Category: Gawker

April 4, 2014 media notes: Turkey courts restore YouTube, Yelp in court over comments, Gawker gets rid of slang

4/4/2014

For Friday, April 4, 2014, here are some media stories of note:

Turkey's courts and regulator continue to set back the government's efforts to suppress social media. Earlier this week the two-week ban on Twitter was lifted (although Bloomberg reports that Twitter users boosted apps that skirted the ban). Now the court has indicated only 15 YouTube videos are somehow worthy of restriction and that the balance of the blocked service can be accessible. Al Jazeera reports that the court concluded human rights were being violated by the ban.
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The Wall Street Journal reports on a Virginia court case with interesting implications for sites with anonymous online comments. Yelp is hoping that the court will overturn earlier rulings in which a carpet-cleaning business sought the identities of anonymous critics of its operations, saying the comments amounted to defamation. Yelp is in contempt of court for not abiding the judgments but is appealing the case. The ruling could change the landscape for such sites.
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If a sign of maturity is when slang leaves the vocabulary, welcome to adulthood, Gawker. Andrew Beaujon writes for Poynter on Gawker's new rules to strike certain slang from its stories. "Epic," "massive," "pwn" and "derp" are among the victims, and corrections now will look like corrections and not lined-out passages.

March 7, 2014 media notes: Newsweek's Bitcoin controversy, Americans still love TV, CJR on non-profit philanthropy

3/7/2014

For Friday, March 7, 2014, here are some media stories of note:

There are relaunches, and then there are relaunches. Witness Newsweek, sold for a dollar only a few years ago, shuttered, now being brought back to print life with today's immensely appealing cover story purportedly on the founder of Bitcoin. Problem is, not everyone agrees he is who he is deemed to be. He certainly denies it. Gawker reports Newsweek stands behind the story. Someone isn't telling the truth. There are plenty of takes on this dispute, and Felix Salmon of Reuters has something comprehensive on it.
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Americans clearly haven't abandoned the television set, no matter the new digital distractions. New data suggest the typical American continues to spend 34 hours a week glued to the first screen, Re/code reports. The younger you are, the less you watch (those over 65 are clocking in 50.5 hours weekly), and while it's true that there has been some decline in live TV viewing, t's not necessarily so that they're not watching TV. They're just delaying their viewing through the recording device.
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Steven Waldman, writing for the Columbia Journalism Review, refutes Jeff Jarvis' recent post that suggested philanthropy is misplaced with a journalism non-profit operation. Waldman says non-profits can be sustainable and can serve needs profit-seeking firms can't or won't. Philanthropy is very much needed in the sector, he says.

February 11, 2014 media notes: the time-shifting digital consumer, Amazon's impact, Facebook's NewsFeed algorithm

2/11/2014

Here are some media stories of note for Tuesday, February 11, 2014:

A new Nielsen report on the digital consumer suggests time-shifting and second-screen use continue to grow in the U.S. In the last year Americans on average time-shifted 13 hours monthly of television, an increase of about two hours, and their live television viewing declined nearly three hours to 134 hours monthly. Americans average four devices per household and 84 per cent said they use their tablets or smartphones while watching television. AP notes an offbeat finding: 40 per cent of those 18 to 24 use social media in the bathroom.
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The New Yorker's George Packer examines the impact of Amazon on the publishing business and on the digital marketplace. Packer chronicles the effort by Amazon to be the retailer of practically everything, including some of its industry tactics, and how its early-stage book business (now a minor element) built the leverage with personal information for Amazon to capitalize in other sectors. Packer, himself a bestselling author, is not bullish on what the company has done for its founding function.
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Journalism evolves, but it has been interesting to watch the evolution of an article in the last day about Facebook's algorithm and its impact on several viral-seeking sites, particularly the impact on Buzzfeed. Business Insider contributor Nicholas Carlson initially said the impact was dramatic on sites like Upworthy but that Buzzfeed was not particularly hurt by Facebook's changes because it regularly bought Facebook ads to support certain content. He changed that (and, to be fair, communicated he had) to give greater credit to Buzzfeed's contributors after Buzzfeed's CEO complained. In all it has been a bit of a backslide from an initial shot, something Gawker has been more than willing to chronicle.
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January 23, 2014 media notes: AP severs ties with photographer, Sochi challenges, covering China

1/23/2014

Here are some media stories of note for Thursday, January 23, 2014:

The Associated Press has severed ties with a freelance photographer who used software to remove the image of a colleague's video camera in a photo of protests in Syria. The AP said he breached its requirements for truth and accuracy. It has also removed all images from him in its archive.
Gawker's Adam Weinstein wonders if it went too far.

Alice Speri, writing for Al Jazeera America, looks at the intimidation of and violence against journalists in advance of the Sochi Winter Olympics in Russia. The self-censorship and threats have created a "timid press" rarely willing to venture into independent territory.

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William Wan, the Beijing-based correspondent for the Washington Post, tackles the subject of journalist challenges there in a post for Poynter. He argues that, while visas can be denied and websites put out of reach for difficult reporting, self-censorship is the most insidious of the threats.

media notes 09.23.13

9/23/2013

Some media stories of note for Monday, September 23, 2013:

A representative of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe says media freedom is deteriorating in Southeast Europe. Dunja Mijatovic, the OSCE representative on freedom of media, said journalists were threatened, regulation was inadequate, and public broadcasters were not yet reformed. She told a conference that the problems threatened the future of democracy in the region.

Mathew Ingram, writing for paidContent, concludes that the unfortunate fact about the digital journalism business model is that its viability depends on either benevolence or cat GIFs and slideshows. Ingram says it's increasingly necessary to have a rich owner, ask for donations, have another business to subsidize media, focus on entertainment, or all of the above.

Jack Shafer, writing for Reuters, notes the serious speed of change in media and how it is possible now for upstarts to run incumbents into the ditch in short order. The technological life cycle is so quick that outlets can barely "assimilate the last new wrinkle before the next one (or one!) emerge," he writes. The good news: There has never been a better time for a startup.

The New York Times' Nick Bilton writes about Nick Denton, the Gawker founder, and his effort to expand and improve upon the voices through his Kinja website. Improvements to the site permit users to write headlines and summaries of the stories, then discuss them. The aim is to generate more comments and less yelling among them.

media notes 09.20.13

9/20/2013

Some media notes for Friday, September 20, 2013:

The Wall Street Journal reports on a social media crackdown in China. Leading social media figures have been interrogated or detained, while others have been warned about their activity as the country widens its laws to permit easier prosecution. The Weibo social media site has been particularly targeted.

Roy Greenslade, the media writer for The Guardian, looks at the threats to journalists in Yemen in the context of some progress on their rights. A Human Rights Watch report says Yemeni journalists are facing violence and intimidation from the current and former governments, rebels, secessionists and religious conservatives.

The editor of Gawker, in an interview with The Globe and Mail, dismisses the need for an "additional" set of ethics for journalists. John Cook says he is guided by basic ethical precepts, no different than a plumber's, and that another layer of guides isn't necessary. "I think it’s more instructive to think of reporters the way people think of tradesman and women. I think it’s a trade rather than a profession – it’s certainly starting to pay more like a trade than a profession. And I think the idea of building up a superstructure of journalism ethics is part of a process of trying to exclude the hoi polloi from the process of reporting and commenting on the news," he said.

media notes 07.04.13

7/4/2013

Here are some media stories for Thursday, July 4, 2013:

Margaret Sullivan, the public editor for The New York Times, follows up on a Gawker story earlier in the week that a TImes contributing blogger had demanded compensation from a public relations firm for mention in his You're The Boss blog. Sullivan finds there is much less than meets the eye, but in the process examines some of the slippery issues of blogger/PR relationship.

Eric Deggans, writing for Poynter, takes another look at the impact of the media self-examination on the issue of who is a journalist. This issue surfaced after Guardian columnist Glenn Greenwald reported on leaks by former National Security Agency employee Edward Snowden (at last word, still in a Russian airport figuring out which country will grant him asylum). Deggans argues that the work done, not the title, is the important thing. But he also believes that those who break the law need to face consequences.

Gawker chronicles the release of a secretly recorded discussion in the Sun newsroom with News Corp. chief Rupert Murdoch in which he acknowledges his staff had been offering bribes to officials for stories. The reporters at the Sun were upset the company had provided police with internal communications information and Murdoch commits to support them however the court cases against them turn out.

media notes 05.28.13

5/28/2013

Some media stories of note for Tuesday, May 28, 2013:

Meena Thiruvengadam, writing for Poynter, looks at the increasing value and presence of Instagram as a tool for newsrooms in engaging audiences, generating and curating content, and reporting. She looks at the work at the Washington Post, Chicago Tribune and NBC News in developing new paths to markets using the instant photo delivery platform.

Financial Times reports (registration required for link) on a British study that suggests Britons are increasingly prepared to pay for digital content. It also finds declines in television viewing, social media use, and reading books. The study for KPMG's annual entertainment and media survey indicates online gaming and ebooks are the top sellers, driven by smartphone and tablet applications. On a related matter, early data from The Telegraph suggest a strong continuation of audience support for its metered paywall.

Gawker has reached its $200,000 crowdfunding goal to purchase a video allegedly depicting drug use by Toronto's mayor. The Globe and Mail notes the effort has stirred questions about the ethics of purchasing content, particularly from those allegedly involved in drug dealing. Naturally, all might be for naught, in that the source of the video (which Gawker and reporters from the Toronto Star have seen) has not been in contact for many days. Meantime, the Globe's public editor has weighed in on the paper's recent investigative story on the mayor's family's background, particularly its use of anonymous sources.

media notes 05.24.13

5/24/2013

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Some media stories of note for Friday, May 24, 2013:

Controversy lingers for the Obama Administration over its surveillance of reporters and Alex Pareene, writing for Salon, wonders if the president will fire his attorney general in light of the revelations. The president yesterday reiterated concern that the press not be targeted or chilled, and that the real targets should be the leakers of secrets and not those who distribute them (although the attorney general will lead the probe into what amounted to his own activities).

Several media organizations carried vivid video and still images following the terror attack this week on a British soldier. Not surprisingly, there was public criticism. Also not surprisingly, media organizations are defending their decisions. Britain's Press Gazette looks at the controversy, the ethical considerations involved, and the implications of the move.

The controversial decision by Gawker to crowdfund the purchase of video allegedly depicting the mayor of Toronto smoking crack cocaine has hit a snag. The organization can't find the supposed drug dealer with the smartphone and the video. Gawker has raised more than $145,000 of its $200,000 target to buy the content (and finance the video owner's relocation), but it has suggested the fundraising may be for naught.

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media notes 05.14.13

5/14/2013

Media stories of note for Tuesday, May 14, 2013:

The Associated Press revealed Monday that the U.S. Department of Justice had secretly obtained two months of telephone records for its journalists at several of its operations. AP decried the move as an unprecedented intrusion into the rights of a free press. Details of the probe are not known, but it was believed to be in connection with AP's reporting on a foiled terrorist plot. The New Yorker's John Cassidy looks at the wider political implications of the issue for the Obama Administration.

The Bloomberg terminal controversy continues to draw commentary. It was revealed that reporters were able to advance stories on the basis of their monitoring of login activity of clients on the Bloomberg data terminals. Gawker notes that the monitoring was supposed to stop, but didn't. And the Guardian suggests the matter is not a big deal. That said, the Wall Street Journal reports Bloomberg and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation are cooperating on examining the issue.

Joel Smith, writing for the Pacific Standard, explores an innovative effort in sociology and journalism in Alhambra, California, to study the news consumption of residents and marry them to a grassroots organization that would use a range of contributors to produce community journalism. He writes that the effort has promise in linking expertise in consumerism to a market's need for content.

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