Friday, October 31, 2008
LA Times cuts more staff
More Media Layoffs: LA Times Will Cut 10% of Its News Staff Because of 'Economic Downturn,' Says Editor
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Aaron's blog for the class's 1st assignment
My blog is in progress as of this date, but since I am presenting its progress tonight, I thought I would link it on the class blog.
Don't Blame the Journalism
Paul Farhi has an interesting article in regards to the decline of newspapers.
He gives some good information and I think his grim future falls into what we have talked about. http://www.ajr.org/article.asp?id=4623
He gives some good information and I think his grim future falls into what we have talked about. http://www.ajr.org/article.asp?id=4623
The State of Journalism, Present and Future
There's an interesting column by David Carr in today's New York Times that recaps a lot of what we have discussed in class recently:
The Online Journalism Review has a three-part series about the state of independent local online news. Part two focuses on MinnPost, but mentions yours truly and the Twin Cities Daily Planet.
"It’s been an especially rotten few days for people who type on deadline. On Tuesday, The Christian Science Monitor announced that, after a century, it would cease publishing a weekday paper. Time Inc., the Olympian home of Time magazine, Fortune, People and Sports Illustrated, announced that it was cutting 600 jobs and reorganizing its staff. And Gannett, the largest newspaper publisher in the country, compounded the grimness by announcing it was laying off 10 percent of its work force — up to 3,000 people.
Clearly, the sky is falling. The question now is how many people will be left to cover it."The Online Journalism Review has a three-part series about the state of independent local online news. Part two focuses on MinnPost, but mentions yours truly and the Twin Cities Daily Planet.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
10/29 Assignment- Delicious
(Sorry this is late. I was out of town. I had time to post comments to other stories before I got to this.)
del.icio.us is a social networking tool that lets me access my bookmarks from any computer and to share bookmarks that I think may be interesting to others. I can use it as a resource for my own research, and I can share those bookmarks with others of a like mind. For example, as I look for information for this class I have been posting the bookmarks to my Delicious page. I can make that page available to anyone. I can share or not share bookmarks. Each bookmark can be tagged with multiple terms which are searchable (like the tags on this blog entry) so I and others can quickly find items of relevance to our work. Perhaps most usefully, I can create a network of people who also have Delicious accounts where we could be very specific about the bookmarks we want to pass around among ourselves. Here is one of many descriptions of Delicious' uses in Journalism.
It took me awhile to get used to this but I've found it to be pretty useful now that I'm getting the hang of it.
del.icio.us is a social networking tool that lets me access my bookmarks from any computer and to share bookmarks that I think may be interesting to others. I can use it as a resource for my own research, and I can share those bookmarks with others of a like mind. For example, as I look for information for this class I have been posting the bookmarks to my Delicious page. I can make that page available to anyone. I can share or not share bookmarks. Each bookmark can be tagged with multiple terms which are searchable (like the tags on this blog entry) so I and others can quickly find items of relevance to our work. Perhaps most usefully, I can create a network of people who also have Delicious accounts where we could be very specific about the bookmarks we want to pass around among ourselves. Here is one of many descriptions of Delicious' uses in Journalism.
It took me awhile to get used to this but I've found it to be pretty useful now that I'm getting the hang of it.
Monday, October 27, 2008
The New York Times Company's Catherine Mathis at U of M to discuss changing face of media
MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL ( 10/21/2008 ) -- Catherine Mathis, senior vice president of corporate communications for the New York Times Company, will speak at the Carlson School of Management's First Tuesday Luncheon at 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 4, at the University of Minnesota's McNamara Alumni Center, 200 Oak St. S.E., Minneapolis.
In her speech, "The Times...We are a Changin'," Mathis will talk about the role the media plays in a democracy, how technology is affecting the media business in ways no one ever imagined and how one media company is transforming itself during a time of seismic change.
more info....
In her speech, "The Times...We are a Changin'," Mathis will talk about the role the media plays in a democracy, how technology is affecting the media business in ways no one ever imagined and how one media company is transforming itself during a time of seismic change.
more info....
assignment 10- 29
the Washington Post has a very decent blog set up. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/26/AR2008102601762_2.html?hpid=opinionsbox1&sid=ST2008102700771&s_pos= is an op ed on the Florida election and what it will do to the American political landscape. what follows is the comment section. where the people discuss how the pre voting is a sign of Deomcrat organization/ strategy that will predict the outcome in November. how does this enable people? well it is an outlet for their beliefs. being involved and sharing ideas allows for the people to influence opinion. what is more is that it is opinion on an opinion. it hands the topic over to participants, who then share their experience's with others. in turn the posts are viewed and rated by other bloggers. the reaction of the bloggers is to fact check and rate the post. the involvement is left to your own accord. allowing people to read an article and then post about the topic is entrenched in the model of citizen journalism. sowhy is it helpful? it allows any participants the ability to share. more than that it facilitates the canvassing for information. when the person sees a post they want more information on, they go and research. disagreement can be put aside with facts and data. it becomes more than people spouting opinion and more about getting the story correct. the comments are not profane or offensive but more thought provoking. p://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/26/AR2008102601762_Comments.html
anything that allows and supports people to express themsleves on given topics is an enabler for active participation. the blogs have opened the floodgates for many people who desired to influence or even explain their situation to a larger whole.
anything that allows and supports people to express themsleves on given topics is an enabler for active participation. the blogs have opened the floodgates for many people who desired to influence or even explain their situation to a larger whole.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Welcome to the Blogosphere
As we learned in class last week, bloggers can make a difference in what news we see in mainstream media. The example of Trent Lott offending most of humanity, was a story kept in the public eye by bloggers until mainstream media could no longer ignore it. People who saw his remarks, either first hand on in original mainstream reports, and kept posting stories on various blogs. Eventaully mainstream media returned to the story, and the whole affair culminated with the resignation of Senator Lott.
One blog, The Daily Kos( http://dailykos.com/ )is an example of how many people can post stories on many topics in one place. Kos has strong readership, and many contributors. This marks a changes from traditional journalism in that anyone can write a blog, and publish most anything. In the past, non-journalists were limited to letters to the editor and the occasional freelance piece.
As I said, anyone can blog, but there does need to be some interest in what they are saying. If they are interesting, and or credible, other blogs will pick them up, and the will be shared with more people, via links and reposts. What is written is not driven by the bottom line, but by what bloggers are seeing as a need. As blogs like Kos builds readers and credibility, more people are turning from traditional media to the blogosphere.
31 essential online tools for journalists
Here's a list of what Reportr.net considers to be 31 essential online tools for journalists...
may help in our discussion this week of the options (or opportunities) available to participate in some form of citizen journalism.
may help in our discussion this week of the options (or opportunities) available to participate in some form of citizen journalism.
When in the process of contributing is it considered journalism?
The Reportr.net Aug. 7, 2008, story "Is citizen media creating a journalism of participation?" suggests that "journalism may be moving away from an expert-driven information system to a journalism of participation."
With that as a backdrop, my contribution to this exercise is that a non-traditional approach may be as simple as commenting on a story on the web site of the news service--be it print or broadcast by design. That's participation.
The question then, as posed in the referenced article, is that by commenting on a story, citizens are coming in at the end of the journalism process. So, that begs the question, is posting a comment at the end of a story on the Star-Tribune citizen journalism? Is an individual's comments, however well thought-out or explained, a journalistic product? If not, what then constitutes a journalistic product? Is it limited to original reporting? Or, does contributing to original reporting by adding another perspective, as in the form of a comment, another form or original reporting? What if the comment adds new information from observation that was not otherwise known? Is that citizen journalism?
I think we have to be careful when we talk about what constitutes participation by a citizen to fulfill one's role as a member of society. Does a citizen that practices passive participation by being well-read and an active role by exercising their right to vote fufill their role as a good citizen. I think so. Your thoughts?
With that as a backdrop, my contribution to this exercise is that a non-traditional approach may be as simple as commenting on a story on the web site of the news service--be it print or broadcast by design. That's participation.
The question then, as posed in the referenced article, is that by commenting on a story, citizens are coming in at the end of the journalism process. So, that begs the question, is posting a comment at the end of a story on the Star-Tribune citizen journalism? Is an individual's comments, however well thought-out or explained, a journalistic product? If not, what then constitutes a journalistic product? Is it limited to original reporting? Or, does contributing to original reporting by adding another perspective, as in the form of a comment, another form or original reporting? What if the comment adds new information from observation that was not otherwise known? Is that citizen journalism?
I think we have to be careful when we talk about what constitutes participation by a citizen to fulfill one's role as a member of society. Does a citizen that practices passive participation by being well-read and an active role by exercising their right to vote fufill their role as a good citizen. I think so. Your thoughts?
Behold the beauty that is XHTML
Okay, so this seems more than a little obvious, but to me the most basic element is the most important - html and xhtml code.
It's the code that has built the internet, literally and figuratively. It's so easy to use that one need not be a programmer to use it effectively. In addition there are so many affordable or even free interfaces that anyone can design and build a website. It's a great equalizer - it doesn't take a lot of money to have a web presence.
For me as a photojournalist it's very important for me to have a website. Partially for advertising, partly as a way to easily have subjects find me (if someone wants a photo I've taken of them at an event it's easier for them to contact me than for me to contact them - I just hand them my business card rather than take down their contact info and risk missing a shot or losing the paper), and simply to get my work out there.
As a citizen I love that I can read the online versions of newspapers from around the country and the world. Even more, I love that if a story is getting a lot of attention I can go to the source. Take the Michele Bachmann story from last weekend as an example. I don't have cable tv. Normally I would only be able to see the clip that made the news. That leaves me at the mercy of the editors to ensure context. (Granted, not a big issue in this example.) I find it so incredible that I can go to the internet and find the entire broadcast, see it in its context, and make up own my mind.
Another example of original sourcing is links to similar or previous stories on the topic. It makes it so easy to get to the first/original story. A cool thing the Guardian does is show when and how a story has changed since it's original posting. (Although this may be a consequence of the UK data practices and libel laws.) For example, take a look at this article on the McCain Robocalls, click on the "article history" link under the by-line. Not a lot of changes in this example, but I like having the history available to me. (Go figure, when I go looking for a story with lots of updates I can't find one!)
Note: I thought I added the links last night, but it didn't work. I actually had to go into the HTML code to make it work!
It's the code that has built the internet, literally and figuratively. It's so easy to use that one need not be a programmer to use it effectively. In addition there are so many affordable or even free interfaces that anyone can design and build a website. It's a great equalizer - it doesn't take a lot of money to have a web presence.
For me as a photojournalist it's very important for me to have a website. Partially for advertising, partly as a way to easily have subjects find me (if someone wants a photo I've taken of them at an event it's easier for them to contact me than for me to contact them - I just hand them my business card rather than take down their contact info and risk missing a shot or losing the paper), and simply to get my work out there.
As a citizen I love that I can read the online versions of newspapers from around the country and the world. Even more, I love that if a story is getting a lot of attention I can go to the source. Take the Michele Bachmann story from last weekend as an example. I don't have cable tv. Normally I would only be able to see the clip that made the news. That leaves me at the mercy of the editors to ensure context. (Granted, not a big issue in this example.) I find it so incredible that I can go to the internet and find the entire broadcast, see it in its context, and make up own my mind.
Another example of original sourcing is links to similar or previous stories on the topic. It makes it so easy to get to the first/original story. A cool thing the Guardian does is show when and how a story has changed since it's original posting. (Although this may be a consequence of the UK data practices and libel laws.) For example, take a look at this article on the McCain Robocalls, click on the "article history" link under the by-line. Not a lot of changes in this example, but I like having the history available to me. (Go figure, when I go looking for a story with lots of updates I can't find one!)
Note: I thought I added the links last night, but it didn't work. I actually had to go into the HTML code to make it work!
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Let's Go YouTubing
YouTube is the first thing that comes to mind when I think about everyday folks participating in politics and journalism in technology-enabled ways. With a video camera (which often come in the form of cell phones) and an Internet connection, anyone can capture news and share with it with the world.
When George Allen used the word “macaca” to address S.R. Sidarth, a volunteer for Jim Webb’s campaign, during a campaign stop during the 2006 Virginia Senate race, a video of the incident was published on YouTube within days. The video provided undeniable truth about the incident and helped give the story legs that it otherwise might not have had, perhaps because Allen's comments were offensive in several ways, and watching the entire video makes clear that his intent is mean-spirited.) On one version of video, there have been dozens of comments left in the last week alone, which leads me to think it is still causing waves.
YouTube also allows people to express their political views in ways that they themselves find meaningful. There are countless homemade music videos created to honor and disparage candidates. Search for your favorite candidate plus the word “music” to find something that fits your taste. Simple searches will also produce videos of random soliquies and pitches for nearly anyone running for office.
And, of course, if I can find something that resonates with my political views on YouTube, I can post it to my Facebook page (or nearly any other social networking site) with the click of a button. Which makes it incredibly easy for a non-YouTuber to utilize the technology as well.
When George Allen used the word “macaca” to address S.R. Sidarth, a volunteer for Jim Webb’s campaign, during a campaign stop during the 2006 Virginia Senate race, a video of the incident was published on YouTube within days. The video provided undeniable truth about the incident and helped give the story legs that it otherwise might not have had, perhaps because Allen's comments were offensive in several ways, and watching the entire video makes clear that his intent is mean-spirited.) On one version of video, there have been dozens of comments left in the last week alone, which leads me to think it is still causing waves.
YouTube also allows people to express their political views in ways that they themselves find meaningful. There are countless homemade music videos created to honor and disparage candidates. Search for your favorite candidate plus the word “music” to find something that fits your taste. Simple searches will also produce videos of random soliquies and pitches for nearly anyone running for office.
And, of course, if I can find something that resonates with my political views on YouTube, I can post it to my Facebook page (or nearly any other social networking site) with the click of a button. Which makes it incredibly easy for a non-YouTuber to utilize the technology as well.
Luddite in action
The assignment for this week was a bit perplexing since I use none of the online services mentioned. I do however use eBay for selling which made me think about political participation as a sales effort, which is non traditional in my estimation. My guess is that the people who produce the goods for sale on eBay often, not always, share the views expressed on that which they are selling, i.e. t-shirts, buttons, etc. There are of course those who just see the opportunity of making money. The buyers are participating in politics since they are most likely buying that which supports their political beliefs.
I have included some example links to listings on eBay. These were chosen from an ebay all catagory search for "Barrack Obama." For those who want to vote Obama and be green, there is the Obama tote bag. For those who don't support Obama more than they support McCain, there is the NoBama T-shirt. If Politics has become absurd, then there are those who can aid you in that regard as well with the creatively Photoshopped Obama-Palin Dancing Duo. There was another listing which was selling a Calvin and Hobbs type character excreting liquid on McCain's last name where the word "Chevy" or "Ford" would usually reside. The most supportive example for the assignment's goal is the listing for the Barack Obama/Martin Luther King t-shirt ad which includes a short typed statement: "IT'S NOT ABOUT RACE PEOPLE ITS ABOUT CHANGE, IT'S ABOUT MAKING A BETTER LIFE FOR OUR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, ABOUT BEING ABLE TO LIVE MORE COMFORTABLE THAN WE HAVE THE LAST 8 YRS!!!!!!!. " I have linked the quote for attribution. It just shows that while the marketing and profiting from the sales of a t-shirt is happening, there is still a political agenda, and the communication of a message by the individuals who provide, create and sell these objects. This is unique to the eBay experience since it is a marketplace of individuals and companies participating in the selling of these items. It allows a more free expression of political ideology than one could express as the employee of or buyer for a large retailer whose bottom line could be compromised.
There of course are many other examples, but I am not really interested in aiding the marketing for these people. I just thought its an interesting area of capitalistic democracy fusing with personal political action. This is not an endorsement of eBay--only a commentary.
I have included some example links to listings on eBay. These were chosen from an ebay all catagory search for "Barrack Obama." For those who want to vote Obama and be green, there is the Obama tote bag. For those who don't support Obama more than they support McCain, there is the NoBama T-shirt. If Politics has become absurd, then there are those who can aid you in that regard as well with the creatively Photoshopped Obama-Palin Dancing Duo. There was another listing which was selling a Calvin and Hobbs type character excreting liquid on McCain's last name where the word "Chevy" or "Ford" would usually reside. The most supportive example for the assignment's goal is the listing for the Barack Obama/Martin Luther King t-shirt ad which includes a short typed statement: "IT'S NOT ABOUT RACE PEOPLE ITS ABOUT CHANGE, IT'S ABOUT MAKING A BETTER LIFE FOR OUR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, ABOUT BEING ABLE TO LIVE MORE COMFORTABLE THAN WE HAVE THE LAST 8 YRS!!!!!!!. " I have linked the quote for attribution. It just shows that while the marketing and profiting from the sales of a t-shirt is happening, there is still a political agenda, and the communication of a message by the individuals who provide, create and sell these objects. This is unique to the eBay experience since it is a marketplace of individuals and companies participating in the selling of these items. It allows a more free expression of political ideology than one could express as the employee of or buyer for a large retailer whose bottom line could be compromised.
There of course are many other examples, but I am not really interested in aiding the marketing for these people. I just thought its an interesting area of capitalistic democracy fusing with personal political action. This is not an endorsement of eBay--only a commentary.
I think that Facebook is a relevant Web site for many people that provides unique ways for people to participate in politics.
On Facebook you can indicate your support for a candidate and have that information posted on your profile page. It will also notify your Facebook "friends" of this support and offer the opportunity to join in.
For example, you can join a group supporting Barack Obama called 'That one 2008' or buy a McCain button on the site as well. As a marketing too, it's great.
In addition, Facebook can allow for dialog on the issues and spread information. I think that it can be a much more effective means of communication for the 20something generation than many traditional news sources.
Because my Facebook site is password protected - only visible my my approved network of Facebook friends, I can't link to the specific examples. Here is the 'About' Facebook link.
On Facebook you can indicate your support for a candidate and have that information posted on your profile page. It will also notify your Facebook "friends" of this support and offer the opportunity to join in.
For example, you can join a group supporting Barack Obama called 'That one 2008' or buy a McCain button on the site as well. As a marketing too, it's great.
In addition, Facebook can allow for dialog on the issues and spread information. I think that it can be a much more effective means of communication for the 20something generation than many traditional news sources.
Because my Facebook site is password protected - only visible my my approved network of Facebook friends, I can't link to the specific examples. Here is the 'About' Facebook link.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Twitter.
Because, I don't talk about Twitter enough...
What is twitter, watch this video.
Since I found out that WCCO had a twitter, I have been following them. Yes, all 'tweets' give a link to the website, but it alerts you to stories that have just or recently been published allowing one to keep up on all the latest WCCO stories. Along with that, Jason DeRusha has a twitter account http://twitter.com/DeRushaJ and he often asks question about stories he is doing. Here are a couple of his 'tweets' from this week:
Anyone know how much yard signs actually cost campaigns? I'm doing a Good Question on political yard signs tonight. I'm on a CBS conference call about our blogs. Anyone have any features they'd like added? I want video comments a la seesmic Today's Good Question: Why do people text instead of call? E-mail me a video, or DM me if you want to answer on camera.
While his stories are not about the hard news pieces, he is reaching out to his followers for help or advice. In my opinion it helps work as another form of tip line since people can instantly say something and it can be picked up on by a news professional. The article.
http://onlinejournalismblog.com/2008/01/18/why-journalists-should-use-twitter/, discusses how citizen journalist can use twitter too. Users were polling voters after the Iowa caucuses to see who they voted for and then twittered out the results, or had others twitter directly to one source who aggregated all the results. For citizen journalists, twitter can also act as another source to inform others that they have a blog and can quickly send out links of their stories drawing traffic back to their site and eventually gaining a following.
What is twitter, watch this video.
Since I found out that WCCO had a twitter, I have been following them. Yes, all 'tweets' give a link to the website, but it alerts you to stories that have just or recently been published allowing one to keep up on all the latest WCCO stories. Along with that, Jason DeRusha has a twitter account http://twitter.com/DeRushaJ and he often asks question about stories he is doing. Here are a couple of his 'tweets' from this week:
Anyone know how much yard signs actually cost campaigns? I'm doing a Good Question on political yard signs tonight. I'm on a CBS conference call about our blogs. Anyone have any features they'd like added? I want video comments a la seesmic Today's Good Question: Why do people text instead of call? E-mail me a video, or DM me if you want to answer on camera.
While his stories are not about the hard news pieces, he is reaching out to his followers for help or advice. In my opinion it helps work as another form of tip line since people can instantly say something and it can be picked up on by a news professional. The article.
http://onlinejournalismblog.com/2008/01/18/why-journalists-should-use-twitter/, discusses how citizen journalist can use twitter too. Users were polling voters after the Iowa caucuses to see who they voted for and then twittered out the results, or had others twitter directly to one source who aggregated all the results. For citizen journalists, twitter can also act as another source to inform others that they have a blog and can quickly send out links of their stories drawing traffic back to their site and eventually gaining a following.
Class Assignment for 10/29
Your assignment for next Wednesday is to:
1) Post a new blog with an example of a website (e.g., TalkingPointsMemo), or a utility (e.g. Twitter, Facebook) or a technology (e.g., the smartphone), and describe in at least a couple of paragraphs (more if you wish), how it enables citizens to participate in journalism and/or politics in non-traditional ways. Include a link to the relevant website, and a link to at least one example of the participation you describe.
You may use the examples given in this assignment, but you may not use an example that has already been posted by another student – so the sooner you post, the easier this assignment will be. Please try to complete this part of the assignment by Monday morning.
2) Return to the blog after Monday morning, read through all of the new entries that have been posted, and post a comment on at least one of your classmate’s entries – you can give additional examples, or context, or link to other sources that provide additional information, or even disagree with the author.
3) Come to class prepared to explain and discuss your examples. We will want to explore the technological, economic, social and political implications of these media – both in terms of how those factors have shaped them, and in terms of their impact on society.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
@ WebbyConnect: Will The NYT Go The Way Of The Dinosaurs? Sulzberger Responds
I started to post this article on this blog but Blogger was down so I put it on mine.
How convenient.
How convenient.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
The Strange Disappearance of Civic America, by Robert Putnam
Is online in a number of places, like here.
Future of Journalism Event: 11/17
http://www.mjc.umn.edu/events.htm
The First Amendment, Freedom of the Press and the Future of Journalism”
Monday, November 17, 2008
7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Coffman Union Theater
Free and open to the public
The First Amendment, Freedom of the Press and the Future of Journalism”
Monday, November 17, 2008
7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Coffman Union Theater
Free and open to the public
The National Press Club is hosting a nationwide series of discussions on the state of journalism in an era of media transition from a print, broadcast, online and academic perspective. National Press Club treasurer, Bloomberg News reporter and SJMC M.A. alum Alan Bjerga will moderate the discussion as panelists present their own opinions and engage in a lively exchange of ideas.
Panelists include Star Tribune Editor Nancy Barnes, Pioneer Press Editor Thom Fladung, MinnPost Publisher Joel Kramer and the U of M Institute for New Media Studies Director Nora Paul. Additional information can be found at http://www.press.org/npc100/forumindex.cfm
Philanthropic Journalism?
We have talked in class about how many of the nation’s finest journalism outlets were launched by wealthy citizens who hoped to serve the common good, improve their standing in the community, and make a few extra bucks along the way. It seems we have built some consensus around the idea that one problem facing media outlets today is that they are run by publicly-held corporations that make cuts to newsroom resources in an effort to keep shareholders happy. So, while many newspapers and news broadcasts produce sizable profits, those profits are no longer growing, and therefore they no longer represent sound investments.
Last week, Mark Cuban, the billionaire media mogul and owner of the Dallas Mavericks, launched BailoutSleuth.com, which he introduced on his own blog maverick by saying, “Its job is simple, keep an eye on our taxpayer dollars and call Bullsh*t when necessary.” (my censorship, for your sensitive eyes).
According to Sharesleuth.com, Bailoutsleuth’s “companion site,” they are “seeking a reporter who can write daily dispatches and produce longer investigative stories” and “looking to hire a financial analyst who can evaluate the deals and help make sense of them for a general audience.”
By my count that is two salaries that Mr. Cuban will pay with almost no hope of making a profit from the site. There appear to be no ads on Sharesleuth or Bailoutsleuth and the info is freely available to anyone with an Internet connection. To hear him describe the site’s purpose on Planet Money’s October 21 podcast, it sounds like he sees this venture as a public service.
Clearly, Cuban has some personal interest in having an inside track on the full extent of the financial crisis, but he is under no obligation to publish what he learns.
Can a reversion to the private ownership, love-me-because-I-bring-you-the-news model save journalism?
Last week, Mark Cuban, the billionaire media mogul and owner of the Dallas Mavericks, launched BailoutSleuth.com, which he introduced on his own blog maverick by saying, “Its job is simple, keep an eye on our taxpayer dollars and call Bullsh*t when necessary.” (my censorship, for your sensitive eyes).
According to Sharesleuth.com, Bailoutsleuth’s “companion site,” they are “seeking a reporter who can write daily dispatches and produce longer investigative stories” and “looking to hire a financial analyst who can evaluate the deals and help make sense of them for a general audience.”
By my count that is two salaries that Mr. Cuban will pay with almost no hope of making a profit from the site. There appear to be no ads on Sharesleuth or Bailoutsleuth and the info is freely available to anyone with an Internet connection. To hear him describe the site’s purpose on Planet Money’s October 21 podcast, it sounds like he sees this venture as a public service.
Clearly, Cuban has some personal interest in having an inside track on the full extent of the financial crisis, but he is under no obligation to publish what he learns.
Can a reversion to the private ownership, love-me-because-I-bring-you-the-news model save journalism?
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Abandoning the AP
I was reading an article on Ad Age about Media companies cutting back in order to make it through the tough times ahead. They are projecting the slow times to continue into 2009 and therefore are taking action now. The article focuses on media outlets such as Viacom and NBC Universal and not as much on news outlets, but it did have this quote:
"Newspapers have been slashing costs almost frantically for some time now, for reasons more to do with the demise of their local monopolies and the decline of their core product. Now, however, some newspapers are dropping their membership in the Associated Press to eliminate the associated costs. That idea gained real momentum last Thursday, when Sam Zell's Tribune Co., publisher of papers including the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, said it is abandoning the AP."
We've talked a lot in class about local reporters being taken off local stories in favor of national ones. What happens when you cut out the national news source. Is it more cost effective to send someone to the news when it is out of state then to use the AP? On the flip side, we've talked about newspapers like the Star Tribune that have become too reliant on the AP. I don't know if there is a winning side to this, but in my opinion (as someone who works with and for the media companies and not the news organizations) it doesn't seem right to cut off a major news source to save money.
"Newspapers have been slashing costs almost frantically for some time now, for reasons more to do with the demise of their local monopolies and the decline of their core product. Now, however, some newspapers are dropping their membership in the Associated Press to eliminate the associated costs. That idea gained real momentum last Thursday, when Sam Zell's Tribune Co., publisher of papers including the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, said it is abandoning the AP."
We've talked a lot in class about local reporters being taken off local stories in favor of national ones. What happens when you cut out the national news source. Is it more cost effective to send someone to the news when it is out of state then to use the AP? On the flip side, we've talked about newspapers like the Star Tribune that have become too reliant on the AP. I don't know if there is a winning side to this, but in my opinion (as someone who works with and for the media companies and not the news organizations) it doesn't seem right to cut off a major news source to save money.
Journalism Professor Sorts News From Opinion
Sounds like Judy Muller from Annenberg in CA has been taking our class and has been taking good notes. We're obviously on the cutting edge and in a pretty good position to clear up all these bothersome questions about what is Journalism and the future of News- Lets do it! Judy Muller says be inspired to be part of the factual crowd. (4:44)
Monday, October 20, 2008
the media, the news, and democracy
hey gang,
here is that article I had in class last week.
http://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/892080-1.html
perhaps it will be helpful to the assignment.
here is that article I had in class last week.
http://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/892080-1.html
perhaps it will be helpful to the assignment.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Robo Journalism
Politico had two articles (very short) which are possibly the most non-journalism I have ever seen. Just the dry facts written in the most uninteresting way one could imagine. This obviously was an attempt to remain ultra-neutral, but the articles could have been written by a computer abstracting program. One was sbout the Palin appearance on the Saturday Night Live skit from last night, the other was about Robo Calls and Coleman's disdain for them, and negative attack ads. Coleman has obviously forgotten that he has taken negative attack ads to the heights of sleaziness over the last several months, but that wasn't even mentioned--possibly selective omission is the new commentary? The Palin skit was well done and very funny but one certainly couldn't get any idea of that from Martin's writing. There was not even a hint of any sort of human reaction in this two article demonstration of non-writing/non journalism. If this kind of writing becomes status quo on the blogs, they will probably become the next dinosaurs along with the newspapers. Bring back the edge, or at least make it sound as though a human wrote the article--even if androids are at the keyboard. There has to be an algorithm somewhere that could do this task.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Strib highlights campus non-profits struggling outside metro
Per our discussion about non-profits struggling for donors in a bleak economy, the Star Tribune followed up with a story today highlighting campus foundations outside of the metro. Check it out: Non-profit story.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
How the Global Financial Crisis has affected the Minneapolis Star Tribune
Finding articles that delineate the effects of the current global financial crisis on daily newspapers are tough to find. I did, however, find an article that shows concrete examples of the how the current economic conditions have caused difficulties for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. The Star Tribune has not paid it quarterly payment of 9 million dollars on its debt of 432 million, and had already missed a payment on a smaller debt of 96 million.
See the article at this link: http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2008/09/29/daily18.html?surround=lfn&brthrs=1
Avista, parent company of the Star Tribune, clearly did not have the cash on hand to make the debt payments. Also, due to a tight credit market, they were probably unable to acquire a short term loan to cover the payments when they were due. This kind of situation is untenable for any business. It can result in operations cutbacks, layoffs, bankruptcy, lack of investment into the operation, and eventually, closing down. These are not only potential issues, they have already begun for many newspapers, and are being accelerated by the global financial crisis.
WCCO TV news policy on use of non-station video
Last week Kathy posted a concern about video that WCCO ran as a kicker on their Oct. 9 newscast. It was video of the Tina Turner concert at the Target Center. Kathy asked if they shouldn't have disclosed the source for the video since, in her opinion, it wasn't shot by a station photojournalist.
Kathy was right. It wasn't shot by a station photojournalist. Here's what happened—They sent a photojournalist to the concert to get video (and sound). They understood that, as they are able to at most concerts, that they would be allowed to record their own material for a few minutes. Instead, when he got there he was told to plug into the concert's AV system. Apparently he neither mentioned that to the newscast producer nor provided the name and source of the video and sound. It is WCCO's policy to label clearly any video provided by a non-news source--that is, not one of their photojournalists or news feeds they pay for.
A special thanks to Scott Libin, WCCO's news director, for his candor in sharing what happened to The Future of News class. In addition to providing information on what happened, Mr. Libin sends his thanks for calling it to their attend in hopes that it will help them avoid it happening again.
Kathy was right. It wasn't shot by a station photojournalist. Here's what happened—They sent a photojournalist to the concert to get video (and sound). They understood that, as they are able to at most concerts, that they would be allowed to record their own material for a few minutes. Instead, when he got there he was told to plug into the concert's AV system. Apparently he neither mentioned that to the newscast producer nor provided the name and source of the video and sound. It is WCCO's policy to label clearly any video provided by a non-news source--that is, not one of their photojournalists or news feeds they pay for.
A special thanks to Scott Libin, WCCO's news director, for his candor in sharing what happened to The Future of News class. In addition to providing information on what happened, Mr. Libin sends his thanks for calling it to their attend in hopes that it will help them avoid it happening again.
Thank goodness for the revenue TV news generates
Though we're on the roller coaster ride of our lifetime when it comes to the economy, TV news can be thankful for the percentage of revenue it generates for the local markets. As Don Shelby told us last Wednesday day during our visit to WCCO, news generates about 50% of revenue for the station.
That little fact supports what Television Week is reporting Oct. 6, 2008, in their article, "TV Stations Weigh Risk to Economy-How Bad Will it Get in Local Markets?" Even in their article, they acknowledge that stations, in general, will make cuts but most will not make cuts in news. It's no wonder if each of their news departments generates the kind of revenue that Shelby touted for 'CCO.
It is true that local TV news stations are making cuts. But many are the result of technology and emerging industry trends. Reporters are being asked to do when it comes to reporting and less when it comes to those items that lack production value--that don't result in what we see on the newscasts. For example, anchors are responsible for doing their own make-up before they go on the air. Last reports I heard, only KARE brings in someone and then it's only during sweeps. Even that will change as the change is made to people meters.
Bottom line. Local TV news WILL surive!
That little fact supports what Television Week is reporting Oct. 6, 2008, in their article, "TV Stations Weigh Risk to Economy-How Bad Will it Get in Local Markets?" Even in their article, they acknowledge that stations, in general, will make cuts but most will not make cuts in news. It's no wonder if each of their news departments generates the kind of revenue that Shelby touted for 'CCO.
It is true that local TV news stations are making cuts. But many are the result of technology and emerging industry trends. Reporters are being asked to do when it comes to reporting and less when it comes to those items that lack production value--that don't result in what we see on the newscasts. For example, anchors are responsible for doing their own make-up before they go on the air. Last reports I heard, only KARE brings in someone and then it's only during sweeps. Even that will change as the change is made to people meters.
Bottom line. Local TV news WILL surive!
Comedic Relief
In times of depression/recession, people want an outlet to laugh. Concerned citizens will keep up with the news, but when all news sources share the same grim news, its nice to have an a comedic outlet to keep spirits up. The best of both worlds is comedic news. Granted, Colbert Report is not providing all of the news one needs in order to be completely informed, but it provides more than NBC's must see TV line up. The NY Post article states that during times of recession viewers looks to TV as an outlet and an option for escapism. They want to relate to TV characters that give them hope. Colbert is not exactly a fictionalized character, but a persona that gives viewers some perspective on what is happening in the world. As Don Shelby mentioned last week, people look to TV to be entertained, and during an times of crisis, we look to comedies to fill that need.
During this political time frame, political comedies have seen a major increase in ratings. The NY Times article shows that shows like Saturday Night Live, Daily Show and Colbert Report have all hard record ratings hits. Daily Show and Colbert's ratings are beginning to rival that of the broadcast shows. With rating spikes, shows are able to command a higher rate for advertisers, thus allowing for more revenue to come in. Similar to the Daily Show, Colbert has a relatively low production value as they don't actually travel anywhere. During the RNC, they didn't even travel to Minneapolis like all of the other news shows, and the show only features Steven, so there is even less on screen talent fees. I think the content on Colbert will only get "wackier" as this economic crisis continues, partly to lighten the mood and partly because some of the news is so unbelievable that he can only take it to a farther extreme.
During this political time frame, political comedies have seen a major increase in ratings. The NY Times article shows that shows like Saturday Night Live, Daily Show and Colbert Report have all hard record ratings hits. Daily Show and Colbert's ratings are beginning to rival that of the broadcast shows. With rating spikes, shows are able to command a higher rate for advertisers, thus allowing for more revenue to come in. Similar to the Daily Show, Colbert has a relatively low production value as they don't actually travel anywhere. During the RNC, they didn't even travel to Minneapolis like all of the other news shows, and the show only features Steven, so there is even less on screen talent fees. I think the content on Colbert will only get "wackier" as this economic crisis continues, partly to lighten the mood and partly because some of the news is so unbelievable that he can only take it to a farther extreme.
10/15 assignment
The financial crisis has affected all areas of life. So naturally you would think that news agencies would scale back in their reporting staff. However, the BBC shows no intention of cutting back on their reporting. In fact they have taken it upon themselves to launch campaigns in remote regions of India, Africa, the Middle East. the goal is to "strive to ensure that the poorest and most remote communities have a voice in a world that is becoming increasingly connected" says BBC's director of the world service trust Stephen King. it is through creativity that the world service trust has been able to reach rural communities. Although time will tell, the organization will continue its outreach to allow people the chance to be informed.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/trust/aboutus/annualreview/2008/09/080924_annual_review_08.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/trust/aboutus/annualreview/2008/09/080924_annual_review_08.shtml
Monday, October 13, 2008
That's right - I said the Sunday Styles section
There is an article in the Sunday Styles section of the New York Times about urban hipsters who have become obsessed with up-to-the-minute news about the financial crisis, and to a lesser extent its potential impact on the election. In Overfeeding on Information, Alex Williams reminds us that during the post-9/11 news frenzy Google Reader, YouTube and Twitter did not exist to provide the non-stop stream of information currently available.
“Financial markets swing hundreds of points within an hour; poll numbers shift. This means that news these days has an unbelievably short shelf life, news addicts said. If you haven’t checked the headlines in the last half-hour, the world may already have changed.”
If this article is any indication of the increased demand among the general public for accurate and timely news, then there should be some money to make in the news game during this crisis. I would even argue that the more traditional news outlets will fare better in the short-term, as I imagine people revert to those sources for baseline information. (This is assuming that the news outlets are financially stable enough to stay afloat.)
As for The Daily Show...
In an article about the impact margin calls have had on the price of some stocks the Times reported Monday that “Sumner M. Redstone, the chairman of Viacom and CBS, disclosed that he would sell $400 million in shares in those companies to pay down a loan.” However, I imagine that as long as Viacom has a cable through which to broadcast, they will keep Jon Stewart on television. The return on investment for The Daily Show has to be quite high -- they do very little original reporting and fake every remote shot. And, as the need for comic relief increases I predict the show (and others like it) will see ratings increase as a result of the crisis.
“Financial markets swing hundreds of points within an hour; poll numbers shift. This means that news these days has an unbelievably short shelf life, news addicts said. If you haven’t checked the headlines in the last half-hour, the world may already have changed.”
If this article is any indication of the increased demand among the general public for accurate and timely news, then there should be some money to make in the news game during this crisis. I would even argue that the more traditional news outlets will fare better in the short-term, as I imagine people revert to those sources for baseline information. (This is assuming that the news outlets are financially stable enough to stay afloat.)
As for The Daily Show...
In an article about the impact margin calls have had on the price of some stocks the Times reported Monday that “Sumner M. Redstone, the chairman of Viacom and CBS, disclosed that he would sell $400 million in shares in those companies to pay down a loan.” However, I imagine that as long as Viacom has a cable through which to broadcast, they will keep Jon Stewart on television. The return on investment for The Daily Show has to be quite high -- they do very little original reporting and fake every remote shot. And, as the need for comic relief increases I predict the show (and others like it) will see ratings increase as a result of the crisis.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Global Financial Smackdown and the News
I used to subscribe to The Economist a long while ago, but then let it lapse--I have since renewed after reading this article which says some things that make sense over other media outlets' news blur.
I think the financial crisis provides the opportunity for better and more hard hitting reporting—less fluff, more stuff. This is, of course, if broadcasters take advantage of a situation where the American public wants more information and are finally paying attention to them—or anyone who can explain this mess well. This is an opportunity to return real news to the newsroom while expanding the ad revenues.
Bad economic news will shift the type of advertising done and the revenue streams created. There will be more advertising of the recession proof and recession improved industries (hair cuts and food) and employment services and, of course, get-rich-quick schemes due to shorter ad revenues. There will be more deal-making on insertion fees for the smaller pot of companies that advertise and increased competition for the revenue. I personally don't think the NBC Nightly News will succumb to this since they seem to be strongly supported by the drug companies and oil interests--two of the most recession-proof industries around.
More reporters will be needed to better cover the financial crisis, but the news outlets will ask for salary concessions from their seasoned staff (based on economic fears) or hire less experienced reporters for a lot less money. I would guess if the arena gets desperate enough, that more reliance on citizen journalists will take over where the job cutting begins, possibly resulting in local broadcast news aggregators and 1-2 fewer local television news broadcasts. The issue of course is confidence. While main street seems to be feeling some of the effects of these crisis’s inasmuch as not being able to buy a new car or panicking over not having as much retirement savings, these items can be recovered with time. Truly devastating effects don’t seem to be showing up in the economy as of yet, and and most likely wont for a while--hopefully not at all. I of course don't have the perspective of someone who is retired and may be feeling the pain more directly. The global economy is big enough to get hit hard and while some turbulence will ripple across the planet, the waves will soon cancel each other out. To summarize my understanding of The Economist article, there is the potential for a new and stronger global economy to emerge.
-Update Oct 13th- In an unexpected move on the part of Kare 11 news, there was actually a story this evening that actually pointed to some of the ripple effects of the financial crisis. They had a story about Sharing and Caring Hands which has noticed a significant uptick in need. This is a direct effect of the housing crisis, but one that has been given little attention to the best of my knowledge by the mainstream media, and not discussed at all in the Nightly News in the last several weeks. While it is small in scale relative to the economy at large, it is nonetheless devastating to those affected.
I think the financial crisis provides the opportunity for better and more hard hitting reporting—less fluff, more stuff. This is, of course, if broadcasters take advantage of a situation where the American public wants more information and are finally paying attention to them—or anyone who can explain this mess well. This is an opportunity to return real news to the newsroom while expanding the ad revenues.
Bad economic news will shift the type of advertising done and the revenue streams created. There will be more advertising of the recession proof and recession improved industries (hair cuts and food) and employment services and, of course, get-rich-quick schemes due to shorter ad revenues. There will be more deal-making on insertion fees for the smaller pot of companies that advertise and increased competition for the revenue. I personally don't think the NBC Nightly News will succumb to this since they seem to be strongly supported by the drug companies and oil interests--two of the most recession-proof industries around.
More reporters will be needed to better cover the financial crisis, but the news outlets will ask for salary concessions from their seasoned staff (based on economic fears) or hire less experienced reporters for a lot less money. I would guess if the arena gets desperate enough, that more reliance on citizen journalists will take over where the job cutting begins, possibly resulting in local broadcast news aggregators and 1-2 fewer local television news broadcasts. The issue of course is confidence. While main street seems to be feeling some of the effects of these crisis’s inasmuch as not being able to buy a new car or panicking over not having as much retirement savings, these items can be recovered with time. Truly devastating effects don’t seem to be showing up in the economy as of yet, and and most likely wont for a while--hopefully not at all. I of course don't have the perspective of someone who is retired and may be feeling the pain more directly. The global economy is big enough to get hit hard and while some turbulence will ripple across the planet, the waves will soon cancel each other out. To summarize my understanding of The Economist article, there is the potential for a new and stronger global economy to emerge.
-Update Oct 13th- In an unexpected move on the part of Kare 11 news, there was actually a story this evening that actually pointed to some of the ripple effects of the financial crisis. They had a story about Sharing and Caring Hands which has noticed a significant uptick in need. This is a direct effect of the housing crisis, but one that has been given little attention to the best of my knowledge by the mainstream media, and not discussed at all in the Nightly News in the last several weeks. While it is small in scale relative to the economy at large, it is nonetheless devastating to those affected.
This American Bailout
This American Life did a nice piece with Alex Blumberg in Act IV of four acts of the broadcast in which they addressed the US government’s decision to essentially become "...a really badly run bank" in the bailout package (which may actually be a good thing). They also talked about how foreign government leaders that have let their respective economies reach this state in the past have been deposed or ousted, to paraphrase the program; not unlike what is echoed in campaign rhetoric at present. Highly recommended listening, even if you skip to Act IV of the program—short, but to the point.
Non-profit uncertainty
I think the impact of the global financial crisis will be felt more adversely at a news organization such as MinnPost, than at others like the Star Tribune(despite their already apparent financial problems.) I think that this is due to their non-profit business model, running partly on donations. More people are tightening their belts and spending less. This means less money for a business already running lean. This could go beyond staff cuts at MinnPost – I think it could threaten their ability to exist. An NPR article that speaks to this issue can be found here: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=95222990
Friday, October 10, 2008
The Financial Crisis and the Future of News
What do you think the impact of the global financial crisis will be on the future of the medium that you are covering most closely? (I know, “not good,” but try to tell us something more than that.) Think about revenues, staffing, content, audiences, and competition with other media.
Advertorial - Or Not Identifying Provided Video
This is probably mostly a question best directed to Jerry, but I wanted to see if anyone else has an opinion on this. Seriously, please let me know what you think.
Last night I was watching the WCCO 10pm news. At the end they showed a clip from the Tina Turner concert at the Target Center. I'm 99% sure that the clip was provide by the promoter/Tina's management or something and wasn't something shot by a 'CCO shooter. It had cutaways, a camera on a track or crane, etc. (I don't really know the moving picture jargon, sorry!) It was obviously not shot by a single camera on a tripod shooting from the sound desk, is my point.
So, my question is: Shouldn't they disclose that the footage was provided by Turner/her management/record label or whomever? If they don't isn't it advertorial or something? It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth and makes me wonder what other footage they use that isn't really theirs, y'know.
Yes, this is a just concert, it really isn't all that important. But isn't that type of thinking the first step on a slippery slope? Just my opinion of course. What does everyone else think?
Last night I was watching the WCCO 10pm news. At the end they showed a clip from the Tina Turner concert at the Target Center. I'm 99% sure that the clip was provide by the promoter/Tina's management or something and wasn't something shot by a 'CCO shooter. It had cutaways, a camera on a track or crane, etc. (I don't really know the moving picture jargon, sorry!) It was obviously not shot by a single camera on a tripod shooting from the sound desk, is my point.
So, my question is: Shouldn't they disclose that the footage was provided by Turner/her management/record label or whomever? If they don't isn't it advertorial or something? It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth and makes me wonder what other footage they use that isn't really theirs, y'know.
Yes, this is a just concert, it really isn't all that important. But isn't that type of thinking the first step on a slippery slope? Just my opinion of course. What does everyone else think?
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
"Coleman spokesman humiliated during press conference"
This was on the Huffington Post this afternoon. Would this be considered "commentary" or reporting? (See Jerry's 10/4 post on "Its not commentary you idiot, its reporting") I'd call it reporters doing their job like Cambell Brown did. Was this on any media outlet besides Hugffington, does anybody know?
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
AP Headline - Palin answers several questions from reporters
I honestly never thought I'd see a headline like this, that wasn't in the Onion anyway. However I saw the following posted to a number of news sites today: "Palin answers several questions from reporters"
I mean, seriously? In 2008? That this isn't a total joke - e.g. "Politician Gives Direct Answer to Question" simply amazes me.
So, I have a question for everyone. Who's fault is this? The journalists for allowing questions to go unanswered? The politicians for not answering? The public for not demanding answers? No one - what do I expect?
Seriously. I'm honestly trying to figure this out.
One link to the AP story: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jmnVpq0nGcPOacLhEz0w_sLrSBiQD93M0LE80
I mean, seriously? In 2008? That this isn't a total joke - e.g. "Politician Gives Direct Answer to Question" simply amazes me.
So, I have a question for everyone. Who's fault is this? The journalists for allowing questions to go unanswered? The politicians for not answering? The public for not demanding answers? No one - what do I expect?
Seriously. I'm honestly trying to figure this out.
One link to the AP story: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jmnVpq0nGcPOacLhEz0w_sLrSBiQD93M0LE80
Questions for Shelby
I guess my main question for Mr. Shelby is this: when was the shift from providing the information that the viewer needed to know to entertaining the public and giving them what they wanted to know?
My favorite example is simple: Outside of studio executives and investors who really cares what the weekend box office was for a new movie? Just because millions of people went to a given movie doesn't make it a worthwhile story. It's reading a scoreboard without providing context or meaningful information.
This is a hugely simplistic example, yes, but it is indicative of the problem. Having a movie critic on staff is expensive. It's too specialized for most local stations. Carrying syndicated critics is also expensive, repeating box scores is cheap. Is that practice so prevalent because it appears to give the viewer unbiased, unfiltered information? Is it the assumption or fear that by providing educated, experienced, critical judgment (i.e. criticism) means the media is elitist? Or worse, speaking down to the viewer? Or is this because the American public really has lost the ability to think critically and the dialog in general has broken down to the point that any viewpoint is now suspect?
Yes, of course, all of this applies to much grander questions than movie box office results. But this silly little 10 second blip on the Monday news represents, to me anyway, so much more that is missing both in its coverage and because it is being covered. What isn't getting mentioned because those 10 seconds went to that "story", the time wasted in broadcasters' banter, etc.
After writing the above comment I went looking for an article to link to. I found this: http://www.newslab.org/articles/changetv.htm
This is a response to a News Lab research project on the loss of local television news viewers: http://www.newslab.org/research/bringback.htm
The first link is a commentary/response by Joe Barnes, a former news director. I think his points are dead-on and his arguments are well articulated and succinct. Granted the research project is 8 years old, I think is very possible that the findings are still accurate and I believe news directors should be paying attention to what Barnes said.
My favorite example is simple: Outside of studio executives and investors who really cares what the weekend box office was for a new movie? Just because millions of people went to a given movie doesn't make it a worthwhile story. It's reading a scoreboard without providing context or meaningful information.
This is a hugely simplistic example, yes, but it is indicative of the problem. Having a movie critic on staff is expensive. It's too specialized for most local stations. Carrying syndicated critics is also expensive, repeating box scores is cheap. Is that practice so prevalent because it appears to give the viewer unbiased, unfiltered information? Is it the assumption or fear that by providing educated, experienced, critical judgment (i.e. criticism) means the media is elitist? Or worse, speaking down to the viewer? Or is this because the American public really has lost the ability to think critically and the dialog in general has broken down to the point that any viewpoint is now suspect?
Yes, of course, all of this applies to much grander questions than movie box office results. But this silly little 10 second blip on the Monday news represents, to me anyway, so much more that is missing both in its coverage and because it is being covered. What isn't getting mentioned because those 10 seconds went to that "story", the time wasted in broadcasters' banter, etc.
After writing the above comment I went looking for an article to link to. I found this: http://www.newslab.org/articles/changetv.htm
This is a response to a News Lab research project on the loss of local television news viewers: http://www.newslab.org/research/bringback.htm
The first link is a commentary/response by Joe Barnes, a former news director. I think his points are dead-on and his arguments are well articulated and succinct. Granted the research project is 8 years old, I think is very possible that the findings are still accurate and I believe news directors should be paying attention to what Barnes said.
No Gwen, it is your job
On Meet the Press on Sunday journalist Gwen Ifill told Tom Brokaw that it wasn't her job as the moderator at the Biden-Palin debate to ask the candidates to answer her questions. She said it was the candidates, not she, that should have called each other on not answering the questions. I thought that as a journalist it was her duty as a member of the fourth estate to look out for my interests and force the issue. I'll be interested to hear what Don Shelby thinks.
Also, as I continue to conduct my research on how KARE, KSTP and WCCO cover election news in the first block of their 10 p.m. newscasts it's clear that WCCO leads the way on self-promotion. In other words, "for more on this story, go to our web site and click on... " As a matter of fact, one night recently in the first eight minutes of their newscast, five times they referred us to their web site. What am I not hearing about when I'm continually being referred to the WCCO web site. Tell me once during the newscast, I get it. I'll be interested to hear how Don Shelby defends that practice.
Also, as I continue to conduct my research on how KARE, KSTP and WCCO cover election news in the first block of their 10 p.m. newscasts it's clear that WCCO leads the way on self-promotion. In other words, "for more on this story, go to our web site and click on... " As a matter of fact, one night recently in the first eight minutes of their newscast, five times they referred us to their web site. What am I not hearing about when I'm continually being referred to the WCCO web site. Tell me once during the newscast, I get it. I'll be interested to hear how Don Shelby defends that practice.
Questions for Don Shelby
1) I'd like to ask Don Shelby about the changing job descriptions of journalists: reporters who are now also supposed to be shooters, and story editors also doing the video editing and posting to the blogs and organizations website. What impact does this have on the delivery of TV news? What is happening locally about this? It is a worldwide phenomenon: UK:Subeditors fired and journalisits given 31-point jpb descriptions
2) In a talk at the Twin Cities Media Alliance Conference this past Saturday, Channel 9 anchor Robyn Robinson had some suggestions about how we- the public including citizen journalists- can work with the mainstream media (what she called "the machine") to get our messages out. She outlined various techniques, suggesting that we had a responsibility to assist her and "the machine" she works in by making an effort to stay in touch with journalists. I'd like to know if Don Shelby concurs, and if he feels that the mainstream media now has a similar responsibility to stay in touch with what the new media is reporting as well.
2) In a talk at the Twin Cities Media Alliance Conference this past Saturday, Channel 9 anchor Robyn Robinson had some suggestions about how we- the public including citizen journalists- can work with the mainstream media (what she called "the machine") to get our messages out. She outlined various techniques, suggesting that we had a responsibility to assist her and "the machine" she works in by making an effort to stay in touch with journalists. I'd like to know if Don Shelby concurs, and if he feels that the mainstream media now has a similar responsibility to stay in touch with what the new media is reporting as well.
News 21 Project
One of the areas I'm exploring for my project is what methods are available for the effective and comprehensive reporting of stories using new media technology and web 2.0 social networking tools. I found some ambitious examples at a site called News 21 Project which is a coordinated effort between several Journalism Schools in the U.S. I found out about the project in a Miller-McCune magazine article that included the following:
Journalism has been twisting in its own end-of-an-era dance, and the transition to digital democracy is nowhere more evident than in the fragmented news coverage of this year’s presidential campaign... (Yet) Amid the clutter and noise of this fragmentation, disaggregation, deprofessionalizing and proliferation of news media channels, though, are real journalistic jewels. In some senses, coverage of the 2008 presidential campaign is much better than any I’ve ever seen... Begun three years ago, News21 is a collaboration among journalism students, their professors and technical specialists at five major universities...
More importantly to my investigations:
Along the way, fellows and their faculty advisers have learned that multimedia success involves skills with few parallels in traditional journalistic enterprise. Web developers who are also journalists can be golden, Calo says, bringing good journalistic ideas to life on the Internet in new forms that a fill-in-the-blanks Web site cannot accommodate. Perhaps even more valuable, he says, are journalists who can conceive and produce stories so compelling in form and content that they go viral, spreading across the Web by the digital equivalent of word of mouth.
More importantly to my investigations:
Along the way, fellows and their faculty advisers have learned that multimedia success involves skills with few parallels in traditional journalistic enterprise. Web developers who are also journalists can be golden, Calo says, bringing good journalistic ideas to life on the Internet in new forms that a fill-in-the-blanks Web site cannot accommodate. Perhaps even more valuable, he says, are journalists who can conceive and produce stories so compelling in form and content that they go viral, spreading across the Web by the digital equivalent of word of mouth.
Shelby Q&A
Sorry I thought we were to just prepare some questions to bring in on the 8th. anyway, here they are: what are some of the problems that you encounter with the editors when constructing a story? do you believe that local media's core goal is to inform watchers of the local issue's or is it a dual role where you must provide insight into the local and then broaden it to a national/ global scale to put it into perspective? how do you personally go about researching and reporting a story? do you think that the local media is reflecting a national or political agenda? And is the aim to channel a view to viewers that will persuade them, and moreover get them to watch your news broadcast over your competitors? these are just a few of my questions. and my article is a two part audio file from the bbc regarding editorial dilemmas and the future of news making. both parts are germane to our topic but if you do not have enough time to listen to both they are just as good standing alone.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/specials/639_fts_programmes/page2.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/specials/639_fts_programmes/page2.shtml
Orphan Works Bill
I mentioned this the first night of class and Kathy brought it up as well last week. It is a bill that is in the house that will adversely affect the livelihoods of anyone in a creative field (namely photographers, videographers, and writers as it pertains to our class.)
Below are some links to aid in understanding and action
Illustrators Partnership of America:
and
The actual bill being considered
Copyright law seems to come up in the class quite a bit so here is a link to the government website
Below are some links to aid in understanding and action
Illustrators Partnership of America:
and
The actual bill being considered
Copyright law seems to come up in the class quite a bit so here is a link to the government website
Questions and Articles
Sorry, all, I didn't know we were supposed to blog our questions--I was just preparing them to bring with me. They are a work in progress and may change in the midst of the discussion at WCCO.
So, I did some searching--and it looks as though others had more success on the U of M Libraries site than did I, but I was able to find an interesting article on the web from a CNN insider, since resigned and now apparently working for a university in Hong Kong. It is called "The Precarious State of Television News" by Rebecca MacKinnon written for the Nieman Reports Spring 05 Issue. Its short, but very informative. Unfortunately, the library items I found to speak to this issue were books rather than articles. It seemed as though if someone needed to say something about the subject, it wasn't easily contained within the length of just an article--enough said.
Some questions that have been milling in my mind to ask Mr. Shelby include:
Why is the local news so different in its priorities that the National News? How can sports lead on the local evening news even on a heavy news day such as when the market crashes?
How much or how little control are you given in researching and reporting stories?
Do advertisers affect which stories make the final cut, and if so, to what degree has that changed in the last 10 years?
How much advertorial occurs in the local news?
How much actual reporting do the anchors and other on-air talent actually do and how much is provided to them from non-air staffers and news wire services?
What percentage of news stories are generated from tips by friends and family?
I am sure this list will expand.
In a short article by the independent.co.uk, by Jane Robins they talk about hijacking stories by the on-air personalities of the newsroom which was the genesis for one of my questions listed above. While this is a non-US media outlet, I thought it was worthy of asking if such things occur in the US as well.
I was also a bit troubled by the lack of information on the question of the state of television news. I guess that fits in with the suggestion that the media is sometimes reluctant to cover themselves. I thought there would be a lot more discussion and writing about this topic.
One more thing that I am in the process of reading--there is a website called tThe State of the News Media that has some interesting reading. I see however that someone else has posted the link below, but in case its not the one referring to local TV.
So, I did some searching--and it looks as though others had more success on the U of M Libraries site than did I, but I was able to find an interesting article on the web from a CNN insider, since resigned and now apparently working for a university in Hong Kong. It is called "The Precarious State of Television News" by Rebecca MacKinnon written for the Nieman Reports Spring 05 Issue. Its short, but very informative. Unfortunately, the library items I found to speak to this issue were books rather than articles. It seemed as though if someone needed to say something about the subject, it wasn't easily contained within the length of just an article--enough said.
Some questions that have been milling in my mind to ask Mr. Shelby include:
Why is the local news so different in its priorities that the National News? How can sports lead on the local evening news even on a heavy news day such as when the market crashes?
How much or how little control are you given in researching and reporting stories?
Do advertisers affect which stories make the final cut, and if so, to what degree has that changed in the last 10 years?
How much advertorial occurs in the local news?
How much actual reporting do the anchors and other on-air talent actually do and how much is provided to them from non-air staffers and news wire services?
What percentage of news stories are generated from tips by friends and family?
I am sure this list will expand.
In a short article by the independent.co.uk, by Jane Robins they talk about hijacking stories by the on-air personalities of the newsroom which was the genesis for one of my questions listed above. While this is a non-US media outlet, I thought it was worthy of asking if such things occur in the US as well.
I was also a bit troubled by the lack of information on the question of the state of television news. I guess that fits in with the suggestion that the media is sometimes reluctant to cover themselves. I thought there would be a lot more discussion and writing about this topic.
One more thing that I am in the process of reading--there is a website called tThe State of the News Media that has some interesting reading. I see however that someone else has posted the link below, but in case its not the one referring to local TV.
Monday, October 6, 2008
New Media and the News
As far as I know, WCCO is the only local news outlet to have a "Breaking news" twitter. I think all of the local news sites have adopted blogs by some or all of the news teams, but I have only seen twitter accounts from Jason DeRusha of WCCO and the breaking news twitter. In my opinion, this adds another dimention to the 'tip line' allowing people to 'tweet' about breaking news that is happening, and conversly allowing WCCO to monitor and react to any news that is potentially taking place.
I'm still working on my exact question(s) to ask, but I am curious on Don's opinion on weather new media is helping or hindering news. Should we keep new media/citizen journalism to the web, or should it evolve to the big screen of one of the newscasts?
In somewhat related news: CNN's iReport caused Apple stock to drop on Friday. The user submitted iReport, where anyone can post anything, "Unedited. Unfiltered. News" had a headline of Steve Jobs having health issues. The news was passed around the internet on both digg.com and twitter subsequently dropping apple's stock price 9% before the rumor could be deemed false. If we are given the opportunity to report on news, who is held accountable for the facts? Should citizen journalists hold citizen journalists accountable, should the 'trained media' hold them accountable? Will this only lead to editing and filtering of the news that is submitted? I'm asking more questions that I can answer, but I'm curious to see what will happen with user generated news/content and if the opportunites to submit will start to be limited because people can't control themselves and need to constantly push the limits.
Read more here:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/10/04/MNIV13B9E4.DTL
I'm still working on my exact question(s) to ask, but I am curious on Don's opinion on weather new media is helping or hindering news. Should we keep new media/citizen journalism to the web, or should it evolve to the big screen of one of the newscasts?
In somewhat related news: CNN's iReport caused Apple stock to drop on Friday. The user submitted iReport, where anyone can post anything, "Unedited. Unfiltered. News" had a headline of Steve Jobs having health issues. The news was passed around the internet on both digg.com and twitter subsequently dropping apple's stock price 9% before the rumor could be deemed false. If we are given the opportunity to report on news, who is held accountable for the facts? Should citizen journalists hold citizen journalists accountable, should the 'trained media' hold them accountable? Will this only lead to editing and filtering of the news that is submitted? I'm asking more questions that I can answer, but I'm curious to see what will happen with user generated news/content and if the opportunites to submit will start to be limited because people can't control themselves and need to constantly push the limits.
Read more here:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/10/04/MNIV13B9E4.DTL
What if good journalism works?
Note: I think you will need to be logged into the University Library system to access the links provided in full below. If they work as intended, the links will take you to a page in the Academic Search Premier where you can read an abstract of the article mentioned and download the full version, if you would like.
I came across an academic study - The Local News Story: Is Quality a Choice? - that finds a positive correlation between local TV news stations’ investment is “quality reporting” and their ratings.
http://search.ebscohost.com.floyd.lib.umn.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=31930718&site=ehost-live
There is a short discussion of the article titled Too Good to Be True? in the July/August 2008 Columbia Journalism Review
http://search.ebscohost.com.floyd.lib.umn.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=33252003&site=ehost-live
These lead me to want to ask Don Shelby something along these lines:
A study published in April of this year indicates that “the more local TV invests in quality reporting, the bigger its audience tends to be. Already there are questions about the direction of cause and effect, but is there any hope that academic studies will lead to a change in the way local television news casts are assembled?
In my research about The Daily Show, I found an article - The Daily Show: Discursive Integration and the Reinvention of Political Journalism
http://search.ebscohost.com.floyd.lib.umn.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=18288616&site=ehost-live
which refers to a 2004 National Annenberg Election Survey that
“...found that 40% of the audience is between the ages of 18 and 29, but perhaps surprisingly, the show also attracts an older audience, with 27% above the age of 44. The NAES data further reveal that the audience is more educated, follows the news more regularly, and is more politically knowledgeable than the general population. (p 260)
Bringing me to this question for Don Shelby:
How do you think about “fake” news outlets like the The Daily Show, which shares a time slot with the local newscasts? Is humorous current events programming aimed a younger viewers a specific threat, or just another competitor in the vast sea of cable/satellite-delivered options?
I came across an academic study - The Local News Story: Is Quality a Choice? - that finds a positive correlation between local TV news stations’ investment is “quality reporting” and their ratings.
http://search.ebscohost.com.floyd.lib.umn.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=31930718&site=ehost-live
There is a short discussion of the article titled Too Good to Be True? in the July/August 2008 Columbia Journalism Review
http://search.ebscohost.com.floyd.lib.umn.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=33252003&site=ehost-live
These lead me to want to ask Don Shelby something along these lines:
A study published in April of this year indicates that “the more local TV invests in quality reporting, the bigger its audience tends to be. Already there are questions about the direction of cause and effect, but is there any hope that academic studies will lead to a change in the way local television news casts are assembled?
In my research about The Daily Show, I found an article - The Daily Show: Discursive Integration and the Reinvention of Political Journalism
http://search.ebscohost.com.floyd.lib.umn.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=18288616&site=ehost-live
which refers to a 2004 National Annenberg Election Survey that
“...found that 40% of the audience is between the ages of 18 and 29, but perhaps surprisingly, the show also attracts an older audience, with 27% above the age of 44. The NAES data further reveal that the audience is more educated, follows the news more regularly, and is more politically knowledgeable than the general population. (p 260)
Bringing me to this question for Don Shelby:
How do you think about “fake” news outlets like the The Daily Show, which shares a time slot with the local newscasts? Is humorous current events programming aimed a younger viewers a specific threat, or just another competitor in the vast sea of cable/satellite-delivered options?
Sunday, October 5, 2008
PR video for TV news
I found an interesting New York Times article about video footage supplied to television news stations in the form of press releases intended for insertion in the news cast. The article is from 2004, but I selected it because the issues are still relevant today.
Many companies, political parties, and government agencies produce this type of b-roll content. Even the University of Minnesota relies on this type of PR to get the word out about exciting University stories. This particular article talks about an instance of footage from the Bush administration featuring fake reporters attempting to put a favorable spin on a MEDICARE plan. In other articles I have read about this type of PR work, there were prevalent concerns about the footage misrepresenting the facts and trying to manipulate public opinion.
I would be interested to hear Don Shelby’s take on this type of PR and hear how prevalent it is in local TV news. Does WCCO have a policy about using supplied footage, for example? I am also interested on the impact of these type of homegrown newscasts appearing on YouTube.
Here is the link to the story I referenced: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C07E2DF1631F936A25750C0A9629C8B63&scp=3&sq=television%20news&st=cse
Many companies, political parties, and government agencies produce this type of b-roll content. Even the University of Minnesota relies on this type of PR to get the word out about exciting University stories. This particular article talks about an instance of footage from the Bush administration featuring fake reporters attempting to put a favorable spin on a MEDICARE plan. In other articles I have read about this type of PR work, there were prevalent concerns about the footage misrepresenting the facts and trying to manipulate public opinion.
I would be interested to hear Don Shelby’s take on this type of PR and hear how prevalent it is in local TV news. Does WCCO have a policy about using supplied footage, for example? I am also interested on the impact of these type of homegrown newscasts appearing on YouTube.
Here is the link to the story I referenced: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C07E2DF1631F936A25750C0A9629C8B63&scp=3&sq=television%20news&st=cse
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