AAN News
Judge Says She'll Raise Damages Award in SF Weekly/Bay Guardian Casenew
Judge Marla Miller of San Francisco Superior Court said Friday she's inclined to boost a jury's damages award against the Weekly from $6.3 million to $15.6 million, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Miller, in what she described as a tentative decision, said she would triple the portion of the damages that equals one year of losses, bringing the total to $15.6 million. She also said she'll likely issue an injunction barring the Weekly from continuing to sell ads below cost. She is expected to make a final ruling this week. The Weekly says it will appeal. Read more from the Bay Guardian and the Weekly.
San Francisco Chronicle |
05-12-2008 10:41 am |
Industry News
Philly 2008: Gourmet Food, Historic Surroundings and Great Music
Philadelphia City Paper today announced the details of the evening
festivities at this year's AAN Convention, and, as always, there will
be plenty to ingest, imbibe and experience as attendees catch up with their
AAN colleagues. From the opening night "Get on Board the Love Train" reception, featuring food from some of Philly's most well-regarded restaurants, to a closing night party across the street from where the U.S. Constitution was drafted, City Paper has our party needs covered. Other events include a restaurant and pub crawl through the hip environs of an historic neighborhood known as Northern Liberties, and a Saturday afterparty for about 75 attendees at The Roots Family Picnic. More afterparties are in the works -- be sure to check the Convention website for details.
(FULL STORY)
AAN |
05-08-2008 3:51 pm |
Association News
Convention Early Registration and Hotel Deadlines Approaching
This Friday, May 9, is the deadline for early registration for the 31st Annual AAN Convention, June 5-7 in Philadelphia. Early rates are $295 per person for members, and $425 per person for non-members, and each will increase by $50 per person after this Friday's deadline. Registration is available via the Convention website. Next Friday, May 16, is the deadline to book a room at the special AAN rate of $169 single or double occupancy at the Marriott. Hotel rooms can also be booked online. Remember that the hotel could sell out before May 16, so book your room(s) as soon as possible. In addition, this Friday is the deadline for trade show exhibitors to receive a confirmed listing in the convention program. If you have any questions about your listing, or the trade show in general, please contact Debra Silvestrin at debra (at) aan.org or 202-289-8484.
AAN |
05-07-2008 2:25 pm |
Association News
Digital Video Ad Guidelines Releasednew
The Interactive Advertising Bureau this week announced the release of guidelines to the most widely used in-stream ad products, including linear video ads, non-linear video ads and companion ads. A committee of 145 leading interactive companies contributed to the guidelines, which aim to simplify video ad buying across multiple sites and make it more efficient.
Interactive Advertising Bureau |
05-07-2008 11:57 am |
Industry News
Ruxton Rolls Out National Digital Network
The national advertising firm announced today that all "AAN publications that meet a set of standards and practices specifications are eligible for non-exclusive representation by the Ruxton Digital Media Network." Ruxton currently represents 39 alt-weeklies and says it is on pace to deliver more than $2 million in digital sales this year to its partner publications. "Our growing success in digital sales to date and increasing demand from advertisers for more inventory has spurred us to open up the network to all AAN papers," Village Voice Media president and chief operating officer Scott Tobias says in a press release. "A large national digital advertising network will give everyone the opportunity to participate in the growth of national digital advertising sales."
(FULL STORY)
Ruxton Media Group Press Release |
05-06-2008 2:06 pm |
Press Releases
The Mortgage Crisis: Good for the Newspaper Business?new
"The housing sector is, in fact, shoring up newspaper classifieds," City Paper reports. "The collapsed housing sector, that is." The executive director of the Virginia Press Association says there are more foreclosure notices in her papers than she's seen in 30 years. "And it's one category Craigslist can't touch," says City Paper. "Placing a legal notice on Craigslist or some other site won't satisfy municipal distribution requirements."
Washington City Paper |
05-02-2008 9:00 am |
Industry News
Seven Days Examines Fair Housing Lawsnew
The Burlington, Vt., alt-weekly explores the world of complex and often contradictory fair housing laws through its own story: The paper has been accused of violating fair housing laws several times, and was fined $45,000 for doing so on one occasion. "'Single occupancy only,' 'Not Section 8 approved' -- these are terms we thought described physical attributes of the property, as in occupancy limits for fire code," notes publisher Paula Routly. "In fact, the pamphlet we were given for reference said that language was OK. Turns out it was designed for landlords, not publishers." The paper also notes the different legal standards for websites like Craigslist and print publications, which has put an even larger burden on alt-weeklies, already facing stiff competition from web-based classifieds. "Even when their users violate state and federal fair-housing laws, the websites themselves are held faultless," Seven Days reports.
Seven Days |
05-01-2008 8:59 am |
Legal News
Ownership Reports on Applying Papers Now Available
The reports provide background information on the companies and individuals who hold ownership stakes in the 12 papers that have applied for AAN membership in 2008; they are now available in the Resource Library. The Membership Committee is meeting this weekend in Washington, D.C., to discuss the applicants, and will issue its recommendations prior to the Annual Meeting, which will be held on Saturday, June 7 at the AAN Convention. The applying papers must be approved by two-thirds of the members voting in order to be accepted into the association.
AAN |
04-30-2008 1:48 pm |
Association News
New Haven Considers News Box Legislationnew
The city's Board of Aldermen is currently considering an ordinance that would require news organizations to obtain permits to place news boxes in public areas, the New Haven Advocate reports. Publishers would pay $25 for a three-year permit, and $12 per box. "In this climate, every dollar counts," Advocate publisher Josh Mamis says. He says that the new fees could lead to publishers having to pull distribution in areas with the least pick-up. "It's an issue of getting information to all the people of the city," says Mamis. Under the proposed legislation, the power to remove boxes deemed "obstructions" to the right of way would fall to the Public Works Department, which also worries Mamis. "You have to be concerned with the implications of that, should you be aggressively covering the Department of Public Works or the administration," he says.
New Haven Advocate |
04-29-2008 8:46 am |
Industry News
Alternative Weekly Network Websites Show Healthy Traffic Gains
Sponsored post by Associate Member Alternative Weekly Network
The websites represented by the cooperative now represent 8.735 million unique visitors monthly, AWN says in a release. That's an increase of roughly 200 percent over last year. AWN now handles national sales for 91 AAN member websites, as well as the sites for many non-AAN newsweeklies and magazines. "It's nice to see this kind of growth in our network, whether it's from increased visitors on alt-weekly sites, or by adding additional sites to our cooperative network," executive director Mark Hanzlik says. "Either way, we're now making an impressive imprint in the digital world, and can now take our product to market more effectively."
(FULL STORY)
Alternative Weekly Network Press Release |
04-28-2008 1:37 pm |
Press Releases
The New York Press Celebrates 20 Yearsnew
"The New York Press' early years involved a lot of tough slogging, making pitches to recalcitrant advertisers (most of whom are out of business today), attracting writers for minimal fees and continually missing the deadline for our printer in the Meatpacking District," writes founder Russ Smith. "But mostly, we had a lot of fun." He talks about the history of the paper, the future of alt-weeklies, and how his conservative political commentary often got the paper -- which also ran pieces by liberal stalwarts Alexander Cockburn and David Corn -- mislabeled as a "Republican paper." As part of the cover package, the Press also published a timeline of notable events in the paper's history.
New York Press |
04-24-2008 2:50 pm |
Honors & Achievements
Study: Print Ads Drive Online Traffic and Consumer Purchasingnew
Consumers frequently combine newspapers and the internet to research products and make purchases, according to new research by Clark, Martire & Bartolomeo, which was commissioned by Google. "According to the study, among people who research products and services after seeing them advertised in newspapers, two-thirds (67 percent) use the internet to find more information," the Newspaper Association of America says in a release. "Of that group, nearly 70 percent of consumers actually make a purchase following their additional research."
Newspaper Association of America Press Release |
04-24-2008 8:59 am |
Industry News
Artvoice's New HQ Nearing Completionnew
The Buffalo, N.Y., weekly is in the midst of a four-year rehab of an 103-year-old building which has had enough "twists and turns to fill an opera," publisher Jamie Moses tells the Buffalo News. Moses bought the E.B. Green-designed building from the city for $10,000, and he's put close to $1 million into improvements. "It's a messy conversion," says Moses, who originally budgeted around $350,000 for the renovations. "We ran into things we didn't expect, and we're adding work, so it's not the same project we planned." Artvoice should (finally) be in its new home by the end of the year.
The Buffalo News |
04-22-2008 9:31 am |
Industry News
Palo Alto Weekly Launches New Real Estate Websitenew
Palo Alto Weekly |
04-21-2008 9:22 am |
Industry News
Circuit Court Affirms Immunity for Pure Third-Party Web Contentnew
Earlier this month, in Fair Housing Council of San Fernando Valley v. Roommates.com, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reaffirmed prior rulings that interpreted the Communications Decency Act as broadly immunizing website owners from liability based on content posted by third parties. However, the court introduced a new test to determine if a website is outside the scope of Section 230 immunity, according to Davis Wright Tremaine LLP. "Under the 9th Circuit's test, if a website 'materially contributes' to the allegedly illegal content, as opposed to providing 'neutral' tools for communicating information, it may forfeit its immunity," the law firm says. Applying this test, the court found that Roommates.com was in part a content provider, so it was not immune from claims under the federal Fair Housing Act and similar state laws that prohibit discriminatory housing practices. AAN joined an amicus brief in support of Roommates.com's position in the case. Here is the L.A. Times' report on the case.
Davis Wright Tremaine LLP |
04-17-2008 1:38 pm |
Legal News
