AAN News
More on the Bay Guardian/VVM Verdict
"There's more to the Bay Guardian-VVM fight than ill will and purple prose," writes Boston Phoenix media reporter Adam Reilly. "The two sides have predictably divergent takes on the merits of the outcome. But they agree that its legal ramifications go far beyond the Bay Area and the alt-weekly universe." Guardian publisher and editor Bruce Brugmann tells the Phoenix that the suit sets an example for small businesses everywhere. "Everyone can use our suit as a model and template for any big chain that's coming in and trying to predatory-price them," he says. But SF Weekly attorney Jim Wagstaffe thinks that if the judge grants the Guardian's request for an injunction for the Weekly to stop all below-cost sales as the case winds its way through the courts, "the result here could dramatically harm consumers. If every one of [a publication's] ad sales is scrutinized to make sure it's not, quote-unquote, too low, then what'll happen is, publications will raise their prices to avoid getting sued." The Guardian notes that interest will accrue on the judgment at a rate of 10 percent a year. "That means the Weekly and VVM will be paying $4,000 a day in interest for as long as they seek to dispute and appeal the jury decision," the Guardian reports.
Boston Phoenix | San Francisco Bay Guardian |
03-12-2008 8:35 am |
Industry News
Village Voice Food Critic on Anonymity and 'Iron Chef'new
"It's actually rather easy to go unrecognized as a critic," says Robert Sietsema, who's been eating and writing for the Voice for 15 years. "Most critics want to be recognized since they love having restaurateurs kiss their ass and bring them free food. The Voice pays for what I eat, so I don't need any free food." The critic talks to Gothamist in advance of the Voice's first-ever Choice Eats tasting event tonight in New York, which features some of Sietsema's favorites. They also ask him about the response to his recent much-talked-about story on "how bogus" the popular TV show Iron Chef is. Sietsema says "the funniest responses came from crybaby Iron Chef judges ... it was like poking a hornet's nest, and I'd do it again in a second."
Gothamist |
03-11-2008 3:48 pm |
Industry News
IAB Makes Headway In Online Video Industry Standardsnew
Late last year, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) put together a Digital Video Committee to try to "establish industry standards so agencies could compare apples to apples on a network by network basis," MediaPost reports. The committee presented findings from its first white paper last month in New York, and made the initial steps of defining some key terms and creating two working groups to further study ad format standards and core metrics. MediaPost reports that 120 companies are involved with the committee.
MediaPost |
03-11-2008 11:08 am |
Industry News
Metro Newspapers & Boulevards Launch Virtual Valley Network
Metro and Boulevards are joining forces with a Bay Area NBC affiliate, two leading local citizen journalism sites, and the news aggregator Topix to create "a wide-ranging community-based news initiative ... that will span print, web, citizen journalism and broadcasting." Stories from Metro will be available for the broadcast partners to use, and stories from the citizen journalism sites and the TV network will be excerpted in a new section called "Mashup!" in Metro's print edition. "We are concerned about the consolidation, layoffs and disinvestment in local publishing and want to make sure that communities here are well covered," Dan Pulcrano, executive editor of Metro and CEO of Boulevards, says in a statement. "We will be expanding our news coverage and adding resources."
(FULL STORY)
Boulevards Press Release |
03-07-2008 8:34 am |
Press Releases
Philly City Paper's Local Band Battle Will Lead to AAN Conventionnew
City Paper and Philadelphia radio station Y-Rock On XPN have each picked eight local bands to go head-to-head in the first "Philly Rock Shootout." The voting began this week, and the band that receives the most votes from each side will face off next week. The winner of that contest will be invited to play a showcase at this year's AAN Convention, to be held June 5-7 in Philly, as well as a Y-Rock festival. In addition, if City Paper wins, it gets to run the radio station for an hour; but if the alt-weekly loses, it will turn over a full page of its music section in an issue to Y-Rock.
Philadelphia City Paper |
03-07-2008 8:09 am |
Industry News
Village Voice Critic Curates Film Seriesnew
To celebrate his 30th anniversary at the Village Voice, the Brooklyn Academy of Music asked J. Hoberman to select films that have sparked some of his most stimulating reviews and articles, as well as a few personal favorites, in a series that begins next week. "30 Years of J. Hoberman" opens Monday with David Lynch's Eraserhead and runs through April 3. In an interview with Gothamist, Hoberman talks about the state of the film world, and reflects on his roots in the 1970s avant-garde film scene. When asked if he'd ever want to step behind the camera again, Hoberman says he's not sure. "I still have some ideas for things I was never able to realize twenty odd years ago but I don't know that I have the necessary desire," he says. "It's tough to make avant-garde films. You have to really will this stuff into the world."
Gothamist |
03-06-2008 10:08 am |
Honors & Achievements
Reaction Pours in to Verdict in Bay Guardian/VVM Trial
A number of stories and blog posts have come out since a jury ruled in favor of the Bay Guardian in its predatory pricing suit against SF Weekly and Village Voice Media yesterday. Here are some:
- The Associated Press via the San Jose Mercury News: "SF Weekly Ordered to Pay Rival $15M for Predatory Pricing Ads"
- East Bay Express: "Guardian Wins $15 Million, Express Not Affected"
- Editor & Publisher: "Bay Guardian Awarded $15.6 Million In Lawsuit"
- The Georgia Straight: "SF Guardian Wins 'David and Goliath' Suit Over Village Voice Media's SF Weekly"
- San Francisco Chronicle: "Bay Guardian Wins Suit with SF Weekly"
- SF Weekly: "Ka-Ching!"
- SF Weekly: "Who You Callin' Guilty?"
AAN |
03-06-2008 9:47 am |
Industry News
Oklahoma Gazette Picks Up Dozens of State Awards
The Gazette won a total of 38 awards during the last two weekends, including a sweep of the Best Reporting Portfolio category in the annual Oklahoma Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) awards. The paper took home a total of 24 honors in the SPJ contest, including a second-place finish overall in the Best Newspaper competition and eight first-place finishes -- in the Best Reporting Portfolio, Feature Writing, In-Depth Enterprise Reporting/Team, In-Depth Enterprise Reporting by an Individual, Health Reporting, Feature Headlines, Feature Page Layout, and Best Use of Graphic Illustration categories. The Gazette also took home 14 awards at this year's Oklahoma City ADDY Awards, including Gold ADDYs in the Publication Design (Magazine or Book) Series and Newspaper Self-Promotion Single categories.
(FULL STORY)
Oklahoma Gazette Press Release |
03-06-2008 8:34 am |
Press Releases
Jury Rules in Favor of Bay Guardian in Suit Against VVM
The jurors handed down their decision in the Guardian's predatory pricing suit against SF Weekly and Village Voice Media today, awarding the Guardian more than $6.39 million in damages. Under California law, part of that verdict is subject to treble damages, bringing the total award to $15.6 million. The Weekly has indicated that it will appeal the decision. Read VVM's statement on the verdict here. The Guardian has a story on the verdict here.
SF Weekly | San Francisco Bay Guardian |
03-05-2008 5:30 pm |
Industry News
Michael Musto Channels Lindsay Lohan Channeling Marilyn Monroenew
Last month, New York magazine ran a photo series of Lindsay Lohan recreating Marilyn Monroe's legendary series known as "The Last Sitting," which were taken six weeks before Monroe's death in 1962. Now Village Voice columnist Michael Musto is getting in on the act with a cover story and photo spread of his own. "Anxious to share my desperate man-tits with an audience beyond Chelsea, I gleefully agreed to star in an homage to an homage: Musto as Lohan as Marilyn," he writes. The New York Post notes that Musto "is both hairer and more modest than Lohan" and reports that the Voice columnist's pre-shoot regimen was only slightly different than Lohan's. "Lindsay did 250 crunches the night before her shooting," Musto says. "Well, I did 250 Nestle's Crunches."
The Village Voice | The New York Post |
03-05-2008 10:06 am |
Industry News
Metro Pulse and Knoxville Films to Co-Host East TN Video Gallerynew
Metro Pulse Press Release |
03-05-2008 12:24 pm |
Press Releases
Jury Still Deliberating in Bay Guardian/VVM Trial
The 12 jurors will reconvene to consider the case this morning. For more, check the most recent blog posts from the SF Weekly and the Bay Guardian.
SF Weekly | San Francisco Bay Guardian |
03-04-2008 8:28 am |
Industry News
Three Alt-Weeklies Win North Carolina Press Association Awardsnew
The Independent Weekly's Derek Anderson was named Photographer of the Year by the NCPA, and the Weekly took home four first-place awards, for Investigative Reporting, Feature Photography, Photo Page, and News Coverage. The paper also placed second in two categories and third in one. Creative Loafing (Charlotte) finished first in two categories: News Feature Writing and Lighter Columns. Mountain XPress also took a second-place award for Investigative Reporting, and a third-place "general excellence" award for its website.
North Carolina Press Association |
03-03-2008 9:30 am |
Honors & Achievements
Bay Guardian/VVM Trial Goes to the Jurynew
The jury began deliberations on Friday and will resume this morning. Both the SF Weekly and the San Francisco Bay Guardian need nine of the 12 jurors to take their side in order to win the case. "Much like two candidates in the final days before an election, attacks from both sides are getting increasingly personal as a verdict nears," the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The daily says the trial has brought to light financial data that call into question whether the city can support two alt-weeklies at "a time when newspapers are consolidating to stay alive." Local blogger Randy Shaw agrees.
"Maybe the San Francisco market can't support two alternative weeklies," he says. "It's likely, after the outcome of this court case, there might only be one left standing." For the most recent coverage, check out the trial blogs from the Guardian and the Weekly.
San Francisco Chronicle | SF Bay Guardian | SF Weekly |
03-03-2008 8:26 am |
Industry News
All Charges Against Orlando Weekly Droppednew
The Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation (MBI) has dropped its racketeering charges against the Weekly, as well as the misdemeanor and felony charges it filed against three Weekly employees last October for of selling ads to prostitutes, the paper reports. "As it turns out, the MBI brain-trust hit a small hitch -- there's not really anything illegal about that," the Weekly's Jeff Billman writes. The paper has agreed to stop running Adult Services ads, and reimbursed the MBI $10,000 for its investigation.
Orlando Weekly |
02-27-2008 4:01 pm |
Industry News
