WWS309

May 8, 2005

The New York Times to Undertake Steps to Enhance its Perceived Credibility: Accuracy and Truth in Modern Media

The New York Times released a report that identified several steps that the daily news publication should take to improve its credibility among the public, according to "Times Panel Proposes Steps to Build Credibility."

The article reports that the text of the report indicated methods by which the paper could improve its credibility and update the nature of its content to appeal to a modern audience.

The importance of credibility cannot be overstated and media organizations continue to prize their credibility and constantly undertake initiatives to improve it.

This move by The New York Times will likely encourage other major media outlets, both print and broadcast, to engage in similar credibility-upgrades, so to speak, in order to both adjust their services to a modern audience while remaining faithful to the truth and accuracy.

Posted by jacohen at 11:47 PM | Comments (0)

May 2, 2005

Political Pressure on PBS: The Republican Party Chair Seeks Change to the Alleged Liberal Bias on PBS

The "editorial independence" of PBS has come under fire by the Chairman of the Republican Party, according to "Republican Chairman Exerts Pressure on PBS, Alleging Biases," from The New York Times Online.

This charge by the Republican party brings into question the objectivity of public broadcasters and moreover, their responsibility to provide fair and balanced - or objective - reporting.

We will have to see the reaction by PBS; however, by bringing into question its objectivity, and thus its credibility, the Republican Chairman threatens to derail the essence of what public broadcasting is supposed to be.

Posted by jacohen at 2:51 AM | Comments (0)

May 1, 2005

A Politician Enters the Blogosphere: Implications for the Future of Politics and the Future of News?

According to "Blogger Brown: Politician as unvarnished online scribe," which appeared on CNN Online, Mayor Jerry Brown of Oakland, California, has taken up blogging. This may have significant implications for the future of politics, since who knows which other politicians may follow the mayor's lead.

Posted by jacohen at 12:37 AM | Comments (0)

April 27, 2005

Princeton Featured on CNN: The College Admissions Process Draws Media Attention

Princeton is featured as a perfect campus destination in "Near or far? Student's Wrestle with College Picks," from CNN Online, which discusses the college decision process more generally.

The focus is on the college decision process - not on decisions by admissions offices, but on decisions by students who have received multiple offers.

Moreover, the photo displayed in the article is none other than the WWS fountain.

The article sheds light on the important decisions that rising college freshman must make regarding the distance from home that they would like to be. However, this is only one variable to be considered by students in making their decisions.

If anything, this article shows that any story can be newsworthy and it demonstrates a particular form of framing that presents the story through the eyes of a individual actually taking part in the process.

What advice could we possibly give this student in making his decision?

Posted by jacohen at 1:19 AM | Comments (1)

April 24, 2005

Media Framing on a Global Scale: International Perceptions of the Army's Decision to Clear Officers on Charges Relating to the Abu Ghraib Prison Scandal

International media sources have framed the recent decision by the United States army not to indict four high-ranking officers connected in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal in strikingly different ways, encouraging diverse perceptions of the army's move throughout the international community. According to "Army clears top brass in Abu Ghraib scandal," which appeared on CNN Online, the army's inspector general, Lt. Gen. Stanley E. Green, decided to clear a three-star general and three other officers in Iraq of any wrongdoing associated with the prison abuse due to insufficient evidence. While the same events have been reported by media sources throughout the world, the manner in which they have been presented has varied substantially, showing both the prevalence and the impact of media framing on the audience.

While this story has now been reported in many media sources throughout the world, I focused on the media's coverage of this development by four major news corporations in three different countries and two different languages. The presentation of the stories varied widely in each source and, as I will show, the emphasis was on different aspects of the army's decision, ranging from the method by it was reached to its future implications. Moreover, I analyzed reports in both English and in Spanish to determine if there were considerable discrepancies in the manner by which this news was presented to audiences that spoke different languages. Overall, I found that the framing of news stories can become almost as important as the facts themselves since a journalist's decision to portray them in different ways can significantly change the way that we perceive them.

The impact of media framing on the public's perception of events can be considerable, especially when news outlets cultivate a particular story so that it resonates with the public and encourages them to express different responses. According to Michael Schudson in The Sociology of News, "news is not a mirror of reality" and can be extremely misleading to consumers (33). By framing newsworthy events in specific ways, journalists and their managing editors can either purposefully or inadvertently distort stories through the inclusion or omission of aspects of a story. As Schudson explains, the selectivity of newsworthy events for inclusion in a publication or broadcast carries with it significant biases that are inherent to the criteria used to judge the importance of a story. To elaborate upon his point, Schudson rather caustically suggests that instead of including on the front-page of a newspaper, "'All the News That's Fit to Print'," newspapers should instead read, "a hasty, incomplete inevitably somewhat flawed and inaccurate rendering of some of the things we have heard about in the past 24 hours" (33). Although newspapers are unlikely to change their front-page claims at least in the near future, Schudson sheds light on an increasingly important aspect of news coverage that is often overlooked by the consumer: media framing of a particular issue to achieve a specific perception by the public.

The impact of media framing is extensive given its potential political implications: as Scott London explains in his essay, "How the Media Frames Political Issues," media framing of issues helps put them into a particular context for an audience which can lead to significant political outcomes. The interaction between media presentation and policy is undeniable given the ubiquity of media and the technological advancements made in recent years. As London suggests, media has become a distinct political actor by virtue of its agenda-setting capabilities. By bringing issues to the forefront of the public's agenda, media reporting is able to bring issues to the front of the government's agenda. Framing by media outlets is an important phenomenon and through a better understanding of how stories are framed, consumers can be armed against what one might call "private sector propaganda" or brainwashing.

Framing of current events is prevalent throughout the news media. The army's decision not to charge the four army officers is no exception. Rather, release of this news has led to a flood of reports throughout the print, broadcast and internet media regarding the decision and its possible implications for both the war in Iraq and United States public diplomacy. Different media outlets throughout the world have portrayed this story in unique ways, focusing on different ramifications of this important development.

In the CNN article, the headline reads, "The Army has cleared four top officers -- including the three-star general who commanded U.S. forces in Iraq -- of allegations of wrongdoing in connection with the prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib." The assumptions of this article as revealed through the headline is that, particularly in the case of the three-star general who commanded forces in Iraq, the government is letting them off the hook despite their alleged military crimes. Moreover, the tone of the article is skeptical as it does not reveal the reasons surrounding the army's decision nor the procedures by which it was made. Rather, the article simply states that the decision would still be maintained behind a cloak of secrecy were it not for an anonymous source. The reference to secrecy is particularly powerful in the article because it suggests that the army is engaged in some sort of covert activity given its lack of transparency. Given that it is an online article, there are no sounds or motion pictures that influence one's perception of the story - only a still image of one of the three-star general is shown alongside the text beneath which a caption reads, "Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez continues as Commander of V Corps, based in Germany." The presentation of this news by the United States-based media outlet focuses on the secrecy of the news and that it came from an anonymous source, suggesting that the government is as of yet trying to hide something from the public or keep this development from the public for now. Moreover, this article focuses almost exclusively on the soldiers themselves, rather than the implications of this decision for the Defense Department or for the United States government's credibility. This framing of the news story differs substantially from the focus of this story in two articles from different Spanish media outlets and two articles from a British media company.

Another article on this topic, "El general Ricardo Sanchez y tres oficiales de EEUU, absueltos por los abusos a prisioneros en Abu Ghraib," appeared in Spanish on ElMundo.es, a news outlet with wide readership throughout Spain. The same photograph is featured in this article, suggesting that it may be the only photograph available of the Lt. General. The article cites in bold letters that "el Congreso aun no ha recibido un informe exhausto," which loosely translated indicates that Congress has not as of yet been fully briefed on the Inspector General's decision. However, among the articles that I analyzed, only this article and an article by another Spain-based news agency, "El Pentagono exculpa a los altos mandos de las torturas de Abu Ghraib," which appeared on ElPais.es, directly drew attention to the fact that this decision released the Pentagon from blame in this debacle. Both articles frame the event as relinquishing blame from the Defense Department, a move which the articles feel are deplorable given their tone. Thus, to these media sources, the primary implication of this decision is seen as the Defense Department's escape from blame. Less attention is focused specifically on the soldiers themselves than is the case with the CNN article. This different focus sheds light on the opinion of the Spanish press that the Defense Department had a key role in the abuse and should take more of a responsibility for the outcome.

In a set of articles from British-based news agencies, the issue is cast yet again through another focus: not specifically on the soldiers or on the Defense Department, but instead on the heinous nature of crimes themselves and the blame that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld deserves for allowing this to happen under his watch. In the article, "Top brass cleared over Iraq abuse," which appeared on BBC News, the focus is on the heinous nature of the prisoner abuses, recasting attention to the atrocities committed by the soldiers rather than on the Pentagon's decision not to indict the three officers. The article's framing of the issue seems to try re-igniting the emotions of the international community against the photographs and the acts involved. The article also focuses on particular civil rights groups who have become involved in the case, including two that are suing the Secretary of Defense directly. The clear intent of the article is to divert attention away from the actual press release - and thus the Inspector General's decision - and instead refocus it on the crimes involved in order to stir emotions. Across the middle of the article reads, 'It doesn't matter what the US Amery inspector general thinks. The world has already pronounced its verdict." While that quote was contributed by a reader, its inclusion demonstrates the way in which the BBC article is framing this issue.

In a second article that appeared on the BBC, "Demand for Rumsfeld abuse inquiry," the focus is not on the Pentagon's decision but on punishment for Rumsfeld and the Department of Defense, focusing on rights groups, specifically Human Rights Watch, in order to reignite the emotions and rage of the local British public against the heinous nature of the abuses. Also, across the middle of this article reads, "The guys at the top who made the policies are going scot free." While this quote was again supplied by a reader, the BBC's inclusion of it suggests the particular means by which the article is framing the issue: the article seeks to suggest that some major moral wrong is being committed by relinquishing blame from these officers and the Defense Department on account of their presumed guilt and proposed collusion in torturing those prisoners. This diverged from the framing by the American news agency demonstrates the extent to which news agencies in different countries can distinctly frame issues.

The assessment of this story as reported by four different news outlets in three different countries and two different languages demonstrates the impact that media framing can have on the way identical information can be perceived by an audience. Each source gave a different edge to the story, focusing on a slightly different component which made all the difference. The articles which appeared in Spanish approached the issue using stronger and more detailed language to cast blame not on the individual officers, but on the Defense Department as a whole. The British articles, on the other hand, drew attention back to the heinous nature of the crimes themselves and focused the blame for these acts more specifically on Rumsfeld, while giving little focus to the officers who were released. In the American articles, the focus of the story was exclusively on the officers who were released from punishment, casting little attention to the guilt of the Defense Department.

These differences in reporting can lead to completely different interpretations by their respective audiences, a fact that demonstrates the importance of framing and its ability to twist the news stories according to particular agendas. Consumers of news should be aware of the prevalence of framing so that they may make more well-informed judgments on the objectivity of the news sources that they read.

edited on April 29 in preparation for this assignment

Posted by jacohen at 8:14 PM | Comments (1)

April 23, 2005

Correlating Email with Drug Use: Tecnological Addiction with Significant Side-Effects

According to "E-mails 'hurt IQ more than pot,'" which appeared on CNN Online, a British study revealed a statistically relevant correlation between email use and reductions in IQ. Ironically, the study reported that the drop in IQ through email addition was two and a half times as substantial as the drop in IQ through marijuana use.

The implications of this study are interesting in that they point to a growing addiction to the capabilities of email brought on by technological advancements. There is an adage that reliance on technology can make one less intelligent: this study finds that claim to be true.

The ramifications of this study could be extreme, since it could cause businesses to reduce reliance on email in order to reverse the trend. However, such a move would be an extreme reaction and would probably turn out to be more detrimental to productivity than the ten point drop in IQ given the reliance on email capabilities.

Posted by jacohen at 5:40 PM | Comments (0)

April 19, 2005

Satellite Radio Joins Forces with Martha Stewart: An Attempt to Market Products without Images

After her release from prison, Martha Stewart is now serving a sentence of house arrest while resuming her business deals; according to "Martha gets Sirius in radio deal," which appeared on CNN Money Online, Martha Stewart just negotiated a business deal with Sirius Satellite Radio to develop a new radio program which can be accessed by listeners through subscription only.

Stewart's reemergence on the business scene has likely drawn attention from critics who claim that she is attracting publicity - and thus making money - out of her prison sentence and subsequent house arrest. Whether or not this is the case, the article references that money is indeed being made as her company's stock prices surged dramatically following news of the program's release. Whether the rise in stock value will continue or even maintain itself over the coming weeks is yet to be seen.

The article draws reference to how this new radio effort by Martha's company diverges substantially with its image-based television and magazine products. It is unclear whether her products will be as marketable - and thus as successful - on radio since, it seems to me, that a major component of the popular appeal of her products is based on their colorful images; perhaps their sounds or verbal descriptions of their purposes will be less effective at marketing them to a wide audience. Yet, the article does mention that part of this effort is to accomodate consumers who do not have the time to watch television programs or read magazines as it is believed that information on products can be consumed more easily through radio, or at least concurrently while performing other tasks.

Posted by jacohen at 12:01 AM | Comments (0)

April 17, 2005

Sophisticated Media Introduces New Challenges for the Vatican's Papal Selection Process: Counter-Espionage Efforts Underway to Prevent Unauthorized Access by Uninvited Guests

According to "Vatican on lookout for eavesdroppers," which appeared on CNN Online, those involved in the selection process for the next pope have taken measures designed to prevent spies from gaining unauthorized access to the very secret deliberations and voting procedures that are about to take place in the Vatican. As the article indicates, modern media has become so sophisticated that it is now extremely difficult to preserve secrecy, a development that is challenging the Vatican to take action in order to block uninvited guests.

For this reason, the article reports that "a media blackout" is underway in order to completely isolate the cardinals involved in the decision. Experts have been called in to manage what has been likened to a counter-espionage operation: these media experts are not looking for human spies, but rather for "bugs" and other high-tech gadgets which, though unnoticable to the ordinary eye, would be capable of transmitting data to sources far away who would be willing to turn that information over to the public.

The sophistication of media has unanticipated side-effects that reveal a darker side to the capabilities of media technology when used for devious means. While media has positively transformed the manner in which we communicate with one another, it has also made complete privacy and secrecy much more difficult - if not impossible - to achieve, introducing new ethical challenges regarding where, if anywhere, a line should be drawn between acceptable and unacceptable use of media tools.

Efforts by spies to obtain information on the papal selection process has presented a major dilemma for the Vatican: how to go about protecting the secrecy of the process in order to preserve centuries of tradition. This is the first papal selection process to be affected by such sophisticated media; however, as the article suggests, efforts are underway by experts to block spies from gaining unauthorized access as "uninvited guests" to the historic deliberation processes.

Posted by jacohen at 11:30 AM | Comments (0)

April 14, 2005

(Experimental Media Platform) Unconventional Source of Media: WNYC Public Radio Institutes "Radio Lab"

In an effort to create a novel medium for news distribution, WNYC has instituted a public radio program called "Radio Lab" in order to bring listeners into the spotlight by giving them the opportunity to contribute to the commentary and by presenting news stories that would otherwise not garner any substantial attention.

The "Radio Lab" has an online component to advertise itself and its upcoming events as well as lay out a weekly schedule . Moreover, the station seeks to build an archive of past stories, a step through which it attempts to overcome the linear nature of radio news that we have discussed in class. By allowing listeners to go back over past programs and revisit information that is presented, the radio station becomes much more of an interactive media platform.

In conjunction with the archive, the radio programs can be accessed online after their debut through any MP3 player, referred to on the platform's site as "Podcasting." This move attempts to make the radio programs more accessible by integrating the "older" forms of radio media with the "new" digital media sound system that many young and old listeners have purchased and use frequently.

Finally, the site does not specifically indicate its primary source of revenue or whether advertising constitutes any portion of that revenue. However, the station seeks consumer financial support through "E-Pledges"much like other public broadcasting stations, including PBS.

While it is not advertised as experimental, this radio platform is advertised as "unconventional journalism" that seeks to take radio programming to another level: integrating listeners into a more comprehensive media experience by allowing them to both contribute to the content of the news and allowing them to access those stories again later, a service that overcomes the linear nature of radio broadcasting.

Posted by jacohen at 9:59 PM | Comments (0)

Interview with News Contact on the Future of News: Insights into Media from a Senior Editor at Businessweek

Technological advancements over the past few years have had a substantial impact on each platform of media, including newspapers, magazines, television and radio. The extent to which media corporations are adapting to what some might term a media "revolution" has varied from company to company. In an interview with a senior international editor at Businessweek, I was able to gain some insights into how Businessweek has adapted to both the prospects and the challenges that have been brought on by digital media so that the publication can remain competitive in the industry.

The primary focus of Businessweek is in-depth analysis and coverage of business trends and market developments (see blog post on February 21, 2005). By providing technical insights into recent economic activity and by making predictions regarding the future of business, Businessweek caters to an extremely focused audience which consists largely of business personnel and those with a considerable interest in business. Businessweek tends to frame its stories in a way that is geared towards a sophisticated audience that may already have a fairly substantial foundation of knowledge in the field of business.

While the content of the magazine has remained consistent in recent years, the international editor indicated that Businessweek has undertaken a number of structural changes in order to adapt itself to improved communications potential through digital media. Of the "modern" forms of media, such as television and the internet, he indicated that the internet has encouraged some of the most drastic changes in his business and has led to a reassessment of the direction that Businessweek would be heading, both in terms of content and presentation. First of all, the advent of the internet meant that Businessweek had another outlet in which to distribute its analysis. Through web coverage, it can more easily and effectively target a specific audience with business news that readers want. While Businessweek reports the same news stories uniformly across the world, readers are able to comb through information that they want more effectively through the internet, an outcome which has allowed the magazine to elevate its specificity and thus its viewership. As a result, "the Internet is one of few growth areas in media" and while it "used to be an add-on service" for Businessweek, it has now become "[its] primary growth area." The internet has allowed the magazine to cover more aspects of the business community within one publication cycle by constantly updating and adjusting stories when new developments occur. As we discussed in class, media web sites are part of the 24-hour news cycle phenomenon, allowing journalists to post stories at all hours without fears of rigid deadlines. This is not to say that deadlines have been eradicated altogether: rather, it seems as if the end-of-day deadline has merely been replaced by a continuous deadline as journalists are able to contribute information at any hour for immediate publication on the internet.

The advent of the internet has led to a transformation in advertising for Businessweek. As the editor pointed out, the drive towards greater readership means that advertisers are more intent on advertising online than in print. The shift in advertising emanates from the tracking-capabilities of internet sites: because web sites can record the number of visitors to each story and produce statistics regarding readership, advertisers are able to gather a better idea of how widely their advertisements are being received and whether their investments are worthwhile. The increase in online advertising has occurred concurrently with a decrease in print advertising which has resulted in a shorter magazine print publication: as the editor indicated, the print version of "Businessweek has become thinner" while the internet sites have become much more extensive and dynamic.

Yet, while the content of Businessweek has for the most part remained consistent whether on the internet or in print, the editor indicated that the presentation is different online for a number of reasons related to visual stimulation. The web sites are able to present graphics and even slideshows, attracting viewers by making stories easier to read and more pleasant to follow. Web sites are more technologically advanced than their print counterparts, allowing for "more attractive video interviews," which suggests a convergence with television. While the editor did not suggest that the internet was becoming like the television, there are certain undeniable similarities between online video interviews and television reporting. These similarities seem to represent an attempt by media companies to integrate all the best features from each media platform into the internet: the visual stimulation of television, the in-depth nature of print, and the ubiquity of radio.

The challenge for Businessweek in the future is to increase its readership on the internet while improving the content - or substance - of its reports. The editor indicated that the company's primary source of revenue is not going to be subscriptions. Rather, the majority of the company's revenue comes from advertising, a change that signals the growing importance of advertisements for media sources like Businessweek. The business will seek readers because, with readers, come advertisers. In this way, the industry may make a fundamental break from its reader-focused philosophy to an advertiser-focused mentality, seeking viewers only as a means of attracting advertisers.

While Businessweek is known partially for its special relationship with its parent company, The McGraw-Hill Companies, the editor indicated that its synergy with its sister companies is not as great as management would prefer. The publication works quite close with Standard & Poor's given the resemblance between the type of reporting conducted by the two. Yet, beyond that, Business week does not integrate its work with other subsidiary companies of the McGraw-Hill Company to any appreciable extent. The editor attributed this reality to the fact that each company has its own work to accomplish and its own money to make and just does not have the time or the resources to make such a cross-collaborative effort work. Nonetheless, he acknowledged the potential benefits that such synergy could bring to each subsidiary company were it to be taken up on a more consistent basis.

When asked about how Businessweek caters to different regional readers, the editor indicated that there is little variation between what a reader sees in the United States version of Businessweek versus what one might see in Businessweek in Asia or Europe. This is because "[readers] want [Businessweek's] analysis of what is happening" in the economy and they "don't necessarily want their [own] point of view." Thus, business news needs to reflect all regions of the world and, given our globalized societies, all readers need to be aware of business developments in other regions. The challenge, rather, is to provide analytically critical news of the same caliber to all regions and to allow readers themselves to seek the specific reports within the publication that are most applicable to their own lives. There is substantial competition between Businessweek and other publications as one might imagine. On account of the internet and globalized media, other sources, such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, each compete in the same international markets. For this reason, the editor emphasized that analytically critical content is essential in order to provide readers with sophisticated and in-depth reports of what they want to read about. It just so happens that the company has found - or simply assumed - that the "attitude [of Businessweek readers] is the same everywhere in the world." Thus, Businessweek's main challenge is providing international readers with reports that will inform them of current events in the business world at a level that is appropriate for their businesses - they do not pay very much attention to varying content according to their readers' country of residence.

The editor did not have any particular feelings regarding blogs and indicated that his knowledge of blogs was not substantial. He recognizes the impact that blogs have on the media industry and mentioned that it is an important field which will likely influence the future of news; yet, he did not have any particular comments on how blogs would specifically influence Businessweek or any other publications in the future. He did mention that a big story on blogs would be coming out by Businessweek in the next few weeks and to look out for it as it will highlight the blog phenomenon.

Given that we have devoted substantial time to considering the international scope of news media, I asked the editor to elaborate on his feelings regarding the importance of international news coverage by US media companies and whether its current status was adequate. As an international news editor, he felt that international news coverage was "absolutely essential" and that the "best thing would be heavy coverage of international stories." However, he indicated that "a real problem" with the current status of media is that "the only people or organizations that do much of this [international reporting] is The New York Times and the European press and if it is not on the front of the New York Times then it is going to get no attention here and politicians [will not] feel any reason to address it." Thus, the editor believes that there is a significant correlation between what the press covers and what issues our government takes on. One might infer that his response indicates a dissatisfaction with the current status of international reporting and that the future of news should emphasize international reporting to a more appreciable and consistent extent.

At the same time, though, he mentioned that, in order for international stories to be covered by US media, they "need to be entertaining enough" to appeal to an American audience. For Businessweek, international news related to the business world is important; beyond that, the publication will not generally cover other issues such as humanitarian crises or political developments unless they can be directly related to the economy. In many cases, stories can be related to business even if it is a stretch; yet, in situations where coverage is dangerous to reporters, such as in instances of genocide in Bosnia or in cases of general instability such as in Iraq, the company will not send reporting units to cover such stories. Thus, attention is not attributed to these stories.

My interview with the international news editor was highly productive and I am grateful to him for offering his time and expertise in commenting on the future of news. I have elaborated on a number of the items we discussed in order to relate them more directly to what we discussed in the course. His interpretation of the future of news seems optimistic: his emphasis on the role of the internet in encouraging change suggests that more changes are still to be made in the collection, production and dissemination of news media. While he could not comment specifically on the impact of blogs, it is likely that blogs will be a major contributor to the next round of changes to affect the media industry. Technological advances have been the most prominent advocate of change to media and technology keeps progressing so it is likely that media will adjust accordingly. The issue of critical conern for journalists, editors and management is whether their publications can keep up with the changes and adapt.

Posted by jacohen at 5:46 PM | Comments (0)

April 13, 2005

Election Season for New York City's Next Mayor: Blogs Identify Weakness Within the Democratic Party

As the election season for New York City's next mayor begins, Patrick Healy and Jim Rutenberg lament on a growing concern among democrats that the liberal party in New York is extremely weak and will unlikely be able to overcome incumbent Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Their article, "Democratic Leaders Worry Over Mayorial Race," which appeared on The New York Times Online, identifies that some of the skepticism over the party's chances in the election emanates from liberal blog sites such as DailyKos.com. The article implicitly suggests that bloggers have had and will continue to have an unusual effect on the democratic party's malaise.

The article indicates that DailyKos.com, one of the liberal blogging sites involved in the election commentary, has focused thus far almost exclusively on the political ideology of incumbent Mayor Bloomberg - his programs, political perspectives, and personal beliefs - while criticizing the static nature of the democratic party in this early stage of the election.

While the article does not focus on the blog sites exclusively, and rather introduces the perspectives of other politicians at the local and federal levels, the article implicitly draws attention to the possible effect that blogs may have in either deeping the malaise of the democratic party in New York or, on the contrary, reinvigorating it through drawing public attention to its weaknesses and inactivity. Blogs have pervaded the political arena already in countless other local, state and national elections and there seems to be no question that they will have a considerable effect on this mayorial race - an exceptionally important race for New York City as the city is planning to undergo a number of construction projects in the near future. The article emphasizes that the elections are still far off; however, the blogs have already begun taking note of the political situation, allowing contributors to reporting their observations and encourage public debate and change.

Posted by jacohen at 4:41 PM | Comments (0)

April 12, 2005

Careful Blogging: An Organization Offers Suggestions for How to Balance the Benefits with the Consequences when it comes to Blogging

According to "Work bloggers Offered guidelines," which appeared on the BBC News Online, an American civil rights organization has released a set of recommendations that bloggers should conform to in order to avoiding suffering the potential consequences that can come along with posting one's ideas in the blogosphere for all to see. These recommendations arise in light of growing uneasiness over whether bloggers should be held accountable for what they say, article says, particularly if they say something negative about their work place.

According to the article, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) published a set of recommendations regarding blog postings; among these recommendations, the organization suggested that bloggers seek anonymity in cases where they are writing information about their jobs. More generally, the organization advocated that bloggers "use common sense" when blogging, according to the article.

Given the novelty of blogs and their unchartered terrritory, the major issue has been to define exactly what "common sense" actually is: to define what the limitations should be, if any, and to what extent bloggers can be held accountable for what they write. The EFF has sought to establish basic parameters for what "common sense" should be through its recommendations, yet it is not an official government organization that can make its recommendations into law, so whether its recommendations will be taken seriously by bloggers is to be seen.

Nonetheless, the organization's move represents a growing awareness of the blogosphere by civil rights groups in order to help those who seek to exercise their freedom of speech right on the internet. Through its basic recommendations, the group has sought to bring order and safety to bloggers so that they may continue to publish their ideas freely without jeopardising their jobs.

Posted by jacohen at 1:15 PM | Comments (0)

April 11, 2005

Rewarding Bloggers: Financial Compensation for Pulishing Online Stories in the Blogosphere

According to "News network to pay 'citizen journalists,'" which appeared on The New York Times Online, an internet media company called GetLocalNews.com is undertaking an effort to compensate citizen contributors to its bloggin sites by sharing with them a sizable portion of proceeds they earn through advertising. The internet local news site is a conglomerate of approximately six-thousand independent local news companies, according to the article, and plans to encourage bloggers to participate in the blogosphere through financial rewards.

The program that GetLocalNews.com is establishing is not unique in the sense that it is not the first internet-based company to pay individuals for their newsworthy stories in proportion to the appeal and popularity of their stories. As I included in a previous blog titled, "Impact of Blogging Felt Around the World: A New Purpose for Blog Reporting with Financial Incentives for Whom this Article Terms 'Citizen Reporters,'" (April 1, 2005) which referenced the CNN Online article "Korean bloggers making a difference," an internet media company in Korea has implemented a program in which it rewards contributors to its blog site. Thus, although GetLocalNews.com is not the first in this regard, its move towards compensation nonetheless represents what may become a growing trend in the online media industry in order to encourage public contribution and competition among blogging sites.

The article cites that the major motivation is to encourage greater public participation in the blogosphere in the interest of reporting more extensive news coverage in a shorter period. However, the article also alludes to a more subtle yet equally important purpose: citizen contributors who post information and are not appropriately compensated may feel unnecessarily demeaned as unworthy of the perks attributed to professional journalists.

At the same time, however, this move by GetLocalNews.com may have another effect that the article draws attention to: it is yet another example in the diminishing line that separates professional from amateur journalists in media.

The compensation is not huge, the article notes, referencing the $2.00 to $5.00 reward that varies according to the viewership of the posting. Nonetheless, this development in the blogosphere is perhaps a relatively important indicator of what is yet to come: the development of a complex blogging environment where ordinary citizens are rewarded for their work and can make a considerable living out of blogging without need to leave the home. The effect that such a hypothetical outcome would have on the economy would not necessarily be positive as potential employees may be encouraged to leave the work environment to take up blogging full-time. This a huge hypothetical, but it is nonetheless a possibility given the progress made by the blogosphere in the short period it has been around.

Posted by jacohen at 6:51 PM | Comments (0)

April 9, 2005

Media About to Enter New Dimension: Sony to Create More Holistic Media Experience that Integrates All Five Senses

Until now, media consumption has been limited to at most two primary senses: vision and hearing. While television has succeeded at integrating both of these senses into media experiences, other forms of media are only able to reach one sense: radio relies on hearing and newspapers/magazines rely on sight. Yet, according to "Sony aims to beam sights, sounds into brain," which appeared on CNN Online, new technology from Sony seeks to create a media experience in which all five senses may be harnessed and targeted.

According to the article, Sony's recent patent on this new technology which is still largely theoretical is intended primarily for video games. Although its entrance to the market may be long from now, the implications of it are high. If the new technology could artificially create sensory perceptions by stimulating brain cells through electric impulses, its developers believe that they could make a client feel as if he or she were smelling, touching, or tasting something. However, the article takes this potential one step further, suggesting that it may introduce hope for some individuals who are blind or deaf by allowing certain sensory perceptions to bypass the eyes and ears altogether and stimulate the brain, making sight and hearing a reality.

The new technology has been copyrighted for Sony, allowing it the exclusive right to research and implement its findings, the article explains. Although Sony has intended it primarily for video games - to take them to a new dimension and create a more holistic media experience - in the future this technology could become more widespread and allow those whose senses are impaired to use them once again. This media technology has the potential to introduce a new form of media consumption that will likely make our current forms of media - television, radio, and newspapers and magazines - seem archaic.

Posted by jacohen at 2:41 PM | Comments (0)

April 6, 2005

Overcoming an Employee's Worst Nightmare when Blogging: Careerbuilder Lists the Most Important Considerations When it Comes to Blogging to Avoid Getting Fired

CNN Online published the article, "Avoid getting fired for blogging", which draws reference to the growth in blog producers and consumers over the past few months.

According to the article, approximately eight million Americans have authored at least one blog and around one-third of all Internet users have read a blog published by someone else. Thus, blogs have become an ever present phenomenon on the internet, drawing both positive and negative attention to a number of different issues, be they political, economic, social, cultural or whatever. Blogs enable anyone to obtain the public spotlight since postings can generally be read by anyone, anywhere and can at times generate considerable controversy.

The main message of the article is that given their popular availability, employees have been fired on account of their writing about their company and should thus be careful when publishing blogs on the internet that pertain to information about one's work environment. The article references several items employees should bear in mind when writing blogs to avoid these problems in order to separate blogs from the work environment.

The main conflict that arises through the article's discussion, however, is freedom of speech and whether bloggers have the right to say anything on the basis of this freedom. While the article does not directly mention the right to speech, it can be read to say that a blogger will undoubtedly fail to be protected by this amendment when publishing information about a company for which he or she is employed. Thus, it is imperative that bloggers be careful when posting information about a company. Whether that will stand in the future - or be changed through court decisions - is as of yet unknown and thus bloggers should follow the conditions prescribed by the article in order to be active in the blogosphere while staying employed.

Posted by jacohen at 10:05 AM | Comments (0)

April 5, 2005

Sad Development for ABC News: Peter Jennings Falls ill

Viewers that have watched ABC news regularly have come to know the evening news anchor, Peter Jennings. In a recent development reported by, "Peter Jennings has lung cancer," which appeared on CNN Online, the news anchor has become ill and will likely appear less frequently on the ABC evening news.

While he intends to remain active in the program and has no plans to retire or take a leave of absence, Jennings will most realistically need to be absent from the production intermittently, article says.

This developmed has tremendous implications for ABC News as well as other networks, including CBS News and CNN News. Dan Rather recently retired from ABC News amid a scandal involving President Bush's reelection. Now, ABC's primetime news anchor may need to retire or be absent for an extended period. There seem to be a number of major changes taking place in the news industry regarding anchors. To what extent this will disrupt the predilection of individuals towards particular programs over others - whether individuals will remain loyal to a particular station despite changes in news anchors - is yet to be seen. Moreover, it will be interesting to see what impact these changes in anchors will have on news ratings and the race between news companies to attract new viewers.

Posted by jacohen at 11:58 AM | Comments (0)

April 3, 2005

Death of Pope John Paul II is Broadcast by the Vatican Primarily through Modern Media: Email

An extremely sad development of this past week was the death of Pope John Paul II, who passed away at age 84 in the Vatican. While the world is in mourning, celebrating the life of the Roman Catholic Church and remembering his accomplishments, according to "Traditional Vatican turns to e-mail to announce pope's death," which appeared on CNN Online, news the Pope's death has been broadcast primarily through modern media, rather than through traditional means, in order to reach the worldwide public quicker. According to the article, "[t]he Vatican, steeped in centuries-old rituals and arcane traditions, turned to a distinctly modern tool to announce that Pope John Paul II had died: It sent an email." Moreover, the article reports that such a means of communicating the information is incredibly uncharacteristic of the Vatican, which relies almost exclusively on tradition and custom: "[t]he use of such technology for such a historic announcement was unusual for an institution that still follows customs rooted in past centuries." The means of communicating the Pope's death suggest an effort to embrace the power of modern media in widely disseminating information to the public in a fast and efficient manner. While the article does not mention to whom the Vatican's email was sent, it can be inferred that there may have been a general subscription email list of individuals who would receive updates on developments in the Vatican and on the Pope's health.

While the article does not go into depth about whether the communication of such a sad development via email was a good or a bad thing, the article does devote substantial attention to the irony of the Vatican's move towards embracing modern media technology during this time of mourning. Citing that the Vatican relies on rituals and other symbolic customs for much of its usual actions, the article questions why it would seek to distribute this information in such an unconventional - and untraditional - method.

The wide dissemination of the news by email was probably a good thing in order to allow the public to hear of the sad news quicker. By allowing for a more efficient means of communicating with the world's public, the article infers that the Vatican allowed the mourning process to begin sooner and embrace people around the world who are mourning the pope's death while celebrating his life's accomplishments. However, the tone of the article does wonder whether embracing modern media will become convention for the Vatican and whether the use of email will be a widely used tool in distributing news and other information to the public: in other words, one can read the article to ask whether email and modern media will become the Vatican's "new tradition" and become common practice in distributing information.

Posted by jacohen at 11:31 AM | Comments (0)

April 2, 2005

Blogs Reinvent the Gossip Arena: Impact of the Blogosphere on Newspaper Gossip Columns is Astounding

The introduction of blogs and the blogoshpere have affected media in unbeliveable - and often unanticipated - ways over the past few months as the availability of news has increased and methods by which news may be published have become easier: according to the article, "In the Blog Era, Liz Smith Wonder's if there's Room for the Pro," by Katharine Q. Seelye, which appeared on the New York Times Online, the blogosphere has reinvented the way in which gossip columnists - and perhaps celebrities as well - go about researching gossip news and disseminating gossip stories. As Seelye quotes, "'[t]he internet and blogs have returned gossip to its earliest human roots - the kind of gossip that the priests told you was a venal sin.'" The introduction of new media - blogs and other internet forms of media - have had profound effects on the way in which gossip news is acculuated and disseminated; but, as the article suggests, the advent of these newer means of reporting news have also deeply impacted the content of gossip stories, encouraging gossip columnists - either professional columnists reporting for newspapers or independent and amateur "columnists" entering their stories onto the blogosphere - to probe deeper and usually dirtier, entering an arena of gossip that to this point has been unprecedented. The article draws attention to the fact that gossip columnists can now alter facts, fill in blanks, or even make up entire stories "'in this sort of merry way'" that has become conventional. One can infer that from the tone of the article that as a result of amateur columnists who are becoming involved in gossip through the internet, traditional gossip columnists, such as Liz Smith, who is featured in the article, are becoming rare or unemployed.

The interesting perspective of the article, which includes a recount of a "gossip" interview with Nicole Kidman at the Four Season's Restaurant in New York City, attempts to show how the life of a traditional gossip columnists has changed through the eyes of Liz Smith, a columnist for The New York Post and Newsday. According to the article, "the gentle behind-the-scenes glimpse of celebrities is Ms. Smith's stock in trade...[a]nd it has helped her survive the increasingly cutthroat business of gossip-writing, an industry that has mushroomed over the past three decades and spawned scores of magazines, television shows, Internet sites and blogs that are consumed with all manner of people-watching and celebrity doings." In an era where gossip had already been changing substantially, the article suggests that blogosphere played a contributory role to the transforming gossip industry, leading to the potential demise of professional - and thus employed - columnists in deference to amateur - and thus un-salaried - blogging "columnists" who can report gossip they may encounter much more easily and competitively.

As Seelye reports, "[g]one are the days when a single gossip columnists could make or break a career" and "[g]one too are the days when gossip columnists had individual identities" on account of a number of technological revolutions - and other societal factors - including the advent of the blogosphere. However, the article suggests that Liz Smith has been able to maintain her position in the industry - and even have her contract renenwed - amid the changes in the industry on account of the what the article terms to be her "edge." While Seelye does not go on to define exactly what she means by "edge" in her article, the reader can infer that Liz Smith is still able to get exclusivive gossip news on account of something special about her or her skills in the industry that make her column worthwhile, popular, and thus profitable for whichever newspaper employs her.

Posted by jacohen at 5:16 PM | Comments (0)

April 1, 2005

Impact of Blogging Felt Around the World: A New Purpose for Blog Reporting with Particular Financial Incentives for Whom this Article Terms "Citizen Reporters"

The blogging phenomenon is widespread, reaching all corners of the globe and encouraging citizen contribution of potentially newsworthy information: according to "Korean bloggers making a difference," by Kristie Lous Stout, which appeared on CNN Online, blogging has acquired a major internet presence as "citizen reporters" have emerged with the capacity to post potentially newsworthy events for all to see. According to the article, "South Korea leads the rest of the world in terms of internet broadband access, with more than seven out of ten households having access." With this widespread internet access, citizens have been able to access internet media and use the internet domain to consume news stories; at the same time, the article indicates that the intenet has facilitated the production of news in both directions, no longer simply from newsroom to citizen, but now also from citizen to newsroom. The internet news site which the article features is "OhMyNews," an internet news company whose "slogan is 'every citizen is a reporter'" leading to the "[creation] [of] a new kind of journalism" which the site terms "two-way journalism." The implications of such a development are important, since news collection and dissemination powers are no longer relegated to a small group of news corporations; rather, as the article intimates, ordinary citizens have full access to publishing news stories for all to see and can even receive financial compensation for their contributions. The wave of new journalism has touched all corners of the globe that have internet access and, according to the article, is redesigning the way in which news is collected and disseminated to individuals.

An individual featured in the article, Lee, an independent "citizen reporter" who writes while working in a lingerie shop, "has earned $5,000 from her work as a citizen reporter, but claims that she is not in it for the money" according to the article. Rather, "OhMyNews" has inadvertently or purposefully recruited thousands of independent citizens to supply news stories, the article claims, totaling 50 full-time employees and approximately 36,000 of what is termed "citizen reporters."

The article emphasizes the fact that objectivity is not sought in stories and the internet site does not pretend - or even give the impression - of reporting objectively in its stories. Rather, the article points out that this site has become more of an advocacy resource, where citizens can express their views and either promote or discredit public programs, goals, or anything else imaginable.

The rendition of the blogging phenomenon that the article draws attention to is very interesting and presents another dimension to the capabilities of blogs when they are available to - both in production and consumption - a wide audience. The article indicates that, in this case, blogs have become common and are being widely used as a means of promoting a position or drawing attention to something that might not otherwise receive attention. But, moreover, the article adds that citizens get paid - sometimes quite substantially - for their contributions and can almost earn a living by blogging full-time. While the future potential of blogs is still uncertain, this article points out that their capabilities are expanding to reach a wider audience with a greater purpose.

Posted by jacohen at 7:45 PM | Comments (1)

March 30, 2005

Improving the Channels of Communication Between Government and Citizen: Integrating the Web and New Media into Government Accountability

A central responsibility of the news media, as advocated by the Hutchins Commission Report, is to promote democracy by acting as a watchdog over government activities and to coordinate with the public in order to keep the public apprised of government developments. That being said, in light of a number of reports that appeared before and after the Hutchins Report, the government and the public alike have sought new means of communication that would improve the channels available for cross-collaboration and discussion, fostering true democracy: according to "Net can transform public services," which appeared on the BBC Online, a recent study conducted in the United Kingdom shows that a third of British citizens would be equally content to communicate with their government - and their government's officials - through internet means, rather than simply through more traditional avenues for cross-collaboration, such as the telephone or mail. Moreover, the article cites the study's statistic that approximately 95% of citizens overall would favor the government's implementation of services online so that they could more easily communicate with their government and vice versa. Most important, however, is the believed impact of the study. According to the article, "the British Government is committed to getting most of its services online[,]" signifying a rapid response by the government to conform to the demands of the public, as should be the case in a democratic government.

However, the article draws attention to a major discrepancy between what the public hopes such internet communication would deliver and what the government will actually be willing to deliver through a more aggressive online communications program. Moreover, it draws attention to desire of over seventy-five percent of citizens to access to government services outside of normal hours of operation, a service that the internet would allow.

The article notes the study's report that, when asked their prefered method of communicating with government, "one-third chose net access, compared with one-third the telephone, and one-third face-to-face interviews...an even split between the three." Such a study draws attention to the growiing desire of citizens to seek new - and more technologically advanced - methods of communicating with government officials. Participating in government is crucial to democracy and, as the article cites, the British government is adapting itself to changes in society that have taken place through the advent of the internet.

At the same time, though, there are security concerns associated with bringing the government - and its information - onto the internet. Risks of hacking or identity theft are among the fraudulent offenses that governments must be aware of when digitalizing their resources. Also, in light of the possibility of cyber-terrorism, there are additional concerns to bringing government resources online. Yet, these fears are not reasons to prevent using the internet as a means of communication between the citizens and the government. Rather, these are simply issues that must be discussed and addressed before any significant changes are made so that the government is not compromised through its efforts.

Posted by jacohen at 5:38 PM | Comments (0)

March 28, 2005

New Style for CBS Evening News in Order to More Effectively Relate With Viewers: Conversational and Informal Style to Replace Dan Rather's Formal Tone

In light of Dan Rather's recent retirement, CBS News has sought a suitable replacement to follow Dan Rather's popularity and fame as an evening television news reporter. However, according to "TV Dogs Learning New Tricks," by Howard Kurtz, which appeared on the Washington Post Online, CBS hopes that Rather's replacement copies only his popularity, while forgoing his particular style. In other words, Kurtz decribes CBS's attempt to replace Rather's autere tone with a more user-friendly news cast that substitutes formality with informality and preparation with spontaneity. According to the article, Bob Schieffer, Dan Rather's interim replacement, has decided "to change the rigid formula of the nightly newscast...delivering the news in a conversational style, rather than with voice-of-God solemnity, interjecting his own views and encouraging CBS reporters to do the same." Moreover, Kurtz reports that Schieffer's new plan seeks to encourage reporters to "just chat" with him on the air "instead of doing taped reports followed by a standup." Kurtz quotes Shieffer as saying that "[he's] telling [reporters], throw away the scripts" and that he "[doesn't] want to do a rehearsed question and rehearsed answer, because people see through that" and, arguably, that is not what they want in their nightly newscast. Rather, Schieffer believes that the public wants a more informal and conversational news report, invested with style and charisma, rather than strict austerity and formality.

The new CBS plan seems like a significant - and some might say unanticipated - divergence from the work of Schieffer's predecessor and promises to reform the way that CBS performs its evening newscast. The new anchor, according to the article, wants his program to be reminiscent more of a newspaper sidebar than of a front-page report. He seeks to overhaul the method by which news companies produce and disseminate news in order that the public may be invited to participate, as if they were taking part in a conversation, rather than being lectured to in a condescending tone.

While the article is unclear whether or not Schieffer's new approach is based on any form of scientific data - which may prove that such an approach would be preferred by the public - it signals a potential shift in the way that news is produced. According to Kurtz, "[a]s television keeps trying to reinvent itself, other hosts and hotshots are doing the same[,]" tapping into a resevoir of untraditional and unconventional methods of appealing to the public.

CBS's move, however, is not unprecedented as CNN engaged in a similar de-formalization process of its Headline News Service. According to the article, "[i]n the month since CNN's Headline News replaced its news updates with prime-time talk shows, Nancy Grace has pumped up both ratings and controversy...by 126 percent over last year [sic] through a steady diet of gory and sensational cases."

What Schieffer's new plan will mean for the industry and, moreover, for the competition is yet to be seen. However, the article does allude to a very interesting phenomenon that was hardly unknown: people like news casts with which they can identify and, even more importantly, they tend to like news anchors with whom they can relate. Thus, Schieffer's plan seems as if it is right on the mark - by replacing formality with informality and rehearsals with spontaneity, the CBS evening news may rise in ratings while promoting a more user-friendly interface. However, key to news reporting is consumer trust. Whether the tone is formal and reheared or conversational and spontaneous, news must be accurate and the public must feel comfortable that its source of news is worthy of that trust. Thus, Schieffer will have to walk a thin line between becoming overly informal to the point where his newscast loses accuracy or reports too comfortably, both outcomes which risk derailing public trust.

Posted by jacohen at 7:36 PM | Comments (0)

March 26, 2005

FEC Activates Internet Regulation: Landmark Decision May Be First Step in a More Extensive Process in Regulating the Blogosphere and Other Internet Media

The debate over whether blogs and other forms of internet media should be subject to the same regulation as other more traditional forms of media took an unpredicted step on Thursday in favor of greater regulation. In "Feds Get Set for Net Rules," by Declan McCullagh, which appeared on CNN Online, the Federal Election Commission is reported to have "begun the perilous process of including political blogs and web sites in campaign finance rules that were created long before the Internet became such a powerful political tool." According the article, "FEC Commissioners voted 5-1 on Thursday to approve a procedure that is expected to end with a final set of Internet rules -- governing everything from whether bloggers are journalists to bulk political email -- in place by the end of the year." The move by the FEC was not predicted by this past Thursday's Washington Post Online article, "FEC Signals Light Hand on Internet Campaigning," which anticipated that the FEC would likely stay clear of any outward regulation of internet media, including blogging. The FEC's decision, which the article infers followed a Court ruling that the FEC extend the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) to cover internet media, is a major development in the regulation of internet media with a political edge. Despite attempts to avoid such regulation, the FEC seems likely to enforce that bloggers clearly disclose when their political statements are solicited by payments from campaigns.

Members of Congress have already come out in opposition to the FEC's ruling, including Senator Harry Reid who, according to the article, plans to present a bill which would effectively immunize the internet from political campaign financing regulations completely.

The article draws attention to ardent organized opposition by bloggers who contend that such regulation is overly intrusive and arguably a violation of their rights. However, the article does concede that reactions overall to the FEC's ruling were mixed with many in support of the new regulations.

Nonetheless, the article points out that FEC's decision to begin regulating internet dimensions of political campaigns means that it is almost certain that bloggers will face limitations of some form in the near future. Such a move represents the first step in what is likely to be an ongoing process to implement new restrictions over the blogosphere and the rest of the internet. The only uncertain outcome of this decision is the public reaction which will likely have a tremendous impact on the type - and the degree - of regulation that ensues.

Posted by jacohen at 11:49 PM | Comments (0)

March 24, 2005

Regulating Blogs in Election Season: The FEC Weighs the Issue Regarding the Future of a Now Largely Unregulated Blogosphere

The issue of whether to regulate blogs in accordance with other forms of media communication has been a subject of wide debate as blogs have grown in popularity and internet presence. The issue of blog regulation continues to grow in complexity as bloggers use their internet postings in novel - and legally unconsidered - ways. Just this week, the FEC was made a ruling over whether it will seek the regulation of blogs in political campaigns, according to "FEC Signals Light Hand on Internet Campaigning," by Brian Faler of the Washington Post Online. As Faler describes, the FEC "revealed yesterday that it plans to take what one of its commissioners termed a 'relatively nonintrusive' approach to regulating political campaigns on the Internet." Moreover, Faler's article discusses that "[i]ts 'notice of proposed rulemaking,' as it is known, indicates that the FEC is focusing much of its attention on whether to apply campaign contribution limits on online political advertising campaigns[,]" yet, to this point, the FEC "has not decided to impose, but is leaning against imposing, restrictions on independent bloggers or bloggers who work for political campaigns." The FEC's deliberation over the future of internet blogging regulation of political campaigns represents just another twist in the debate over whether blogs and other forms of internet media communication should face the same standard controls and regulations as traditional forms of media, such as television programs, radio stations, newspapers and magazines. The FEC's leaning in this situation, as Faler intimates, is against regulation of any kind against blogs in political campaigns; however, it has nonetheless begun to consider the issue as blogging has entered yet another dimension, becoming a major tool in the political arena.

The article cites that the FEC's current consideration of this issue is not random, but rather emanates from a federal court decision where legislators sued the FEC for failing to enforce campaign finance reform acts that had been passed. Faler writes that while the FEC did adhere to the bill, it was overly loose in addressing and enforcing the bill's restrictions. The article mentions that the court ruled in that case in favor of the legislators, mandating that the FEC implement more stringent policies regarding internet political activities. Thus, the FEC is reconsidering this issue, even though it seems unlikely - at least in Faler's opinion - that any significant regulatory changes will result.

The future of blog regulation in political campaigns remains uncertain, as the article suggests; yet, there remains little doubt that this will become an increasingly important issue in the coming years as blogs continue to develop and expand in capabilities and public attention.

Posted by jacohen at 11:03 AM | Comments (0)

March 22, 2005

Blogging with a Twist: Yahoo Enters the Blogosphere with New Media Services that Aim to Preserve Privacy and Build Personality within Blogs Among a Restricted Audience

While blogs have gained increasing popularity, a number of internet media services have sought to expand the capabilities of blogs by integrating them into services that they already offer, giving greater functionality and services to their users. As "Yahoo to step into blogosphere" (CNN Online) explains, Yahoo Inc. plans to begin the integration of blogs into its other services to provide greater functionality and abilities to its users around the world. According to the article, Yahoo Inc. recently released that "it will soon start invitation-only testing of itsnew web log and social networking service Yahoo 360, which aims to better connect users to people they already know." The move by Yahoo would be the company's first official entrance into the blogosphere within the United States since it has already begun to offer such services overseas. What is particularly interesting about Yahoo's new service is that it incorporates a unique twist to the standard blog site. Rather than publishing blogs for all to see, Yahoo blog users will be able to specifically designate who can see their postings, generating a degree of privacy that has until now been absent among bloggers. According to the article, "[t]he home-grown technology will give users complete control over who sees their content," which is a novel approach to the other blog sites that have appeared in recent months.

While the specifics of the new services at Yahoo are still undecided, or at least not yet public, the company intends to capitalize on the growing popularity of blogs and make its service unique by promoting privacy in a more controlled blogosphere. According to the article, Yahoo Inc. intends to "integrate Yahoo's existing products, such as instant messenger, photos, local search, music and groups with new offerings such as blogs, mobile blogs and sharing tools for recommending movies, restaurants, and other items" to the public.

The desire by Yahoo to make its entrance into the blogosphere unique comes as a result of other media giants, such as Microsoft and Google, which have already begun to capitalize on the growing popularity of blogs. According to the article, Yahoo's integration of blogs into its other services, with added security through privacy tools to specify who is able to access particular postings, Yahoo has sought to make a new name for itself both within and beyond the blogosphere.

The article draws attention to the fact that Yahoo's current efforts are still part of a trial run for the new expanded services and will not yet be available to the general public in the United States. However, the move draws attention to the growing complexity of blogs and sheds light perhaps on where they are headed as a form of communication. While blogs until now have been readily available for the public's general consumption without privacy or security means readily available, Yahoo is seemingly seeking to change that. Blogs, once posted, have been available for all to see, a fact that may have caused some potential blog users to hold back due to fears of losing anonymity. Yet, Yahoo is revolutionizing the blogging technology, allowing friends to post blogs only visible to other friends which will likely cause blogs to become more personal and friendly. The article discusses Yahoo's intention for blogs to cover issues as wide as news and current events to movie and restaurant reviews. Thus, the new privacy may initiate a new path for blogs: they may become more personal and user-specific which will no doubt continue to elevate their popularity within the United States.

According to the article, "[b]logs and social networking have each drawn significant user interest and venture capital dollars in recent months and have become an increasingly popular venue for self-publishing content for the Internet's large audience." Yet, Yahoo's individually-catered services may give users the ability to decide and regulate how large that audience can be.

At the same time, however, Yahoo's services will bring the legal issues into an even greater spotlight. While authorities are unsure how to regulate blogs - if at all - the privacy capabilities of Yahoo's system will no doubt introduce a new curve in that debate as well. If blogs posted on Yahoo are not available to the general public like most traditional forms of media, they may not actually require the same legal contraints and regulations as other forms of media.

Posted by jacohen at 11:54 AM | Comments (1)

March 20, 2005

Opening Lines of Communication Between Blogs and Popular Media Corporations: Reassessing the Relationship Between "Old" and "New" Forms of Media

Traditional media corporations have been criticized for their possible biases in reporting news while bloggers have been criticized for the lack of veracity in their claims. Thus, both "old" and "new" forms of media communication, respectively, have been subject to criticism over whether they each individually present an accurate and balanced report of current events. While the two generations of media are challenged on opposing bases - "old" media for screening and filtering information too much and "new" media for failing to screen and filter information enough - recent attention has been paid for collaboration between the two to fill in and accomodate for each other's gaps. According to "Liberal Bloggers Reaching Out to Major Media," by Jonathan Glater, which appeared on The New York Times Online, collaboration between bloggers and major media companies including CBS, The Washington Post, Newsweek, and MSNBC has begun in order "'to build a bridge'" between the two generations of media with the "'hope that good credible stories that are broken on the internet find their way into coverage on the mainstream media." Such collaboration would allow major media companies to attribute attention to a greater number of perspectives while helping to screen the veracity of information presented in blogs. Such actions represent an attempt by some in both "old" and "new" media to address public criticism.

The article begins by noting a division among bloggers themselves about interacting with more traditional forms of media: "even as online pundits criticize traditional news organizations as slow, biased, and technologically challenged, a group of bloggers is trying to use old-fashioned telephone conference calls to share their ideas with newspaper and television journalists." While certainly not all bloggers will embrace communications with conventional media corporations, the article describes that some progressive or liberal ones have opened communications with the hope of gaining more public channels for the dissemination of the their news stories.

Much attention is attibuted by the article to the "blurring of boundaries" and the "[building] [of] a bridge" between blogging and traditional media to achieve mutual benefits. While the success of this most recent effort - through conference calls - to promote greater interaction is still unknown, the parties involved have hopes and high expectations for generating more accurate and complete news reporting as well as giving bloggers more avenues for information dissemination and journalists more sources from which to collect information.

Posted by jacohen at 8:05 PM | Comments (0)

March 17, 2005

Popularity of Blogs in the American Public: Article Describes that Blogs Are Not as Well-known Among Americans as Some Claim

While the blogosphere has grown substantially in recent months, "Poll: most Americans unfamiliar with blogs," which appeared on CNN Online, describes that the blog phenomenon may not be as wide spread among Americans as some have claimed. According to the article, "[m]ore than three-quarters of Americans -- 76 percent -- said they use the internet, but only 26 percent said they were 'very familiar' or 'somewhat familiar' with blogs" which the article defines as "personal diaries" that are maintained online. The article's claim draws attention to whether or not the blog phenomenon is actually as big as some have claimed. Moreover, the article cites a CNN-USA Today-Gallup Poll which reported that "[j]ust 7 percent of adults said they read blogs at least a few times per week" while "[f]orty-eight percent said they never do." While the blogosphere has grown substantially in recent months, acquiring news users, the article questions whether or not the audience for blogs is growing at a comparable speed.

However, it is important to define exactly what a wide audience for blogs actually is. Given that they only recently became popular, one might argue that 26 percent recognition by the American public overall, as reported by the article - that's over a quarter of all Americans with knowledge of blogs - is an exceptionally large audience given where blogs were just a few months ago. While some might not agree, one can read the article's statistics from the poll a completely different way: that blogs have grown in popularity and recognition over and above expectations. Regardless of how the article's statistics are read, blogs have grown in popularity over recent months. An interesting poll would be to see where the public thinks blogs are headed in terms of public recognition in the future.

Posted by jacohen at 11:28 AM | Comments (0)

March 15, 2005

White House Response to Allegations of Ethical Misconduct Regarding Video News Releases: Conflict Among Government Branches

In response to allegations that it is misleading the public through government video press releases, the White House - speaking on behalf of the entire executive branch - publicly upheld and supported its implementation of practices which involve forwarding video news releases to media outlets for public consumption. The article, "White House defends video news releases," which appeared on CNN Online, quotes White House press secretary Scott McClellan as saying that "the lack of disclosure was the fault of the broadcasters, not the government." However, the article draws attention to a more substantial debate within the government which shows developing conflicts between the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the White House, and Congress. According to CNN, "[t]he GAO says that video news releases amount to illegal 'covert propaganda' when they fail to make plain that the government is behind the releases." This contrasts strongly with the White House support of the practice which was upheld on legal grounds by the Department of Justice. While the White House believes that such video news releases are acceptable and have been used routinely in the past without objection, the Justice Department upheld the legality of the practice by ruling that "the videos were appropriate as long as the videos presented factual information about government programs" and "there is no advocacy of a particular viewpoint." As the article describes, the government's use of video news releases has brought to light the issue of government propaganda and has involved the government in an internecine struggle among different branches and agencies.

As the article points out, the debate over government issued video news releases surfaced shortly after the Armstrong Williams scandal with the Department of Education. While the article does not mention Mr. Williams or the Education Department specifically, it draws attention more generally to recent instances where it was alleged that journalists were paid with public money to specifically promote a particular point of view without disclosing that they were being paid.

However, according to the article, the Justice Department has most recently released its opinion that it is of great importance that the government releases "factual information and [does] not [cross] the line into advocacy." Nonetheless, the debate has revealed significant internecine struggles within the government among agencies and among branches of government. Members of the US Senate have challenged the Justice Department's opinion, according to the article, claiming that "[i]t is wrong to deceive the public with a phony news story" and "it is also illegal."

However, there is a great difference between misleading the public with false or embellished stories and releasing accurate public advocacy information, even if it is slanted to a particular perspective. However, as the article acknowledges, the government should recognize that the line between the two is incredibly thin and that video news releases - whether they include authentic information or not - will likely be looked upon by critics with skepticism given the recent press attention to false public advocacy campaigns. Nonetheless, the Justice Department must continue to publish its opinions on the issue and carefully watch developments to ensure that the government does not cross the line and mislead the public with false information or news releases that advocate particular perspectives without acknowledging the opposing side.

Posted by jacohen at 6:06 PM | Comments (0)

March 14, 2005

Blogs and the Blogoshpere as a Network of Political Tools: A CNN Article Considers Whether Blogs Should Be Subject to Campaign-Finance Regulations Like Other Forms of Media Communications

The question regarding whether blogging should be regulated by federal or state laws has garnered increasing publicity and attention in recent months following their increasing recognition and popularity. However, "Law makers: Hands off Web logs" which appeared on CNN Online, draws attention to the debate over whether blogging can be considered as a political tool and, if so, whether it should be face legal controls consistent with other political organizations. According to the article, "Democratic lawmakers and Internet commentators urged the Federal Election Commission to make sure that political web sites that serve as focal points for political discussion, like Wonkette.com and Freerepublic.com, don't have to comply with campaign-finance rules." As the line between blogging and traditional forms of media communications becomes thinner, questions have arised regarding whether blogging can be treated differently than other media, at least from the legal perspective.

The article draws attention to the fact that in 2002 the FEC decided "that internet activities do not count as 'coordinated political activity' and thus don't have to comply with laws that regulate money in politics." Yet, the article points out that a judge overruled that decision just last year, leading the FEC to reopen its discussion of this issue.

The regulation of blogs has become an increasingly prevalent issue in recent months following their entry into the political sphere. While a number of blogs, according to the article, have been welcomed by members of the House of Representatives as "a welcome diversity of viewpoints" which fosters the "'democratization'" of the media industry, others do not share this view. As a result, the debate over legal regulation of blogging continues.

Posted by jacohen at 4:18 PM | Comments (1)

March 10, 2005

The Most Significant News Stories from the Past Quarter Century: CNN Asks for Viewer Feedback on its 25th Anniversary

CNN is celebrating its twenty-fifth anniversary in news reporting this March. According to "Top news events: your picks," which appeared on CNN Online, rather than celebrating with a conventional party and cake, CNN is compiling a list of the most significant, memorable, and newsworthy stories from the past twenty-five years and asking for viewer feedback in making the selection.

Among the nominations mentioned in the article are events as far ranging as the "2000 Presidential election," to the beginning of the AIDS epidemic. The article also mentions the advent of airbag technology in automobiles, to the "Fall of the Berlin Wall," the "Persian Gulf War," "September 11, 2001," the "Tsunami," the "War in Iraq" and a host of other major news stories which gripped the nation's and the world's attention.

While some of the news events demonstrated a major step forward in technological development, others remind us of the hardship and sadness that we faced not too long ago. In short, the list that CNN is putting together to commemorate its 25th Anniversay reminds us - for better or for worse - of how much has happened over the past quarter century. At the same time, the article also begs the question of what we should expect over the next twenty-five years.

Posted by jacohen at 12:56 PM | Comments (0)

March 8, 2005

Breaking News in the White House Press Room: Credentialing Bloggers

History was once again made at the White House today. Yet, according to "White House admits first blogger to news briefing," reported on CNN Online, the event did not involve any new legislative act, presidential directive or other policy-related development. Rather, as the article points out, for the first time in our nation's history, a blogger was given the credentials needed to gain access to a White House press conference. In doing so, the White House recognized the value that blogging has acquired as a means of media communication and sought to include the newest wave of media in its daily reporting. Specifically, the article draws attention to the White House's tendency to admit reporters from reputable media sources as well as from less recognized media sources into its press conferences: "the White House has admitted 'the traditional media and the nontraditional media, as well as colorful individuals with certain points of view from the left and the right.'" While the White House's recognition of blogging as an actual source of media communication may not be the most newsworthy event to come out of the White House today, it is certainly a significant step forward for those who support blogging and routinely participate in this new wave of online reporting and correspondence.

The blogger who attended the White House press conference, according to the article, was Garrett M. Grath, age 23, who works for "a web log about the news media in Washington" known as Fishbowl, DC. While the credentials were not easy for Grath to obtain, following persistence he was granted a full day of access to White House press-related events.

In the article, Scott McClellan, the White House Press Secretary, is quoted as saying that "the briefing room ought to be an inclusive place." By including reporters or journalists from blog sites, the White House has - for better or for worse - given recognition to blogs as a source of media that should be represented in the White House Press Room alongside such conventional news sources as CNN, The New York Times and others.

Perhaps this is the first of many steps towards further growth and development of blog websites. Following the White House, it is possible that other government agencies and departments will begin to admit bloggers into their daily press briefings, giving bloggers the same access as conventional sources of news.

Posted by jacohen at 11:39 AM | Comments (0)

March 6, 2005

Journalists Who Face Danger in Pursuit of News: Conflicting Stories from the Field Following an Incident Involving US Military Forces in Iraq

Journalists know that their safety is not guaranteed in Iraq regardless of the number of security personnel they hire. Even the most protected journalists are subject to attack and, for this reason, they have to take extra precautions and constantly be alert. The majority of attacks against journalists have likely been perpetrated by Iraqi insurgents as part of a violent campaign to challenge the US intervention, occupation and subsequent withdrawal. In a recent incident, an Italian journalist was critically wounded while reporting in Iraq. However, as CNN Online reports in "Ex-hostage disputes U.S. account of shooting," the gunfire that wounded Giuliana Sgrena from Il Manifesto, an Italian newspaper, came not from enemy insurgents, but from US military forces when her car passed a security checkpoint without stopping. According to the article, her newspaper claims the US military's actions were an attempted "'assasination'" while the US military denies such allegations.

The US military and Sgrena offered conflicting accounts of the events surrounding the shooting which seriously wounded her and killed at least one member of her security force, according to the article. While the actual events are still unknown, Sgrena recounted on Sky TV, according to CNN, that she and her security force were attacked by US military tanks without provocation and without any form of warning. Yet, the US military challenges Sgrena's account, claiming that she approached a checkpoint and refused to stop when ordered, leading them to fire at her car and forcibly stop it.

The US military has been particularly troubled by the events given the low level of international support that it has for its reconstruction efforts. With international support at a loss, US forces inadvertently harmed their public support further by firing at a foreign journalist, whether or not it was warranted. At the same time, however, depending on the circumstances, US forces may not have had any alternative given the violence that occurs daily in Iraq by violent insurgents. According to the article, President Bush has already offered the Italian Prime Minister his apologies.

Sgrena's newpaper, Il Manifesto has, according to the article, accused the US military of attempting to "'assasinate'" her following her release from captivity in Iraq where she was held hostage for over a month.

Following other unfortunate events in Iraq, the US military has not fared well in terms of promoting public and international support for the reconstruction efforts. The current situation with Sgrena shows that increasing international support seems unlikely anytime soon.

Posted by jacohen at 8:35 PM | Comments (0)

March 5, 2005

War Reporting in the Blogosphere: The Impact of Blogs on Headlines from the War in Iraq

In the past, war reporting enabled an audience to obtain a limited number of headlines from the front lines. Such traditional reporting relied on media correspondents in the field passing information to networks who would then disseminate the news to the public. In the Iraq War, however, the middle step has become less important as blogs have enabled observers on the war's front to quickly disseminate headlines to a wide audience through the internet. As "Blogs of War: A Review of Alternate Sources of Iraq War Information" from Searcher Online Magazine describes, "[f]or better or worse, the information coming out of war zones has increased and accelerated" and, most interestingly, "[b]logs, essentially interactive online diaries or journals, have liberated the 'common person,' giving them the ability to speak and perform eyewitness journalism" and distribute information directly to the public. Morover, the key feature of the blog technological phenomenon in the Iraq war is that "[n]o longer are professional journalists and media conglomerates the exclusive information providers in times of conflict and, specifically to this article, the Iraq war." Ordinary citizens anywhere from the frontline in Iraq to their living rooms at home can post information, reactions, or opinions and skip right over the major media companies in connecting with the general public.

The blog phenomenon has revolutionized war reporting. In past wars, such as in the Gulf War over a decade ago, the public relied on journalists and major media companies for current information on successes and failures in the field. This information took time to be transmitted home and was significantly interpreted and "synthesized" by editors. As the article indicates, however, more recently "anyone with an Internet connection can read and witness the graphic descriptions, complex emotions, and varied opinions of bloggers in Iraq" and "[t]hese bloggers range from professional journalists who want to duck the censorship of large media, to Iraqi citizens, to the soldiers themselves." A number of blog websites exist and are consistently being updated with new information to be relayed to the public.

In an era where major news sources have been accused of biases and one-sided journalism, the blog phenomenon has enabled raw media data to be transmitted uninterpreted to the public. In the past, "[e]very network and venue was accused of bias, from the embedded journalists to Aljazeera" and "more than biased, a large percentage of the news was considered packaged, diluted, and spun for tidy consumption." Given the lack of faith attributed to major media companies by some consumers, the new blog outlets of information have been reassuring. As the article indicates, "[p]eople looking for authentic, unedited, eyewitness reports were largely out of luck" in the past, blog sites have been relaying information uncut and unprocessed to the public.

One such site that is referenced in the article is "Blogs of War." A site that consists of "news, analysis, political commentary, military events and news, along with an extensive collection of military and Iraqi links," has enabled quick public access to largely unprocessed war news. Another such site, "The Command Post Iraq," reports news and events, but is especially known for the positive spins and outlook it puts on stories. Moreover, some blog sites have political purposes as well. The site "War-Blogging" has a self-proclaimed purpose of "'provid[ing] another voice in the chorus of Americans calling for a balanced and reasonable foreign policy and a domestic policy that respects the United States Constitution and the rule of law.'" While not all of these sites are completely objective, there are enough of them to ensure that many perspectives are presented.

Given that these blog sites are supposed to be unbiased and unprocessed information ready for quick consumption by the public at large, some have questioned the ability of these sources to be truly objective. At the same time, while many disliked news processing, stories that major news companies reported were often checked for authenticity. Such checks are not carried out for blog sites, leading some to question the validity and authenticity of stories presented on the blogosphere. Regardless of their authenticity or objectivity, blogs represent a new outlet for media communication and dissemination and allow average citizens, from soldiers in the field to civilians at home, to consume data and post reactions for the public. One would hope, though, that there are enough blogging sites out there to ensure that many diverse perspectives are given attention.

Posted by jacohen at 12:37 PM | Comments (0)

March 3, 2005

Predicting the Next Media Fascination: A Soldier's Troubles in the National Spotlight

The media has devoted substantial attention to covering the war in Iraq. From the events leading to the US invasion, to the deployment of troops, to the aftermath and reconstruction, the media has been alongside the US military - and in some cases even embedded within military units - to cover first-hand the developments in the field and present that information to a domestic and international audience. However, recent events have altered the focus of media coverage in Iraq. As Paul Quinn-Judge describes in "Did He Go Too Far? How a shooting in Iraq led to murder charges against a respected Marine," which appeared in Time Magazine Online, media coverage of the war has become more focused, drawing both national and international attention to issues involving individual soldiers in pursuit of the next big story. Given that some have begun to compare the controversy surrounding this particular soldier to other major media fixations like the Laci Peterson case, the Chandra Levy case, and the Monica Lewinsky affair, the Pantano case may become "one of the most closely watched of any [trials] to come out of the Iraq War."

As the article suggests, the reasons for the media's focus on Pantano's case is its unusual nature. Lieutenant Ilario Pantano, commander of the 1st Marine Division in Iraq, has been accused of "at least seven violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, including two counts of premediated murder" involving the deaths of two Iraqi civilians. Since the war, only a single marine other than Pantano has been accused of murder and subsequently charged and only five have been convicted of what the military has termed "serious violent crimes committed in Iraq." The rarity of the event has sparked predictable media interest especially in the aftermath of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal.

However, "[b]ecause cases like Pantano's are so unusual, they prove to be bitterly divisive, with the prosecution and the defense equally convinced that they are fighting to uphold the military's core values." For that reason, the trial has taken on a significance well beyond simply bringing justice to suspected crimes. Rather, "the Pantano case is a window on a larger deate within the military about how and when to apply the rules of war in a shadowy fight against an unconventional enemy."

The essential issue brought to light by this case, and why it is likely to gather growing media attention in subsequent months, is that "[m]any of Pantano's fellow officers believe that the case reflects the gap between the way military leaders prefer to portray the war in Iraq to the public and the way it is actually being fought." While the article points out in an interview with an officer that "'[t]he single biggest problem with the Iraq operation is that the military is at war but the nation is not,'" the military is taking the Pantano case very seriously in order to preserve any domestic or international support of the operation that it can.

At the same time, the media is likely to take the issue to a new level of publicity, an outcome that may have a negative impact on Pantano's chances of being acquitted in the trial. International opinion and domestic opinion may encourage the military to decide to make an example out of Pantano as it did with soldiers convicted in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. Publicity from the media may harm both Pantano's chances and the military's chances of putting these unfortunate events behind them and continuing the reconstruction of Iraq.

Posted by jacohen at 10:56 AM | Comments (0)

March 1, 2005

Blogging and "Old Media": Integrating and Building a Bridge Between Two Extreme Forms of Media Communication

Blogging has become an important means of communication and reporting in recent months. From the last presidential election to a number of scandals involving major news corporations, blogging has become a powerful tool with which ordinary individuals can voice an issue and -whether or not it is true - reach a wide and varied audience. As Radley Balko explains in "Blogging...Blah, Blah, Blah," from Fox News Online, many major media companies from Fox News to MSNBC are taking up blogging through their reporters and columnists. Well-known liberal bloggers Kevin Drum and Matthew Yglesias "now write for 'old media' publications such as The Washington Monthly and The American Prospect, respectively." The article defines "old media" as traditional sources of information, from television and radio programs to newspaper and magazine articles. However, as the article points out, the dividing line between blogging media and conventional "old media" has become thinner. In other words, media corporations that represent the "old media" have begun taking up the newer and more controversial blogging phenomenon...(continued)...

Reporters from "old media" companies have become involved in blog websites. "Several MSNBC news personalities now run their own blogs, as do reporters and columnists from the New York Times, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal," a fact which has brought increased attention to the blogging phenomenon. Andrew Sullivan, "who had a distinguished carrer in journalism before starting his blog...has continued to write for popular media outlets since."

The convergence of blogging and "old media" is not only demonstrated through the birth of blogs sites run by well-known journalists. Rather, like older forms of media communication, blogs have developed an investigative character. From the Dan Rather Scandal, which resulted in the resignation of a number of high level CBS employees, to the Swift Boat controvery, which may have reduced Kerry's credibility in the last election, blogs have exposed some high level allegations against some very high profile individuals.

While the article claims that not all blogs are political - and points out that most of the eight million blogs are not - much of the recent controversy over blogs has been related to those that incorporate political messages or stories. As a result, "several senior Republican senators - upon hearing that 'blogs' had uncovered the Dan Rather scandal, helped to defeat Tom Daschle and pushed for the resignation of CNN executive Eason Jordan - demanded that 'blogs' be addred to their official Web sites." While these additions by Senators do not necessarily indicate a convergence between blogging and "old media," there is no doubt that blogs have become a well-known - and some might say a well-recognized - part of media and of politics.

Balko presents an interesting perspective that brings blogging and more conventional forms of media even closer. He writes that "the 'blogosphere' isn't so much an alternative to the conventional newsstand as it is a massive extention of it" and thus, "[t]here are well-edited, well-researched, well-written blogs and there are poorly edited, poorly written, gossip-driven blogs, just as [one's] roadside newsstand carries publications ranging from The Economist to the Weekly World News." Thus, while blogging has been cast in a different category than traditional journalism, there exists a growing integration between the two extremes that should be recognized.

While similarities between the forms of media are well discussed by Balko, so are their differences. First and foremost, blogs are much cheaper and easier to produce than radio, television or printed media. Although considerable investment is required to create programs for television and radio, as well as articles for newspapers and magazines, relatively little is required to develop an individual blog site, let alone to simply post a blog on the internet. However, the most controversial difference between blogs and other media is the regulatory nature, or lack thereof. As the article describes, "Bloggers also can operate outside the 'rules' and standards - in terms of attribution, verification of sources, objectivity nd concerns libel and lawsuits - that are supposed to govern traditional journalism." Thus, those who write blogs are unimpeded by the restrictions, guidelines and codes of ethics that confront "old media" companies and distributors.

The convergence of older and newer forms of media are astounding. While blogs have not reached the scale of television, radio and print reporting, there is considerable potential for blogging to become the media connection of the future - in other words, it is a possibility that news gathering and reporting may become reliant upon ordinary individuals - such as is the case with Wikinews - or professional bloggers. While reliance on such individual news contributions may not be the best source of information, it may require the government to institute new regulations regarding rules and codes of conduct for bloggers.

Posted by jacohen at 4:26 PM | Comments (0)

February 25, 2005

High Ethics in Journalism: Quantifying the Moral Divide Between Journalists and Other Professionals

News media organizations have been under intense scrutiny recently regarding their ethics in the production, presentation, and dissemination of news stories to their respective audiences. However, despite the spotlight under which they work, media is reported to be one of the more respected professions. According to "U.S. journalists fare well on test of ethics, study finds," printed earlier this month in USA Today, "in a new study, journalism turns out to be one of the most morally developed professions in the country, ranking behind only seminarians, physicians and medical students." Despite scandals that have engulfed specific media organizations, such as the Armstong Williams incident involving the Department of Education's No Child Left Behind Act, the study shows that the reputation of the media in general has survived relatively untarnished in comparison with other professions.

The article does not claim that recent scandals have not brought into question the ethics of the media industry as a whole. On the contrary, the article goes to great lengths to emphasize that "[r]ecent opinion polls show declining respect for the news media and a growing belief among many Americans that reporters have little regard for ethics." However, the study indicates that journalists in general still have a higher level of ethics than members of other professions, such as nurses, accounting students and verterinary students. Therefore, even though the public's perception of ethics in journalism is on the decline, it is still above other professionals and students.

There were two major components to the study. In the first, a survey was conducted of approximately 112,000 high school students. In that study, approximately 36% of high school students claimed "newspapers should get government approval before publishing stories" and 32% "say the media enjoy too much freedom." These statistics imply that approximately 64% and 68% of high school students respectively believe that no such governtal approval is neccessary and that there is not too much freedom for journalists in their field.

However, in the more convincing component of the study, a research team at the Missouri School of Journalism and the State University of Louisiana gave a test to professionals in a wide-range of fields, including journalism. The test, referred to as the Defining Issues Test, is "designed to measure reactions to ethical dilemmas" and can be used to generate a score for comparison with members of other professions. While the test had been widely distributed to professionals in different fields for quite some time - over 30,000 professionals in a thirty year period - as the article indicates, it had never been administered to any appreciable extent to journalists, demonstrating the novelty of this study. Thus, journalists were not compared with other professionals until recently, when professors at the Missouri School of Journalism administered the exam "to 249 reporters from print and broadcast rewsooms across the USA[,]" in order to bring journalists as a group into an ethnical comparison with other professions.

The results indicated that journalists on the whole have a very high level of ethics and integrity relative to other professionals and students. According to Lee Wilkins, a professor at the Missouri School of Journalism, "journalists scored fourth-highest among the groups of professionals and students who were tested" and "[t]hey ranked above dental students, nurses, graduate students, undergraduate college students, veterinary students and the adult population in general." Within the field of journalism, the article points out that professionals in advertising performed significantly lower that their colleagues in the field of journalism, indicating that, on the whole, advertisers had a lower level of ethical values and moral integrity that other journalists. Nevertheless, journalists still managed to outperform a number of other professions and students who were represented in the study.

The statistics presented in the article have broad positive implications for the media industry. While the study was not carried out to a wide enough extent to be fully conclusive, it manages to dispel a number of the public's concerns regarding the ethical integrity of journalists. While there are likely to be exceptions, journalists as a group were shown to have a high level of moral integrity that was comparable to that of seminarians, physicians, and other well regarded professionals. Although recent scandals threaten the public image of journalists, and bring into question their moral integrity, the study shows that either the damage was not extensive or is yet to be fully realized.

As Michael Schudson explains in The Sociology of News, the media industry realizes the importance of maintaining its ethical values and integrity for its public image (82). Efforts to control and elevate the ethics of journalists and their public's perception of journalists began early last century as the media became professionalized. According to Schudson, "[n]ewspaper editors formed their first nationwide professional association, the American Society of Newspaper Editors in 1922-23" in the aftermath of a wave of sensationalism which threatened to derail public confidence in the merits of journalism (82). The association of editors "adopted a code of ethics called the 'Canons of Journalism' that included a principle of 'Sincerity, Truthfulness, [and] Accuracy' and another of 'Impartiality,' which included the declaration 'News reports should be free from opinion or bias of any kind'" (82). More recently, management of media organizations have sought to impose restrictions on what their journalists may do in the hopes of maintaining the objectivity of their journalists. As Schudson describes, "[t]emptations of the reporter-source relationship are real; efforts to protect journalistic chastity in the face of them have contributed to an elaborate etiquete and code of ethics" which "centers on gifts from sources to reporters, mostly meals and transportation" (142). A number of media outlets have banned such gifts. Among these organizations that have imposed strict rules, ABC News has implemented a policy of refraining from "accept[ing] transportation, meals, or any other consideration from sources that is intended to compromise their 'responsibilities as objective newspersons, or which gives the appearance of doing so'" (142). Integrity is of tremendous importance to media companies, a reality that pushed ABC to implement its ban on gifts to its employees.

The final sentence there - "'...or which gives the appearance of doing so...'" is particularly key to this discussion (142). According to Robert McChesney in The Problem of the Media, the line between what is news and what is not is fairly thin: "No credible scholarly analysis of journalism posits that journalists have the decisive power to determine what is news, what is not news, and how news should be covered" (100). Thus, as long as the public perception of news organizations is positive, news media management remains content.

The study presented in the article, if accepted by the public, will likely improve the public's perception the media and give them reason to trust the ethical integrity of journalists who provide them with their news. By comparing journalists to seminarians and physicians, journalists have been elevated into a new field of moral trust. Whether or not this comparison lasts in light of recent scandals and perhaps upcoming scandals is not known. Future studies will have to decipher the direction in which journalists are headed with regard to their moral integrity. Until it is disputed, an image of journalists in line with the results of the study is captured by Tom Rosenstiel from Columbia University's Project for Excellence in Journalism, who is quoted in the article as saying that "'[m]ost [journalists] got into the business out of a sense that journalism helps democracy work and that they are helping their fellow citizens.'" Rosenstiel continues that "[journalists] get in this business out of an overriding sense of wanting to serve the public interest" and "if [they are] not motivated by a sense of public mission, there's not a lot of reason to do it." Whether this sense of moral obligation to the public that is characteristic of journalists will continue indefinitely is unknown. A number of unpredictable variables can influence the mission of journalism, including changes in technology. In light of new technology, especially the internet and the advent of blogging, the definition of a journalist has become less clear. Whether the changing nature of journalists will affect the mission journalism, and thus their ethical integrity, will dependent on how media companies and government agencies respond to the new technological resources.

edited on April 29 in preparation for this assignment

Posted by jacohen at 7:17 PM | Comments (1)

February 22, 2005

The Abuse Faced by Journalists Who Push Too Hard for A Comment: Pressing the Limits of Free Press and Free Speech

Journalists are sometimes subject to significant verbal abuse by those they hope to interview for their reports. In the article, "Ken Livingstone Statement in Full," which appeared today on the CNN website, "London Mayor Ken Livingstone says he will not apologize or express regret for likening a Jewish reporter to a 'Nazi concentration camp guard.'" The Mayor may be subject to removal from office by the Standards Board for England "for breaching the subsection of the Local Authorities...Order 2001 which says that councilors 'must treat others with respect.'"...(continued)...

The controversy sheds light on the abuse that journalists may encounter in pursuit of their stories. The journalist works for the Daily Mail Group. According to the report, Mayor Livingstone attempted to defend himself by stating, "That you are paid by the Daily News Group to do the job you do is not a defense for your behavior" and, moreover, "Pursuing me along the pavement thrusting your tape recorder at me whilst repeatedly barking the same question when I had clearly indicated I did not wish to be interviewed by you is not acceptable behavior by you or any other journalist."

The comments to the journalist were inappropriate and offensive. In addition to drawing attention to the abuse that journalists may face when they go to great lengths to get an interview or a comment, according to Livingstone, another issue raised by the controversy, however, is his right to free speech. He claims that the code which, if implemented, threatens to remove him from office and forbid him from assuming an office for five years, is "a threat to freedom of speech."

Thus, the article sheds light on a number of competing interests and rights of the parties involved. The reporter is right to be offended by the comments and should not be subject to abuse in the process of seeking a comment from the mayor, as the mayor is a public figure and engaging the public through the media is a responsibility of his office. At the same time, though, the article demonstrates that some journalists push too far to get a comment and face verbal or even physical abuse as a result. There is no question that abuse of any kind is wrong and should be criticized, but this story brings to focus the debate over how far a journalist should be allowed to pursue interviewees in their pursuit of stories. Finally, the article touches on Mayor Livinstone's right to freedom of speech since Order 2001 of the Code of Conduct threatens to remove him, and any other public official, from office for failing to act appropriately to others.

While a number of competiting interests are at stake, the Mayor should not have made the controversial comments which put him in this position in the first place. Nonetheless, the issue brings to light a growing dissatisfaction among residents of London with the press. As the mayor exclaimed, "'Not for the first time in my years in public life the views of ordinary people on the street are overwhelmingly at odds with much of the media.'"

Posted by jacohen at 8:01 PM | Comments (0)

February 21, 2005

Business Week: A Model of Synergy in Modern Media

Business Week is a subsidiary of the McGraw-Hill Companies, an international information service that delivers current business news and statistics to millions of people around the world. The McGraw-Hill Companies "global growth strategy focuses on aligning its businesses with fast-growing markets in education, financial services and information and media." Business Week is an international magazine under the Information and Media Services Division of its parent corporation. According to this year's annual report, Business Week is "the world's best selling business magazine with a circulation of nearly 1.2 million and 5.6 million readers worldwide each week." An annual subscription costs $45.97 and subcriptions can be purchased for three-years for only $99.97, as the company hopes to encourage subscribers to select the longer option. Moreover, Business Week Online and Business Week Television have developed through the success of the original Business Week magazine.

What is most interesting about Business Week is not necessarily its reports or its business recommendations. Rather, the most unique feature of Business Week magazine is its contribution to a greater overall mission of the McGraw-Hill Companies and its position within the company. Unique to the industry, the McGraw-Hill Companies has become a media conglomerate, integrating business news, strategy and education through its various publications and services. Originally a publisher, the corporation has developed into a media titan, and Business Week magazine has served a pivotal purpose in the overall mission of the corporation. By means of its synergy, the coporation has been able to grow faster than its competitors. In addition to Business Week, other regular publications affiliated with the conglomerate corporation are Standard & Poor's, Aviation Week, The Physician and Sports Medicine, Post-Graduate Medicine, Healthcare Informatics, McGraw-Hill Construction, Platts, among a host of other routine publications. Within Business Week itself are a number of subdivisions that serve different markets with targeted news reports. Among the subdivisions are Business Week North America, Business Week Europe, Business Week Asia, Business Week Latin America, Business Week Television and several partnerships with other major media corporations, such as Golf Digest and USA Today.

As Robert McChesney explains in The Problem of the Media, "the rise of media conglomerates has made it far easier for a firm to spread its editorial budgets across several different media," including a "media firm's newspaper, website, broadcast TV station, cable TV channel, and radio station" (79). As a result, media firms have been able to develop huge networks which he refers to as media empires (183). He defines conglomeration specifically as "a company owning and managing several unrelated operations," as is the case of the McGraw Hill Companies (183). There are significant benefits provided by media conglomeration, including the cross-promotion of products and services via the distinct branches of a given firm (183-4). Also referred to as synergy, media corporations that provide a number of services are able to overlap their promotions, as has been achieved by the McGraw-Hill Companies with Business Week and its sister companies.

Business Week's close relationship with its parent company sets it apart from other news agencies in the field. While the separation of other major magazines from their respective parent companies varies, the McGraw-Hill Companies have kept a close relationship among its various branches in order to promote interaction, cooperation, and partnership. In this way, the companies associated with Business Week are able to jointly work towards the overall mission of the company, as articulated by the Chairman and CEO, Harold McGraw III.

Given its goals of achieving efficient synergy, the McGraw-Hill Companies have engaged in massive media campaigns to promote itself as a united, and thus unique, media service. As Michael Schudson explains in The Sociology of News, advertising is an inmportant component of all news agencies (124). When Business Week includes advertisements for other products in its magazine, it receives significant compensation which contributes to its overall budget. However, as Schudson points out, given that "the advantages of reader loyalty for a newspaper [or other media publication] are enormous[,]" there are considerable incentives for corporations to advertise themselves and their unique features in order to build and maintain a large and loyal audience (124). Thus, Business Week and its sister companies engage in cross-promotional advertisements that attest to the overall mission of McGraw Hill: education. The goal is to strengthen the families ties among the various branches bring readers into the McGraw-Hill family. Since it was established as a family business and still bears the family name, the McGraw-Hill companies use the idea of family and education as a means of promoting itself. Business Week carries a number of these advertisements in its print, online and television services. Among the popular advertisements is a full-page outlook at the corporation through the eyes of a businesswoman. It reads, "McGraw-Hill showed her how a building is made, Standard & Poor's showed her how a company's future is made, BusinessWeek showed her how a reputation is made." Another popular advertisement shows a businessman and reads, "Standard & Poor's taught him how to read financial markets, BusinessWeek taught him how to read market shifts, the McGraw-Hill companies taught him how to read." Considered one of the most effective advertisements ever created for media promotion, "The Man in the Chair" advertisement reads, "I don't know who you are, I don't know your company, I don't know your company's product, I don't know what your company stands for, I don't know your company's customers, I don't know your company's record, I don't know your company's reputation, Now - what was it you wanted to sell me?" The advertisement continues to state, "MORAL: Sales start before your salesman calls you - with business publication advertising." Aside from print advertisements, video advertisements for television and the internet promote the same idea of synergy and interdependence among the various McGraw-Hill subsidiary companies, advancing the notion that the companies, including Business Week, will educate its audience.

Business Week is unique in that it and its sister companies have attained a synergy that is unrivaled in the media industry. The company is able to work alongside and cross-promote its fellow McGraw-Hill companies and contribute to the "empire" that is McGraw-Hill Publishing. Business Week has evolved considerably since its creation, developing a diverse spectrum of news focus points that cater to different audiences around the world. Among the different editions that are published by Business Week, Business Week Europe, Asia, and Latin America have different perspectives that allow the company to provide an individual-specific publication to its audience. At the same time, the diversity in its reporting allows Business Week to be well-rounded in its reporting, attributing to it the trust among readers that one might give to a "family member."

Posted by jacohen at 9:29 AM | Comments (0)

February 19, 2005

Violent Media: The Effects of Disturbing Images on Young Eyes

The issue of violence in the media has not received significant attention in recent weeks. While not too long ago the public was divided over the extent to which media violence should be constrained - and Congress even passed legislation to do so - the controversy over media violence has dissipated recently on account of more pressing issues in the headlines. Even though attention to the issue has decreased, the issues behind the debate have not. In "Media Violence Spurs Fear, Aggression in Kids," Miranda Hitti cites a study recently conducted by the University of Birmingham which claims that "'[t]here is consistent evidence that violent imagery in television, film and video, and computer games has substantial short-term effects on arousal, thoughts, and emotions...'"...(continued)...

The University study reinforced what we already believed - that "[v]iolent imagery increases 'the likelihood of violent or fearful behavior in younger children...'" While the study indicated that effects on adolescents and young adults were not as conclusive as the effects on young children, the report is of great importance because it challenges other studies that dismiss the effects of violence in the media. The article does not specify exactly which forms of media were considered in the study, it does say that the study was comprehensive, taking into account television programs, movies and computer games.

The study also draws attention to the importance of family values in reducing the effects of media violence on children. Citing that "[v]iewers' families are important," the study claimed that children in dysfunctional families were more likely to be negatively effected by violent media.

In a much older article, Jeff Mortimer explores this issue of family values in greater depth. He claims that parental supervision can reduce the negative effects of media violence on children. But he stresses that "it essentially begs the more ethical, and less tractable question, of parental involvement" in the activities of their children.

Mortimer's article draws attention to the fact that media violence becomes a routine phenomenon in the daily activities of many children. He argues that, in a sense, the children become "conditioned" and accustomed to the violence.

However, the violence that both articles allude to in the media is largely 'violence in entertainment.' While that seems somewhat counterintuitive - as one is uneasy to place violence and entertainment in the same category - much of the violence that children are introduced to comes from movies and television programs. But in the aftermath of a war, news media also shows violence. But should we hold news media as equally culpable in introducing children to violence, anger and aggression? Today CNN reported the deaths of sixteen Iraqis in a car bombing - the online article, "Shiite Holy Day attacks kill at least 16," includes a picture of a car that exploded after a bomb detonated, which is a violent and disturbing image even for a mature viewer. News media is arguably different than entertainment media since it reflects real world events - but, nonetheless, are the effects of 'fabricated' violence in movies and footage of violence in the afteremath of a war all that different in the eyes of a child. Thus, there is no apparent solution to reducing the violence that children are exposed to by media other than sheltering and shielding children from the reality of today's world.

Posted by jacohen at 8:23 PM | Comments (0)

February 17, 2005

Public Relations and the Push for a Particular Public Image: Benefits and Disadvantages to Established Businesses, Entrepreneurs, and Ordinary Citizens

The public relations industry has suffered a tremendous set back following the Department of Education's scandal involving Armstrong Williams. While the public image of public relations is currently is disrepair - and many are calling into question the ethics of public relations agencies - there is no doubt that public relations as a whole has significantly benefitted both established businesses and entrepreneurs...(continued)...

A blog from this past Sunday (February 13) by Professor Liu cited an article regarding the public relations industry and the current Williams scandal. It is ironic that the public relations industry as a whole is currently receiving bad publicity - the scandal regarding the Department of Education's unconventional efforts to promote its "No Child Left Behind" program has had negative consequences on the entire industry, linking it with covert propaganda.

While the industry is being criticized by the media for one man's unconventional action, others are certainly quick to stand up in support of the value of the industry. As Vivek Wadhwa explains in "Giving My Movie a Media Edge", there is a positive side to public relations that has helped his business tremendously. According to Wadhwa, following an active public relations campaign, "In no time, we were featured in publications all over the world, which brought inquiries from potential investors, aspiring actors, and crew members." There is no question that the public relations industry - and through it, the media in general - benefitted Wadwha in the promotion of both his company and his subsequent movie, but at what cost to the ordinary citizen?

In Agents of Power: The Media and Public Policy, J. Herbert Altschull discusses the proper role of the press as providing "five basic services: (1) an accurate, comprehensive account of the day's news; (2) a forum for exchange of comment; (3) a means of projecting group opinions and attitudes to one another; (4) a method of presenting and clarifying the goals and values of the society; and (5) a way of reaching every member of society" (Altschull 139). In his thesis, Altschull presents the doctrine of social responsibility in which the media has an inherent obligation to promote unbiased public awareness in the interests of democracy (137-9). However, when it engages in public relations, does the media uphold this obligation? To what degree does the paid promotion of an event, a product, an industry, or - in the case of Armstrong Williams - a government program, harm the individual citizen's ability to develop a fully-informed position on an issue? Moreover, does the public relations industry compromise democracy?

The most obvious objection to this analysis is that media - to which Altschull is speaking - is a completely distinct industry from the public relations industry. The argument would continue that, as a result, scandals that involve public relations should have no effect on the media as a whole and consequences should be confined within the public relations industry. However, if the Williams scandal proves anything, it is that the two industries are able to overlap to such an extent that they become indistinguishable. As the article points out, there are significant ethical implications to this overlap that threaten not only the general integrity of the media industry, but our democratic structure.

However, because freedom of the press is also of tremendous importance to our democratic governance, how can we reconcile the conflict? Regardless of which direction we go - from legally resticting the press to leaving the industry completely unregulated - we enter a democratic conflict. However, Altschull presents an interesting argument. He writes that "the freedom of the press is 'essentail to political liberty' but freedom is in danger unless it becomes 'an accountable freedom' - accountable to conscience and the common good" (Altschull 139). The implications of his claim is that if the press does not successfully self-regulate and hold itself 'accountable' for upholding its responsibilities, the government should be able to intervene (139).

The Williams scandal is presumably an isolated incident - although we do not know for sure if such activity is more widespread. The public relations industry is certainly able to benefit big corporations and even the government, as well as entrepreneurs like Wadwha, but at what cost to the ordinary citizen in light of its implications on our democracy?

Given that the premise of "free press" is to promote "political liberty" and democracy, if the press fails to promote democracy should "free press" be negated? In other words, if the press fails to uphold its obligations to democracy, does the government have a right and an obligation to exert control over it in the interests of citizens? I would argue that it does not, since the implications of government restrictions to the press would not be publicly welcomed and might turn out to be counterproductive. Nevertheless, debate over the issue of regulating the press is important because it may encourage the public relations industry to seek internal reform and improve its ability to self-regulate.

Posted by jacohen at 9:25 PM | Comments (2)

February 15, 2005

Advancing Advertising: Chasing the "Concealed" Consumer

Advertisers are struggling to reach a more elusive generation of consumers. While technological advances have introduced new possibilities for advertising, those same advancements have had the ironic effect of making the consumer more difficult to reach. In the past, advertisers could rest assured that their traditional methods of advertising - spending in widely-circulated, general forms of media - would reach a large target audience. However, new technological means, such as the internet, have forced advertisers to adopt new challenging methods in order to reach that same audience...(continued)...

In his article, David Kiley acknowledges that "with consumers harder to reach than ever, ad spending on targeted and easily measured media is outpacing outlays for older, less focused media forms." While "[i]nternet advertising will surge 25%, says Universal McCann" Kiley cites that "[d]irect mail should grow by 9.5%, the magazine sector by 7.3%, and cable TV by 7%." Contrary to traditional practices in advertising, "Mass media isn't where the action is: Radio ads, billboards, and other outdoor media will grow just 5%, and network TV a scant 2%."

The consequences to the advertising industry are significant as marketers must locate consumers and target them more directly in specific forms of media that are curtailed to their respective interests. The implications are broad, since advertising agencies will need to research where consumers are going, why they are going there, how long they will stay and how they can be reached. The research will likely involve time and money - not to mention effort - and there is no certainty that the media a consumer uses tomorrow will be the media he or she consumes the following day. As a result, while Kiley does not mention this specifically, the advertising agency is being forced to become more fluid: more amorphous to the will of consumers in an effort to catch up with them.

In The Problem of the Media, Robert McChesney discusses at length the issues confronting advertisers. Most importantly, McChesney shows how corporations have begun addressing the limitations imposed by consumer preferences moving towards more specific forms of media. As a result "[m]arketers have had to become much more sophisticated in their techniques to command the attention of their desired target audience" (161). The "'guerilla' marketing" which he describes has sought to target audiences in movie theaters, shows, and athletic arenas - among other locations - in an effort to reach an "unsuspecting" - and thus vulnerable - consumer (161-3). Moreover, McChesney writes that conglomeration of media outlets allows for the synergy that "drives much media activity today[,]" (184). Conglomeration and synergy are of great importance because they allow advertisers greater access to potential customers.

Kiley's article in Businessweek Online touched on a growing dilemma confronting advertisers: how to maintain communications with potential clients. However, the dilemma has broader implications since advertising is a major source of revenue for media organizations - a financial resource without which they would likely become insolvent.

Posted by jacohen at 11:00 AM | Comments (1)

February 14, 2005

A Look "Behind" the Scenes: Video Clips In Response to "Outfoxed"

Following today's discussion of "Outfoxed," I have posted a link to a website with video clips that respond directly to the film. Among the clips are transcripts of interviews with senior executives and videos of attempted clarifications. One of the clips that is particular interesting is Bill O'Reilly's allegation that the film took its material out of context - cutting interviews at specific moments - in order to convey a false (or, at least imcomplete) image...(continued)...

Moreover, Roger Ailes, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of FOX News, responded to criticism from John Carroll, an editor of Los Angeles Times, regarding the conduct of Fox News. In his editorial, Ailes argues that "[Carroll] treated FOX News Channel worse in his newspaper than he treated the terrorists who recently beheaded an American."

The claims by both parties demonstrate the intensity of the debate over "Outfoxed" and the Fox News organization. However, it is ironic that the media attention attributed to the issue may end up benefitting Fox. The saying that "no news is bad news" supports the notion that the main victim of "Outfoxed" arguably may turn out to be its greatest beneficiary.

Included Links:
http://www.outfoxed.org/Clips.php
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-050604ruhllecture_lat.story
http://mediamatters.org/items/200406020003www.foxnews.com

Posted by jacohen at 9:59 PM | Comments (0)

February 12, 2005

The Cost of an Image: Resignation for Reputation

The integrity of a given news organization is of tremendous importance to its management, its journalists, and, most importantly, its audience. As Michael Schudson explains in The Sociology of News, the "collective integrity" of a news source can have significant implications on the trust attributed to it by its viewers or readers (83). When this trust is breached, news organizations have sought to quickly correct the record in an effort to contain the damage. The importance and relevance of Schudson's "collective integrity" is demonstrated in an article posted on CNN's website, "CNN executive resigns after controversial remarks." ...continued...

The facts related to Eason Jordan's remarks are fairly well known given the recent media attention. However, Mr. Jordan, a senior news executive for CNN, announced his resignation yesterday. He was accused of alleging that the US military was targeting journalists in the field.

The reason for his resignation is of particular importance because it sheds light on Schudson's claim to the importance of news agencies in maintaining their "collective integrity." As Schudson explains, "Journalists saw how malleable and manipulable information in the propaganda age had become...[and] objectivity became a fully formulated occupational ideal, part of a professional project or mission" in order to preserve the reputation and public image of a news agency (83).

While neither the objectivity of Mr. Jordan nor CNN has been called into question, some are criticizing the general reputation and public image of the organization. Given the influence that a positive reputation has on the loyalty of viewers, maintaining integrity and an elevated image is of great importance. In order to preserve his company's reputatable position in the industry, Mr. Jordan felt he needed to resign from his post. In the article on CNN's website, he commented that "I have devoted my professional life to helping make CNN the most trusted and respected news outlet in the world, and I would never do anything to compromise my work or that of the thousands of talented people it is my honor to work alongside...While my CNN colleagues and my friends in the U.S. military know me well enough to know I have never stated, believed, or suspected that U.S. military forces intended to kill people they knew to be journalists, my comments on this subject in a World Economic Forum panel discussion were not as clear as they should have been."

Even though he clarified his statements, Mr. Jordan felt too much damage had already been done and admirably based his decision on the long-term interests of his news organization.

Whether or not Mr. Jordan should have resigned is an important question. However, Michael Schudson (The Sociology of News) would probably argue that, irrespective of what is right, Mr. Jordan is a casualty in his field of journalism, brought to his resignation by an industry that seeks to preserve its integrity and make examples out of those who may inadvertently tarnish it.

Posted by jacohen at 11:21 AM | Comments (1)

February 9, 2005

The Negative Side of Journalism: Hidden Dangers in Unstable Environments

While careers in journalism are promoted as both rewarding and lucrative, a number of downsides to careers in journalism are rarely discussed. Among the negative attributes is the inability of a journalist to guarantee his or her personal safety while collecting information and processing stores in regions that are insecure. In these areas, journalists face environments that can be particularly hostile and dangerous.

According to a report on CNN, Abdul Hussein Khaazal and his son were murdered by gunmen as they stood outside their home today in Basra, Iraq. A correspondent for the recently created Al-Harra news organization, Khaazal and his son are casualties of a conflict which has become exceptionally perilous in the aftermath of Iraq's first free elections last week...(continued)...

According to the report, Al-Harra, or "Free Press," was created last year by the United States in an effort to combat anti-American propaganda in Iraq. It was instituted as a means of competing with already established news organizations reporting from the region, such as Al-Jazeera. While the official mission of the news organization was not to disseminate pro-American propaganda, it was condemned by Muslim clerics who challenged the authenticity and objectivity of its reports since its funds were provided by the United States government as a means of promoting free press in the nation.

Khaazal worked for Al-Haara as a television correspondent. His three-year-old son was also shot to death in the attack. The deaths demonstrate the exceptional dangers faced by journalists who report news from unstable regions, such as Iraq. Despite the risks involved, journalists continue to collect information in order to communicate with their audiences who rely on them for coverage of current events. Journalists should be respected for their work and recognized for the risks that they are willing to endure to report the news.

The incident highlights the negative sides of journalism and contrasts strongly with the glamorous images that many have of reporters and the field of journalism. While nightly news programs on CNN and Fox News show news reporters traveling around the world, speaking with world leaders, and reporting back to their studios, television reporters have developed a celebrity status comparable to Hollywood actors and actresses. Yet, the dangers inherent in their work and the courage required to follow some stories are rarely emphasized. The recent events show that the dangers can be all too real.

Posted by jacohen at 3:23 PM | Comments (1)

February 5, 2005

My Primary Sources of News: Consumption and Absorbtion of News in a Media Market

The extent to which I receive news via conventional means â€" such as newspapers, radio, and television â€" versus more modern means â€" such as internet sites, billboards, and ticker-tape displays â€" differs substantially depending on where I am and the circumstances under which I am there. While the output of news by news agencies is constant regardless of whether I am at school or at home, my awareness of the news and my avenues of accessing it vary substantially, making me an active consumer in the market of news media...(continues)...

When I am home, I have access to a number of conventional news media. Newspapers, radio and television programs are generally at my disposal and I engage these media substantially to stay up to date on current events and world affairs. Among the newspapers I turn to for news coverage are The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, particularly the front pages of the main sections and the various sub-sections. With regard to television programs, I primarily rely on twenty-four hour news stations, including CNN. My usage of the radio for news is limited, relegated only to trips in the car. However, in these situations, I turn to AM 880 as my primary radio source of news.

While at school, both my awareness of and my access to news are strikingly different. I generally rely on internet sources that match the newspapers or television programs that I would otherwise read. Thus, I tend to visit The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and CNN websites; however, on account of its fees for services, I tend to use The Wall Street Journal website much more sparingly. Given my concentration in current policy issues (Woodrow Wilson School), I often encounter news stories through classroom discussions and weekly readings. Many major news events and their potential ramifications surface in lectures and seminars. For this reason, I would be remiss not to include my courses and course readings as a significant news source.

I base my sources of news on the level of "access" that I have to the various media at a given time. In other words, the divergence in the sources of news that I use when at home and at school results from the variance in my access to conventional news sources versus more modern forms of media. Generally, one needs to seek out conventional forms of media whereas modern forms of media are usually flashed in front of one's face. Among the conventional forms of media are newspapers, radio and television. Among the more modern sources are internet web sites and their associated "pop-up" advertisements, billboards (or posters on campus), and ticker-tape displays. In this way, modern sources of news often appear in unexpected locations and allow for the quick absorption of information. My access to news refers to both my ability to physically obtain news media as well as issues of time. Such unconventional sources are readily accessible in a school environment and allow for on-the-go consumption of current events.

Despite the variability in the sources of news to which I turn, the consumption of news media remains an important aspect of my day. One might even argue that such variability is a positive attribute because it encourages the absorption of a broad range of opinions, perspectives, and events. No two forms of news media are identical. Moreover, conventional and more modern outlets have strikingly different approaches to news presentation and cover issues in varying depths. As Michael Schudson argues in The Sociology of News (90), these differences allow for the development of a market for news media â€" a market in which I am an active consumer in the process of absorbing the news.

Posted by jacohen at 12:01 PM | Comments (1)