Here are some media stories of note for Thursday, October 24, 2013:
A new Pew Research Center study suggests Facebook is a common but incidental way Americans get news. Its poll found most American adults don't go to Facebook for news, but find news while on Facebook for other purposes. Only 4% said it was the most important way they get news. Still, Facebook appears to provide news to people who otherwise might not get it. Those who receive news on Facebook are highly engaged users and news consumption doesn't appear to displace their other Facebook activities.
Glenn Greenwald, in his first extensive interview since announcing his departure from The Guardian for a new journalism venture financed by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar, argues that a revolution is taking place in how news organizations cover government and institutions. Secrets will not be viable if they involve activities that run counter to the consciences of any of the extensive number of people with access to the data. That, in turn, will alter the power dynamic. Journalism will find opportunities in this context. Newsweek, now an online-only organization, reports on his views from Brazil.
The Columbia Journalism Review decided to examine the coverage of surveillance in four major U.S. newspapers (The New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post and Los Angeles Times) following recent revelations, and it found a "remarkable" result: The media tilted to the right on the issue. The survey examined the use of certain key words that indicate a pro- or anti-surveillance stance: terrorism and surveillance on the one side, liberty and privacy on the other. While the stance was not overt, it suggests media remain reluctant to appear soft on terror, the Review concludes.
The debate continues on whether journalists need to learn how to write code and whether journalism schools should teach them how. In recent days journalist Olga Khazan sparked the debate by suggesting her time would be better spent learning how to report well instead of code badly. But Meranda Adams, writing for 10000 Words, argues (and uses data-wise journalist and professor Robert Hernandez to support her) that at the very least a modern journalist should know some basics about HTML and CSS or what they're discussing when they pitch the idea of a data project.
A new Pew Research Center study suggests Facebook is a common but incidental way Americans get news. Its poll found most American adults don't go to Facebook for news, but find news while on Facebook for other purposes. Only 4% said it was the most important way they get news. Still, Facebook appears to provide news to people who otherwise might not get it. Those who receive news on Facebook are highly engaged users and news consumption doesn't appear to displace their other Facebook activities.
Glenn Greenwald, in his first extensive interview since announcing his departure from The Guardian for a new journalism venture financed by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar, argues that a revolution is taking place in how news organizations cover government and institutions. Secrets will not be viable if they involve activities that run counter to the consciences of any of the extensive number of people with access to the data. That, in turn, will alter the power dynamic. Journalism will find opportunities in this context. Newsweek, now an online-only organization, reports on his views from Brazil.
The Columbia Journalism Review decided to examine the coverage of surveillance in four major U.S. newspapers (The New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post and Los Angeles Times) following recent revelations, and it found a "remarkable" result: The media tilted to the right on the issue. The survey examined the use of certain key words that indicate a pro- or anti-surveillance stance: terrorism and surveillance on the one side, liberty and privacy on the other. While the stance was not overt, it suggests media remain reluctant to appear soft on terror, the Review concludes.
The debate continues on whether journalists need to learn how to write code and whether journalism schools should teach them how. In recent days journalist Olga Khazan sparked the debate by suggesting her time would be better spent learning how to report well instead of code badly. But Meranda Adams, writing for 10000 Words, argues (and uses data-wise journalist and professor Robert Hernandez to support her) that at the very least a modern journalist should know some basics about HTML and CSS or what they're discussing when they pitch the idea of a data project.
