NY Times Publisher on Future of Journalism

H/t to Jean for her interesting blog post on comments made by NY Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger on young journalists and the what the future holds. On the future of print newspapers, Sulzberger told New York mag:

What was the critical flaw to the Titanic? Even if the Titanic came in safely to New York Harbor, it was still doomed. Twelve years earlier, two brothers invented the airplane.

Good riddance to mainstream media?

Jen L. provides clips to heated Oct. 27 debate on topic.

Big Media Hall of Shame, 2008

2008 contest for worst-behaving, greediest or most freedom-abridging media/telecom corporation, according to video produced by media reform group Free Press.

Three Victims of Web Censorship

Inner City Press, a monitor of Wall St. and the U.N., temporarily delisted from Google News.

Wikileaks.org, which posts documents leaked by whistle-blowers inside repressive countries, institutions or corporations, ordered to be shut down (ineffectively) by a federal judge's order, after complaint from none other than a Cayman Islands bank! The judge removed his order after 10 days.

CommonCause had trouble placing ads on My Space: This is the face of Big Media.

Topnotch Journalist: "Stop going to Journalism Programs"

Interviewed by Time, journalist/author Malcolm ("Tipping Point," "Blink," "Outliers") Gladwell said this when asked to give advice to young journalists:
The issue is not writing. It's what you write about. One of my favorite columnists is Jonathan Weil, who writes for Bloomberg. He broke the Enron story, and he broke it because he's one of the very few mainstream journalists in America who really knows how to read a balance sheet. That means Jonathan Weil will always have a job, and will always be read, and will always have something interesting to say. He's unique. Most accountants don't write articles, and most journalists don't know anything about accounting. Aspiring journalists should stop going to journalism programs and go to some other kind of grad school. If I was studying today, I would go get a master's in statistics, and maybe do a bunch of accounting courses and then write from that perspective. I think that's the way to survive. The role of the generalist is diminishing. Journalism has to get smarter.

Huffpost Postings

Just after reading Matt B's blog post on how HuffingtonPost uses instant A/B testing to see which of 2 headlines gets more interest, I clicked on a huge photo of one of my least favorite politicians, Joe Lieberman, and this clever, banner HuffingtonPost headline:

JOE THE BUMMER
Lieberman Says He'll Join GOP Filibuster on Health Care Reform

Wonder if it was tested before it ran?

Amanda F blogged about how the New York Times is running prominent ads on. . .HuffingtonPost.
1) NYT knows where readers are going.
2)NYT willing to give HuffPost $ to win some of them over or back.

JOE THE BUMMER
Lieberman Says He'll Join GOP Filibuster Of Health Care Reform


Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/

FTC tells blogs: disclose $$

It's a mark that blogs have arrived perhaps (in the league of print and TV) that the Federal Trade Commission has said blogs must publicly disclose when they are getting paid or gifted. But, as one blogger asks, do print publications do that today?? (H/t Jen)

Yes Men!

Kate Sheppard, 2006 IC grad who has built a career in indy media, reports for Mother Jones on the latest Yes Men hoax -- a phony U.S. Chamber of Commerce news conference in which the chamber purports to reverse its legislative obstruction on global warming and now plans to support laws reducing carbon emissions. Fox Business channel was briefly hoaxed. Democracy Now! told the story.

Here's trailer for the new doc (will be in Ithaca next month): The Yes Men Fix the World.

Blogger Does Ethical Thing

Upstart blogger takes professional action: blogger Ken Krayeske, who gained fame by bravely questioning Univeristy of Connecticut's basketball coach about his huge taxpayer-paid salary, has announced he won't be covering City Hall because his girlfriend has a job there.

Low Power Radio vs. Big Broadcast Companies

The little guys -- battling for more diversity in radio -- won one against the big guys this week. At least, they won a Congressional Committee vote, 15 to 1. Let's see if the Local Community Radio Act ever becomes law.

Journalists Harassed/Beaten. . .

...for reporting on (or preparing to report on) political demonstrations. Iran? No, Minnesota. Video from events at last year's Republican convention.

Talking Points Memo Keeps Growing

The David blogsite that slew Goliath (Bush's Attorney General forced to resign) keeps growing. After an exciting election, political news sites worry about losing momentum -- but Talking Points Memo is reporting growth and many new hires.

A Warning about NonProfit News

Contrarian Jack Shafer, media critic of Slate (formerly part of Microsoft, now Wash Post Co.), warns about strings attached to big donations to nonprofit news. (H/t to Jean).