Conventions | The San Diego Chargers are opposing the proposed $520 million expansion of the San Diego Convention Center -- viewed as crucial to keeping Comic-Con International in the city past 2015 -- saying it will interfere with plans for a new football stadium. Instead, the NFL franchise proposes building a second venue a few blocks away, which would be part of a complex that included the stadium but would not be contiguous with the existing convention center. [Los Angeles Times]

Conventions | Meanwhile, on the other coast, New York Comic Con is about to begin, and Luke Villapaz has seven tips for surviving the con. One additional point, though: While it's nice that NYCC has its own mobile app, chances of its actually working inside the Javits Center, which is notorious for its many cell phone dead zones, are slim. [International Business Times]

Libraries | The graphic novel collection at the Columbia University Library has expanded significantly under the stewardship of Karen Green, and their latest acquisition is a significant one: the works of MAD Magazine cartoonist Al Jaffee. [The New York Times]



Creators | DC Comics Co-Publisher Jim Lee talks about Villains Month, the Batman: Europa project he started when he was living in Italy, and how his study of psychology informs his work. [Hero Complex]

Creators | Antoinette Collins talks to Art Spiegelman, who is in Sydney, Australia, at the moment for the performance of the musical/visual event Wordless, which he created in collaboration with composer Phillip Johnston. [Lateline]

Creators | Ian Edginton talks discusses his new Vertigo series The Hinterkind and explains how it's different from Fables. [TFAW]

Creators | Hilda and the Midnight Giant creator Luke Pearson talks about the world of his books, where he gets his inspiration, and his relationship with publisher Nobrow Press. [Comicgate]

Libraries | Peter Tonguette pays a visit to the newly expanded Billy Ireland Cartoon Library. [Columbus Dispatch]

Reviews | Oyster War creator Ben Towle reviews three recent biographies of comics creators: Crockett Johnson and Ruth Kraus, Herge, and Al Capp. [Ben Towle]