AAN News
The Independent Weekly Wins 14 Awards in N.C. Contests
Independent Weekly Press Release |
02-13-2009 2:21 pm |
Press Releases
Judge Orders Web Publisher to Reveal Users' ID Informationnew
A judge in Texas has ordered the site Topix to reveal identifying information about 178 anonymous commenters who allegedly defamed Mark and Rhonda Lesher. The couple was indicted and later acquitted for sexual assault, but in the nine months that the criminal case was pending, people posted more than 25,000 comments to Topix message boards about the charges, some of which were defamatory, according to the 365-page lawsuit.
Online Media Daily |
02-12-2009 1:04 pm |
Legal News
AAN Diversity-Program Alum Pens Cover Story
Ling Ma, a 2008 graduate of the Academy for Alternative Journalism, wrote this week's Chicago Reader cover story about the city's Museum of Holography and a controversial bank loan that may spell the museum's demise. The yearly academy trains young journalists in long-form feature writing with the aim of recruiting them into the alternative press. MORE: Read Ma's blog about reporting the story here.
AAN News |
02-12-2009 10:33 am |
Honors & Achievements
Daily Paper Drops Defamation Suit Against Alt-Weekly Columnistnew
The Tulsa World has dropped its suit against Urban Tulsa Weekly columnist Michael Bates after he issued an apology and retraction of his claims that the World had concealed circulation declines and inflated its circulation audits. "My research was flawed and information in my story was false and inaccurate, and I retract those incorrect statements," Bates says in a letter. "I apologize to the Tulsa World and the Urban Tulsa Weekly." The suit had originally named the alt-weekly and its editor/publisher as well, but they were both dropped a few weeks ago.
Tulsa World |
02-12-2009 9:02 am |
Legal News
Call for Applications: Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism
Carter Center Press Release |
02-12-2009 9:12 am |
Press Releases
Tags: Editorial, Management
Federal Shield Bill Reintroduced in the House
A coalition of media companies and journalism organizations that includes AAN applauds the reintroduction of a bill in the House of Representatives that would set federal standards limiting when journalists can be compelled to disclose the identities of their confidential sources. The bill is sponsored by Reps. Rick Boucher (D-VA), Mike Pence (R-IN), John Conyers (D-MI) and Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) along with 35 co-sponsors. A similar bill will be introduced in the Senate.
(FULL STORY)
Newspaper Association of America Press Release |
02-11-2009 3:14 pm |
Press Releases
Tags: Editorial, Management
'New' Models for Journalism Look a Lot Like Alt-Weekliesnew
Business Week's Michael Arndt and Hypercrit's Michael Becker let a little air out of two lofty plans for the future of journalism by noting that both bear some resemblance to an already existing business model. Business Week looks at The Printed Blog, the recently launched weekly print product that repackages blog posts and is currently operating in three cities. The paper's founder, Joshua Karp, says eventually he would like to publish more local content and do so more frequently. "In other words, it would evolve into an alternative newspaper," Business Week notes. At Hypercrit, Michael Becker deconstructs Jane Stevens' idea of "mini-metros," which would be built around a limited number of subjects, perhaps even one beat, but would be exhaustive in those areas. "Stevens' mini-metro model is not exactly a new idea," Becker writes. "The general idea of niche mini-metros has always been with us in the form of alt weeklies."
Business Week | Hypercrit |
02-11-2009 12:20 pm |
Industry News
Oklahoma Gazette Wins Top Honors in State Press Association Awardsnew
The Gazette won one of nine 2008 Sequoyah Awards in this year's Oklahoma Press Association Better Newspaper Contest. The Sequoyah Award, the highest honor in the contest, is based on total points accumulated in all events. The alt-weekly received first place awards in News Content, Layout & Design, Advertising, Sales Promotion, In-Depth Enterprise, Personal Columns, Feature Writing and Photography. It placed second in Editorial Comment; third in Community Leadership; and fourth in News Writing. "A quality alternative weekly," one judge commented. "Great photography. Clever headlines ... wish our paper could attract all those plastic surgeon ads."
Oklahoma Press Association |
02-11-2009 8:42 am |
Honors & Achievements
Village Voice Media Execs Talk Web Strategy
VVM's digital publishing strategy has been in the news quite a bit lately, whether it was the company's partnership with a social-networking site or its use of Digg to help drive traffic to its stories. Chief operating officer Scott Tobias and web and digital operations director Bill Jensen spoke with AAN News this week about where the paper is going with web publishing. They tell us that digital is a growth area for VVM, both in terms of pageviews and revenue, and they talk about new projects like geo-targeted ads and a national food website.
(FULL STORY)
AAN News |
02-10-2009 4:28 pm |
Industry News
Attorney Sues Willamette Week for Defamationnew
Portland attorney Robert L. Wolf's case boils down to this: Yes, I had sex with a 16-year-old girl, but she wasn't brain damaged. According to The Oregonian, Wolf claims that Willamette Week published stories about his 1988 incident with a minor that "falsely referred to the girl as 'brain damaged.'" Wolf says he demanded a retraction and editor Mark Zusman agreed in 1996 to eliminate references to brain damage in WW's subsequent coverage of the case, but that
in March 2004, the paper published a story reporting that the girl had suffered "neurological damage." Wolf is asking for up to $58 million for alleged defamation, false light, breach of contract, fraud and intentional infliction of severe emotional distress. The Oregonian notes that "(t)he statute of limitations may have run out on some of those claims, because the article was published nearly five years ago."
The Oregonian |
02-10-2009 12:08 pm |
Legal News
Santa Barbara Independent Reporter Heads to Iraqnew
Against the advice of friends, family, and colleagues, The Independent's news reporter Ben Preston has embarked on a month-long embedded tour of Iraq with the U.S. Army's 425th Civil Affairs Battalion, which is based in Santa Barbara. Why? "I'm hoping to take a look at some of the economic work that is being done here," he explained. "I knew that coalition forces from all over the world were here, but seeing how many non-military people are working here, it becomes apparent that many people have become economically dependent upon the rebuilding process." Follow Preston's continually updated blog online at independent.com/iraq.
Santa Barbara Independent |
02-09-2009 8:48 am |
Industry News
Call for Applications: 2009 McCloy Fellowships in Journalismnew
The American Council on Germany |
02-09-2009 9:44 am |
Press Releases
Tags: Editorial, Management
Oklahoma Gazette 2009 Awards Wrap-Up
Oklahoma Gazette |
02-08-2009 6:10 pm |
Press Releases
Tags: Editorial, Oklahoma Gazette
Memphis Flyer Cuts Salariesnew
Editor Bruce VanWyngarden reports that employees at Flyer parent company Contemporary Media, Inc. are taking four or eight percent pay cuts, and that the company is suspending its 401(k) matching program. "The cuts are intended to be temporary and will be reevaluated at the end of the second quarter," VanWyngarden writes.
The Memphis Flyer |
02-06-2009 9:58 am |
Industry News
Boise Weekly Editor Named a 2009 Idaho Woman of the Yearnew
Rachael Daigle is one of 50 women named an Idaho Woman of the Year by the Idaho Business Review. The women will be featured in a glossy magazine and honored at an awards dinner in late March.
Idaho Business Review |
02-06-2009 9:56 am |
Honors & Achievements
