance on the issue of gay marriage rights:

“Editorial Board: Supreme Court must strike down #Prop8 and #DOMA http://t.co/TxtXt7rYFp” People should be free to marry who they love.

— Stephanie McMahon (@StephMcMahon) March 26, 2013

– Stephanie McMahon might wind up in her husband Triple H’s corner for his No Holds Barred match against Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 29. Stephanie would be there to even the odds (with Heyman in Lesnar’s corner), so it appears there could be more to the recent video of her boxing and saying she’s “coming to get” Paul Heyman.

• VIDEO: Stephanie McMahon’s Boxing Training

– With less than two weeks to go until WrestleMania 29, there’s been talk that the build to CM Punk vs. Undertaker will include CM Punk trying to end the Undertaker’s streak by pushing the Undertaker into getting himself disqualified. Punk has already stated on WWE television that the Streak does not have to end in a pinfall or submission.

– WWE officials have discussed turning Booker T heel after he’s inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

(Partial Source: f4wonline.com)

Stephanie McMahon tweeted the following video on Thursday showing off her boxing skills –

AM workout w PT/boxing coach @JeffVitale. Watch out @HeymanHustle! http://t.co/pI0qL5XdAi

— Stephanie McMahon (@StephMcMahon) March 21, 2013

John Cena to Headline SXSW 2013 Panel This Saturday

STAMFORD, Conn. — WWE and Echo, the first and largest real-time web platform provider, announced that they will share the strategies behind WWE’s award-winning digital programs at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference this Saturday, March 9.

The panel will feature a candid discussion with John Cena, the third most followed U.S. athlete on Facebook and Twitter with more than 17 million fans combined, and provide insight into how the 10-time WWE Champion utilizes social media to extend WWE’s brand and connect with fans.

The panel will explore how WWE is leveraging creative, media, technology and talent to become one of the most widely respected and successful brands in social TV.

With more than six hours of domestic weekly programming, 300 Live Events each year and broadcasts in more than 145 countries, WWE is in a unique position to unite the web, mobile, television and live audience experiences under an integrated digital strategy, with the goal of building the ultimate interactive experience for fans.

Last year, WWE launched an unprecedented second-screen experience, WWE Active, on its WWE flagship app, which has been downloaded more than 4.6 million times since its debut. (MORE ON WWE ACTIVE)

PANELISTS
John Cena, WWE Superstar and 10-time WWE Champion
Stephanie McMahon, EVP, Creative, WWE
Perkins Miller, EVP, Digital Media, WWE

MODERATOR
Khris Loux, CEO, Echo (about Echo)

For more information, visit SXSW.com.

– The expected Ryback vs. Mark Henry match at WrestleMania 29 is being presented to give Ryback a big win against a tough opponent. While talk of a Ryback heel turn has died down in recent weeks, WWE is determined to build him back up after several high-profile PPV losses and his failure to capture the WWE Championship from CM Punk.

– There is some speculation in WWE that management has already lost interest with the Fandago character.

– Stephanie McMahon tweeted the following quote from her father Vince:

"You can't be traditional in a non traditional world" – Vince McMahon in a meeting yesterday re: embracing digital culture in business

— Stephanie McMahon (@StephMcMahon) March 8, 2013

(Partial Source: f4wonline.com)

– The Rock noted on Twitter that he has finished filming his TNT show “The Hero” in Panama.

Speaking of the WWE Champion, several entertainment news sites are reporting that his big “Hercules” movie will now open on July 25th, 2014, two weeks earlier than the original release date.

– Devin Cutting sent along word that the WWE Smackdown taping on May 21st will be held in Omaha, Nebraska at the Century Link Center. Tickets go on sale March 9th.

– Stephanie McMahon has joined Twitter and can be followed @StephMcMahon. Triple H tweeted on Wednesday afternoon:

Hey, I badgered my wife into doing this nerdfest as well. Follow her at @StephMcMahon!

— Triple H (@TripleH) February 27, 2013

Stephanie re-tweeted that message and responded:

@TripleH Thanks Honey, I needed another responsibility!

— Stephanie McMahon (@StephMcMahon) February 27, 2013

– Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson touted the ratings success of Raw since becoming WWE Champion at Royal Rumble.

He tweeted Wednesday, “People’s Era – highest #RAW ratings in over a year. @WWE Universe’s powerful voice. #WeBringIt.”

Last week’s post-Royal Rumble show drew a 3.68 cable rating and averaged 5.02 million viewers over the course of three hours. Not including the heavily promoted 1,000th episode of Raw, the numbers are the show’s highest marks since the night after WrestleMania XXVII in 2011. This week’s show also drew high viewership with a 3.56 cable rating and 4.81 million viewers.

– Prior to Raw Monday in Atlanta, Georgia, WWE held a ‘be a STAR’ anti-bullying rally at Hope-Hill Elementary School. Stephanie McMahon, Kofi Kingston, Layla and Hornswoggle appeared. WWE has released footage from the event.

– The longest-running WWE Champion of all-time, Bruno Sammartino, who was announced on Monday as the latest inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame, is today’s featured Superstar on WWE.com.

AdAge.com has named WWE executive Stephanie McMahon on their annual ’40 Under 40′ list, profiling “innovative, young marketing leaders who have made their mark in the client, agency and media realms — all before their 40th birthdays.”

Stephanie, 36, says as a little girl, her father Vince would have her sit in on WWE creative meetings. She was “pretending to be not listening, but I was. It’s just really what I’ve always wanted to do.”

The article notes that she made the call a few years ago to merge the RAW and SmackDown creative teams. “We are all telling the same stories. And digital and social offer the ability to continue storylines 24/7 so our fans can consume the content anytime, anywhere on the device they prefer.”

As for why she’s no longer a fixture on WWE television, she admitted, “it just got to be too much” once she began having children.

Stephanie is one of the most influential people behind the scenes in WWE and her influence will continue to grow if WWE follows through with the planned WWE Network.

MichelleMcCool.Net has released more highlights from their recent interview with former WWE diva Michelle McCool, wife of the Undertaker.

H.B.I.C.: “I think she is one of the most powerful women in wrestling, to this day, is Stephanie McMahon — and I don’t mean what y’all think I mean. On TV, she is just one of the most powerful characters. From playing ‘The Queen Bitch,’ to the ‘Billion Dollar Princess,’ to even coming out not too long ago to give it to Paul Heyman.”

Boss Lady: “She’s awesome in every possible way. From mic work to bumping — I remember her taking the DDT off the top ropes from Randy Orton, oh, my gosh! From her facials to everything… she is just great, and she’s great to work for. She’s a great boss: creative, always wants you to do your best, always there to offer advice — honest advice, which is sometimes rare to find. She shoots from the hip, which I just love. Why beat around the bush? She’s also very hands-on when she’s at the shows. Can’t say enough positive things about Steph.”

The Real Legacy: “Of course, she’s so powerful. And if you’re a true fan of the business, obviously you know the legacy is there. She can be intimidating, not intentionally by any means, but I was intimidated because of the amount of respect I had for her and for her family.”

Pulled Aside: “I do remember during one pre-tape, it was with a few of the girls, and I remember her saying: ‘Michelle, come into the bathroom real quick, I need to tell you something.’ I’m thinking: ‘Oh, no. She doesn’t wanna embarrass me about how horrible I am in front of other people — which is nice, but she’s still about to tell me gosh knows what. So we go in there and she’s like: ‘I think you need to shave your armpits.’ I raise them up, and I’m like: ‘No, I shave my armpits every day!’ So when I raise them up, I’ve got black fuzz from my sweatshirt, but she was calling me in there to tell me. Stuff like that, she’s just funny.”

The Future Unfolds: “She can give good direction and really help your character grow. I don’t know if there are many people that I enjoy watching on TV than her. You can hate her on TV but absolutely love her backstage. I think she’s and such a strong woman… and that’s the type of person that I look up to, the type of person that I admire. I think as long as she’s there behind-the-scenes, the business will continue to do nothing but grow. I love her as a person, and I am very, extremely, fortunate to call her a friend.”

– WWE executive Stephanie McMahon has been recognized as one of the “Most Powerful Women in Cable” by CableFAX magazine for a third time. A breakfast for the 2012 honorees will be held Dec. 5, 2012 at the Grand Hyatt in New York City. The complete list of honorees is available here.

Stephanie is responsible for all the creative development of WWE as it pertains to television and pay-per-view programming, print, digital and social media content.

– As reported this week, Lex Luger will be releasing his autobiography on April 2, 2013, Wrestling with the Devil: The True Story of a World Champion Professional Wrestler – His Reign, Ruin, and Redemption. The cover of the 272-page book has been revealed.

– Celebrating birthdays Thursday are Dutch Mantell (63), Hayabusa (44), Minoru Tanaka (40) and HENTAI (35).

The content listing for WWE’s “The Attitude Era” three-disc DVD and two-disc Blu-Ray scheduled for release on Nov. 20 has been released.

The synopsis for the title reads: “In the late-90s, WWE was struggling for ratings survival while a cultural shift in the viewing audience’s taste was occurring. “Saying your prayers and taking your vitamins” had lost its luster amongst the rebellious masses who preferred “flipping the bird” and “laying the smackdown”… Enter Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Triple H and Mankind and the notorious crop of edge and fearless Superstars who ushered in The Attitude Era. Now in this 3DVD set fans can own all the infamous moments from this controversial and revolutionary era that redefined sports entertainment for an entire generation. Over 8-hours of envelope-pushing content includes all the agression, antics and innuendos that proved to be the perfect cocktail for an explosion of popularity.”

Here is the listing, courtesy of WWEDVDNews.com.

DISC 1

Documentary:

The Birth of Attitude

Entrance Music

D-Generation X

Austin vs. McMahon

Long-Arching Stories

Innovations

New Demographic

Critics

Expansion

Comedy

Wealth of Talent

The World Was Watching

Watershed Period
Jim Ross interviews Goldust & Marlena
Raw – Nov 3, 1997

Steve Austin Throws the InterContinental Championship Off A Bridge
Raw – Dec 15, 1997

Soldier of Love
Raw – May 4, 1998

Mr McMahon Presents Mankind with the WWE Hardcore Championship
Raw – Nov 2, 1998

Jim Ross Interviews Triple H
Sunday Night Heat – July 25, 1999

An Evening At The Friendly Tap
SmackDown! – Jan 20, 2000

Mae Young and the Acolyte Protection Agency
SmackDown! – Jan 27, 2000

“The Jug Band”
Judgment Day 2000

Triple H Trains Trish Stratus
SmackDown! – July 27, 2000

Edges Totally Awesome Birthday
Raw – Oct 30, 2000

The Rocks Message to His Hell in a Cell Opponents
Raw – Dec 4, 2000

GTV

DISC 2

Mike Tyson Joins DX
Raw – Mar 2, 1998

A New Beginning For D-Generation X
Raw – March 30, 1998

Sable vs. “Marvelous” Marc Mero
Raw – May 11, 1998

Nation of Degeneration
Raw – July 6, 1998

Brawl for All Match
Bart Gunn vs. “Dr Death” Steve Williams
Raw – July 27, 1998

Four Corners Match for the WWE Tag Team Championship
The Undertaker & Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Kane & Mankind vs. The New Age Outlaws vs. The Rock & Owen Hart
Raw – Aug 10, 1998

Lions Den Match
Ken Shamrock vs. Owen Hart
SummerSlam 1998

Finals of WWE Championship Tournament
The Rock vs. Mankind
Survivor Series 1998

The Rock & The Undertaker vs. Mankind & Stone Cold Steve Austin
Raw – Dec 7, 1998

Austin Gives The Corporation A Beer Bath
Raw – March 22, 1999

The Undertaker vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin
Raw – June 28, 1999

The Debut of Y2J
Raw – Aug 9, 1999

DISC 3

Content still to be confirmed.

Special Features

(Expected Best Buy Exclusive)

GTV – Al Snow & Head

Mae Young Gives Birth
Raw – Feb 28, 2000

WWE Womens Championship Match
Lita vs. Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley
Raw – June 12, 2000

The Dudley Boyz vs. The Hardy Boyz
Raw – July 17, 2000

BLU-RAY EXCLUSIVES

King of Kings Match
Ken Shamrock vs. Triple H vs. Owen Hart
Raw – June 29, 1998

The Oddities w/ Insane Clown Posse vs. The Headbangers
Raw – Sept 28, 1998

The Truth About Sammy
Raw – Jan 18, 1999

The Unholy Union of Stephanie McMahon & The Undertaker
Raw – April 26, 1999

The Rock vs. Val Venis
SmackDown – Oct 7, 1999

Survivor Series Elimination Match
Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Kane & Shane McMahon vs. Triple H, X-Pac & The New Age Outlaws
SmackDown – Nov 4, 1999

WWE Hardcore Championship Match
Al Snow vs. Crash Holly
SmackDown – June 29, 2000

The Hardy Boyz & Lita vs. Perry Saturn, Eddie Guerrero & Dean Malenko
SmackDown – Nov 30, 2000

Chris Jericho & The Dudley Boyz vs. Kurt Angle, Edge & Christian
Raw – Dec 25, 2000

– WWE Executive Vice President of Creative Stephanie McMahon was a special guest speaker Wednesday at the The SportsBusiness Journal’s 2012 Covington & Burling Sports Media & Technology Conference in Times Square in New York City and was asked whether she has plans to follow in her mother’s footsteps and run for office. She simply replied “No.”

McMahon addressed the status of the WWE Network during the conference, noting, “Right now we’re looking at a pay subscription model, not unlike HBO.” She also singled out as Ryback as the WWE Superstar to “watch out for.”

– Tuesday’s SuperSmackDown LIVE broadcast on Syfy averaged 2.202 million viewers over the course of two hours, according to TVByTheNumbers.Zap2It.com. This is significantly down from WWE’s last advertised as live SmackDown broadcast in July, which drew approximately 3.2 million viewers. The figure is also down from last Friday’s taped broadcast, which drew 2.878 million viewers.

The final rating is expected to be released later today.

– Ted DiBiase, who turns 30-years-old today, tweeted, “Thanks everyone for the Birthday Wishes!! Hope to see everyone here in Europe with us at WrestleMania 29!! Tickets on sale Saturday!! Get’m.”

– Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has secured the lead role for Hercules, reports Deadline.com.

Production on the film is scheduled to begin in “early 2013,” which could coincide with Johnson’s involvement with WWE in the weeks leading up to WrestleMania 29.

The Brett Ratner-directed action film will be co-produced by Paramount and MGM. The screenplay is based on Radical Studios’ graphic novel Hercules: The Thracian Wars.

– WWE Executive Vice President of Creative Stephanie McMahon was a special guest speaker at the The SportsBusiness Journal’s 2012 Covington & Burling Sports Media & Technology Conference in Times Square in New York City. Click here to see WWE.com’s photos of the event.

– AXS.com is currently holding a pre-sale for the Dec. 28 SmackDown live event in Minneapolis at the Target Center with the passcode Sheamus. Sheamus vs. Big Show and Randy Orton vs. Alberto Del Rio are advertised as the main events.

– Stephanie McMahon speaks in Spanish in a newly released Linda McMahon for U.S. Senate campaign ad geared towards Latino voters in Connecticut. Stephanie says her mother understands the hardships many Connecticut families are facing since they faced similar hardships years ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xs_ecZge_Iw

– A new episode of The Legends of Wrestling premieres this Thursday on WWE Classics On Demand with Jim Ross, Pat Patterson, Michael Hayes and ‘The Road Dogg’ Brian James joining host Gene Okerlund for a no-holds-barred discussion and a special look at “The History Of Monday Night Raw.”

– WWE will hold a live event in Stockton, California on Saturday, January 19, 2013 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets go on sale Friday, November 23, 2012.

– Tamara Sytch, famously known as Sunny, was today granted her request from Tuesday in New Haven Superior Court that she be admitted to a treatment center in Pennsylvania. WWE, which offers rehabilitation assistance to all former contracted talent, will provide transportation from court to the treatment center and cover all associated expenses.

She wrote on Facebook today hours after her request was granted in court, “HEY GUYS! IM OFF TO REHAB FOR 3 MONTHS! NOT BECAUSE IM DRINKING AGAIN OR HIT ROCK BOTTOM, BUT TO GET MYSELF TO THE PLACE I NEED AND WANT TO BE. MY ATTY, ROB SERAFINOWICZ, WILL BE UPDATING YOU PERIODICALLY TO KEEP YOU APRISED. I AM WELL AND HAPPY! LOOKING FORWARD TO A NEW CHAPTER IN MY LIFE! SOMEDAY ILL FIND HAPPINESS IN A RELATIONSHIP AGAIN….THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT! ESPECIALLY THANKS TO THE WWE! LOVE YOU!”

On Oct. 9, Sytch was arrested for the fifth time in one month and her second time in less than 24-hours, for allegedly violating a protective order stemming from an original September arrest.

– Speaking to WWE Magazine, AJ Lee was asked what’s the best piece of advice she was given in regards to becoming General Manager of Raw. She reveals it came from another powerful woman.

“I think it’s to realize that I’m the boss—and Stephanie McMahon actually told me that. She said, “You’re in charge now, and no on can take that from you. You have to believe in that, within yourself, or no one else will,” said Lee. “For her to say drink it up, you’re in charge, and everybody has to deal with that—well, it really means a lot coming from Stephanie because I look up to her in so many ways.”

Video of AJ Lee in TNA ->

– Promoting THQ’s WWE ’13 in New York City two weeks ago, AJ Lee couldn’t contain her excitement about being featured as a playable character in the game.

“Oh my gosh, it’s so surreal, I can’t even wrap my brain around this,” she told ESPN.com minutes after playing as herself for the first time. “This is over 10 years in the making for me and just a dream come true. I’m the luckiest person in the world.”

For her first match, Lee opted to face Stephanie McMahon.

“They asked me who I wanted to fight, and I’m so obsessed with Stephanie I knew I wanted to face her,” Lee said. “I love her, but for some reason I also want to fight her, so it was so amazing to see what it would look like if we were in the ring together.”

Lee also offered an assessment of her digital character in the interview.

– Chris Jericho tweeted Tuesday, “Just hosted a 10 hr min-series for @VH1Classic Details and air times coming soon! Now it’s back to LA for…u guessed it…more filming!”

– World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus appears at Colonial Honda in North Dartmouth, Massachusetts on Tuesday, October 23 at noon.

Aside from the creative team shakeup that took place at Monday’s RAW, there have been several WWE corporate employees who have left the company recently:

– Nicole Dorazio left after working in talent relations for over a decade. She had been the assistant to both Jim Ross and John Laurinaitis when they were in charge of talent relations. No word yet on why she’s no longer with WWE.

– Ann Russo-Gordan, previously in charge of WWE’s Wellness and rehab programs, resigned due to burnout and health issues.

– WWE live event head Raphael Morffi has been let go. He had been promoting WWE’s live events in the Northeast. Longtime WWE employee John Porco is now filling that role. Porco was close with Shane McMahon back when Shane was still with WWE and has a strong reputation.

Triple H and Stephanie McMahon are working on bringing in new executives that have experience with major sports organizations.

* Picture of SUNNY In Court From Yesterday – YIKES!

(Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)

The meeting that Vince McMahon called backstage at RAW on Monday afternoon and the major creative team shake-up that took place were reportedly a result of McMahon finally putting his foot down over RAW’s bad ratings and creative direction.

According to f4wonline.com, Vince McMahon had been stressed out for weeks and something happened on his flight to the west coast over the weekend that led him to finally take action. As previously reported, a top WWE superstar also had a major blow-up with Vince regarding the real “State of WWE” and what needs to be done to get WWE back on track.

Brian Gewirtz, previously WWE’s Senior Vice President of Creative, has been demoted to a consultant role and his days in WWE could be numbered. Even before Monday’s demotion, he was recently assigned to WWE’s “home team” of writers, which works on television scripts from WWE headquarters in Stamford, CT. Gewirtz was only showing up to WWE HQ 3-4 days a week, which got him a lot of heat from co-workers.

It’s worth noting that Brian Gewirtz is the person who writes The Rock’s material, so that’s one of the reasons he’s been kept on board as a consultant.

Dave Kapoor, formerly known as Ranjin Singh on WWE TV, will be taking over al ot of Gewirtz’s duties. Ed Koskey still handles a lot of the writing on SmackDown (as does Michael Hayes) and writer Eric Pankowski also has a lot of influence over WWE’s creative direction.

With all the finger pointing going on, a lot of the blame is being directed at Stephanie McMahon. A source told F4wonline.com:

“The reality is Brian isn’t the real issue or even a band-aid. Stephanie has run this dysfunctionally toxic division for the entire duration of its ratings decline. Her horrendous structure from the committee dynamic to who she fast-tracks and how rigidly the shows are structured are why this product isn’t gangbusters. Plus, three hours is a [disaster].”

– After weeks of watching Johnny Curtis and Yoshi Tatsu battle it out to become the first Foreign Exchange international correspondent, Santino Marella makes his decision on this week’s webisode. (Watch)

– USA Today has published an article on Tout, an online social networking service and microblogging service WWE has invested in. Traffic to the website has exponentially grown in recent months, and is now being used by various non-WWE celebrities such as Shaquille O’Neal, Kelly Ripa, Jeff Probst and United States Presidential nominee Mitt Romney.

Stephanie McMahon, who serves as a member of the company’s Board of Directors, touted the application.

“Video expression is the next evolution from text,” said McMahon. “TV producers are so engaged because you can put the Touts anywhere and really drive traffic to our channels.”