AAN News

Dueling CPAs Take the Stand at the Bay Guardian/VVM Trial

Bay Guardian expert CPA Clifford Kupperberg continued his testimony yesterday in the paper's predatory pricing trial against SF Weekly and Village Voice Media. The next witness was the Weekly's expert CPA, Everett P. Harry, who argued that Kupperberg's testimony was flawed. For more on the trial, check out these blog posts from the Weekly and the Bay Guardian and this week's editor's note from the Guardian. The trial resumes today.
SF Weekly | San Francisco Bay Guardian  |  02-22-2008  2:27 pm  |  Industry News

L.A. Weekly Dominates Entertainment Journalism Awardsnew

The paper finished first in four of the six categories for which it was eligible in the LA Press Club's inaugural National Entertainment Journalism Awards. Nikki Finke swept the online categories, winning first for Best News Story, Best Feature Story, and Best Critic. Ella Taylor took first for Best Critic in print, and Finke also finished second for Best News Story in print.
LA Press Club  |  02-22-2008  12:54 pm  |  Honors & Achievements

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

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

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

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

Web Conference Presentations Available in Resource Librarynew

Powerpoint presentations and audio recordings of many of the sessions held at the 2008 AAN Web Publishing Conference earlier this month were posted last week on AAN.org. (AAN members must be logged into the website for access to the files.) A summary of the results of the post-conference survey has also been posted in the Resource Library.
AAN  |  02-18-2008  2:58 pm  |  Association 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

Yahoo Rolls Out Two New Mobile Offeringsnew

Online Media Daily  |  02-13-2008  6:19 pm  |  Industry News

Medill Survives Wave of AltWeekly Awards Entries

In its first year administering AAN's editorial contest, Northwestern University's journalism school processed 1,404 entries, a slight decline from last year's total of 1,490. The decline is probably due to rule changes that resulted in the elimination of two categories and a decrease in the number of entries allowed in other categories. Member participation continues to hover around the 100-mark, with 97 newspapers and seven independent cartoonists submitting work. Finalists will be announced on AAN.org in May.
AAN  |  02-12-2008  1:37 pm  |  Association News

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