AAN News
Washington City Paper Arts Editor Talks Blogs & Arts Journalismnew
In a Q&A with the Tales from the Reading Room blog, Mark Athitakis discusses the future of arts journalism, the changes afoot in the alt-weekly industry, and argues that print folks must embrace the web to survive. "I think journalists need to rethink what 'publishing' is and experiment more with video, audio, blogging, and social networking tools," he says. "You have to rethink it in part because the next generation of readers embrace all of those things, and it's folly to dig in your heels, stick with print, and say you're not interested in reaching those people, or say that everybody has to process your ideas on your terms."
Tales from the Reading Room |
02-22-2008 12:29 pm |
Industry News
Michael Lacey Discusses Impending Lawsuitnew
As we reported yesterday, Lacey's Phoenix New Times is charging Maricopa County officials with violating his and Jim Larkin's constitutional rights, and with malicious prosecution, racketeering and conspiracy in conjunction with their October arrest for publishing the contents of a grand jury subpoena. "The critical question is: How do they get to the point where they believe that they have the right to arrest journalists in the middle of the night and subpoena the identity of the people that read our newspaper? They didn't get there overnight," the New Times founder and Village Voice Media executive editor tells the Arizona Republic. "They began by abusing prisoners, and there was a staircase escalation where they were never stopped."
The Arizona Republic |
02-22-2008 10:05 am |
Industry News
Michael Musto On Being 'The Mario Cuomo of Gossip Columnists'new
The Village Voice columnist talks with Seema Kalia for her regular Huffington Post column, "My Favorite Mistake." For the most part, Musto says he doesn't have huge career regrets.
"I'm very comfortable being the 'alternative weekly guy in the corner' who's attained a nice level of success, but is never going to blow up into the big time," he says. He does go into detail about how he lost a spot in a Amaretto di Saronno ad campaign back in 1987, for submitting a press clipping of himself dressed in a hoop dress. "It wasn't cool to be gay then," Musto says. "Sometimes it still isn't."
The Huffington Post |
02-22-2008 8:31 am |
Industry News
Tags: Editorial, The Village Voice
Twelve Newspapers Apply for AAN Membership
This year's crop of applying newspapers hail from 10 U.S. states and one Canadian province, and seven of them have previously applied for membership. AAN's Membership Committee will review the papers over the next several months and will discuss their findings when the committee meets in Washington, D.C. on May 3. The committee will then issue its recommendations regarding each application prior to the Annual Meeting, which will take place in Philadelphia on June 7, the last day of the annual AAN convention. The 12 applying papers must be approved by two-thirds of the members voting at the meeting in order to join AAN. In addition, as we reported in December, the status of five current member papers will be reviewed this year.
(FULL STORY)
AAN |
02-21-2008 12:45 pm |
Association News
Bay Guardian Expert Testifies in VVM Trial
Damages expert Clifford Kupperberg continued his testimony on Wednesday in the Guardian's predatory pricing trial against SF Weekly and Village Voice Media. He put forth six "damage models," which estimated the financial toll on the Guardian by the Weekly's alleged below-cost sales at anywhere between $4 million to $11.8 million. For more details, check out the reports from the Bay Guardian and from the Weekly. The trial resumes today with continued cross-examination of Kupperberg.
San Francisco Bay Guardian | SF Weekly |
02-21-2008 12:14 pm |
Industry News
L.A. Weekly Series on Skid Row Leads to Documentarynew
Between Dec. 2005-March 2006, Sam Slovick wrote a series of Weekly cover stories on the everyday tragedies and triumphs found on Los Angeles's Skid Row, and now he's used that work as a jumping-off point for a five-part documentary. The short film, which is written and directed by Slovick and sponsored by GOOD Magazine, debuted this week on MySpace TV. "We couldn't be prouder of Sam and the light he's helped shine on this issue," Weekly deputy editor Joe Donnelly says.
L.A. Weekly | MySpace TV |
02-21-2008 10:40 am |
Industry News
Phoenix New Times Files Prelude to Lawsuit in Grand Jury Probe Fiasconew
The paper yesterday filed a formal Notice of Claim against the officials responsible for the October blowup which ended with the paper's founders in jail. The notice, which is required by Arizona law to be filed before government officials can be sued, accuses the defendants of violating Michael Lacey's and Jim Larkin's constitutional rights, with malicious prosecution, racketeering and conspiracy. The paper is asking for $15 million in damages if the matter is settled before April 15. "If New Times is required to pursue litigation, the settlement demand will increase," the notice warns. "This is not a decision undertaken lightly," says Lacey. "But I feel like if we don't do something, it's an invitation for this kind of behavior to continue." The County Attorney's office, which is named in the claim, dismisses the legal maneuver as "frivolous," with a spokesman telling the Arizona Republic: "We are confident that it will be exposed as the bunk it is."
Phoenix New Times | The Arizona Republic |
02-21-2008 8:20 am |
Industry News
Former Alt-Weekly Editor Introduces Sex-Positive Journalism Awards
The Sex-Positive Journalism Awards Press Release |
02-21-2008 2:32 pm |
Press Releases
Tags: Editorial
Two More Witnesses Testify in Bay Guardian/VVM Trial
SF Weekly publisher Josh Fromson took the stand on Friday and remained there until Tuesday (there was a day off on Monday for President's Day), and Bay Guardian expert witness Clifford Kupperberg also appeared before the court Tuesday. For more details, check out the reports from the Weekly, which says Kupperberg talked about "imaginary profits and damages," and the Guardian, which says Fromson "dodge[d] the facts."
SF Weekly | San Francisco Bay Guardian |
02-20-2008 1:55 pm |
Industry News
East Bay Express Redesigns With Trimmed Size, Expanded Contentnew

"This week's issue marks a thorough redesign of the paper, only the fourth new design in the paper's 29 years," writes editor Stephen Buel. "It also is the culmination of the transformation we intended to make when a group of investors bought the Express last year and returned it to independence and local control." Changes include a 1.5 inch reduction in the height of the paper and four additional pages of editorial content.
East Bay Express |
02-20-2008 12:51 pm |
Industry News
L.A. Weekly Cartoonist Cited as Important 2008 Election Voicenew
Mr. Fish, a.k.a. Dwayne Booth, who creates political cartoons for the Weekly, was listed as number one on "the 10 most important voices to listen to this election cycle" list by Best Life Magazine. "Political cartooning hasn't evolved much since the days of Ben Franklin, but the art form may have found a new voice that can help bring back the edge," Best Life says.
Best Life Magazine |
02-19-2008 1:15 pm |
Honors & Achievements
SF Weekly Expert Witnesses Testify in Bay Guardian/VVM Trial
Harvard Univ. economics professor Dr. Joseph Kalt and newspaper analyst John Morton testified on Village Voice Media's behalf on Thursday. Former SF Weekly publisher Troy Larkin also took the stand. SF Weekly reports on the testimony of Kalt, Morton and Larkin, while SFBG sticks with Kalt and Morton for now. The trial resumes today with the cross-examination of Larkin.
San Francisco Bay Guardian | SF Weekly |
02-15-2008 1:31 pm |
Industry News
Witnesses Continue Testimony in Bay Guardian/VVM Trial
The predatory pricing trial resumed yesterday after taking Tuesday off. Village Voice Media chief financial officer Keating finished his testimony, and three more witnesses were called: Jennifer Vernon from Live Nation (formerly Clear Channel Concerts); James Higginbotham of International Demographics, the company that runs Media Audit; and the SF Weekly's expert witness, economics professor Joseph P. Kalt. For more details, check out reports from the Guardian and the Weekly.
San Francisco Bay Guardian | SF Weekly |
02-14-2008 2:00 pm |
Industry News
Late Chicago Reader Writer's Work Collected in New Booknew
"Grant Pick had been writing for the Reader for about a quarter of a century when, at the age of 57, he died of a heart attack walking home from lunch. That was three years ago last week," writes Michael Miner in the Reader. "In many ways, Grant was the writer who best defined this paper. As he liked telling journalism students who read his pieces and asked where the news pegs were, 'There is no news peg. The people are the news.'" That anecdote is the basis for the title of a collection of his work organized by his son John Pick, The People Are The News: Grant Pick's Chicago Stories. The book "makes a great crash course in Chicago's subcultures and recent history, and its residents' heritage of tenacity," Time Out Chicago says.
Chicago Reader | Time Out Chicago |
02-13-2008 8:43 am |
Industry News
2007 Podcast Audience Reaches New Highnew
Editor & Publisher |
02-13-2008 6:05 pm |
Industry News