AAN News
VVM: Last Week's Court Order is 'Very Limited in Scope'
In a message to all Village Voice Media employees sent out today, VVM CEO Jim Larkin and executive editor Michael Lacey say the ramifications of last week's court order that suggested the San Francisco Bay Guardian could seize assets from papers other than SF Weekly has been widely misunderstood. "[The order] simply says the Guardian can try and go after cash distributions New Times receives from its publications as a limited partner or member of the company," they say, pointing out that "the amount of those monies is zero," since the company's publications are "separately organized limited liability companies or limited partnerships that own, operate and publish in their respective communities." They say that as they continue their appeal of the original judgment, "our publications will continue to publish and conduct business as they have all along."
(FULL STORY)
Village Voice Media Press Release |
01-12-2010 4:13 pm |
Press Releases
Ex-Chicago Reader Reporter Dramatizes His Work on Police Torturenew
John Conroy has turned to the stage to tell the story of police brutality he spent more than a decade covering at the Reader. The two-act "My Kind of Town," Conroy's first effort as a playwright, fictionalizes some of the stories of police torture he encountered in the city. He tells the New York Times that for the play he tried to create characters with moral ambiguities in order to stimulate conversations about the audience members' own feelings on torture. "I'm not a 'gotcha' reporter, and I wasn't out to paint cops in any simplistic good-and-evil way," Conroy says. "And I didn't want to tell a story that said that the guilty cops have to be punished or the righteous have to win, but rather that these were real human beings who had to make choices that we as a society need to see -- and that those choices had consequences that we as a society and city need to deal with."
The New York Times |
01-12-2010 1:17 pm |
Industry News
LEO Weekly Founder Will Run for 3rd Term in Congressnew
U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth has filed paperwork with the Kentucky Secretary of State's office to run for a third term representing the state's Third District in the House of Representatives. Yarmuth, a Democrat, founded the Louisville alt-weekly in 1990 and sold it in 2003 before first running for Congress in 2006. His campaign says he has raised $660,000 during the 2010 election cycle to date.
Business First of Louisville |
01-12-2010 9:21 am |
Industry News
Tags: Management, LEO Weekly
Philadelphia Weekly Re-Launches Happy Hour Guide as Free iPhone App
Philadelphia Weekly Press Release |
01-12-2010 4:21 pm |
Press Releases
How Will the Bay Guardian/SF Weekly Ruling Impact Other VVM Papers?new
Last week, a San Francisco Superior Court commissioner granted the San Francisco Bay Guardian's request to place a lien on assets of SF Weekly's parent company, as the Guardian attempts to collect millions of dollars it was awarded in 2008's predatory-pricing trial. (The case is being appealed by the Weekly.) While the Guardian says it is "exploring the possible sale" of one or more of Village Voice Media's papers, reaction from several of those papers was relatively muted. Westword editor Patricia Calhoun tells the Denver Daily News she thinks it's highly unlikely that her paper will be impacted in any way. "This is a lawsuit that I'm sure our lawyers will resolve," she says. Meanwhile, the Seattle Weekly gives the Guardian a tongue-in-cheek look at some of the paper's assets it could seize, and MinnPost's David Brauer wonders if the ruling could hurt City Pages. His take? It's not likely, but "VVM had better start winning in court ... or we'll all have to start taking this a lot more seriously."
The Denver Daily News | MinnPost.com | Seattle Weekly |
01-11-2010 1:00 pm |
Industry News
Las Vegas CityLife Editor Picks Up a TV Gignew
Steve Sebelius will soon have an additional hat to wear. On top of his job as CityLife's editor, he is joining the local TV station Channel 8 as part of its investigative team; he will also appear on-air twice a week to discuss politics, and cover and analyze the 2010 elections. Sebelius says his TV commentary will not be ideological, but it will be contextual. "I'm not going to deny I have an ideological point of view, it would be foolish and intellectually dishonest," Sebelius says. "But when you are a professional journalist, you have the obligation to be fair. My role is not to argue with these newsmakers, but report what they do and put it into context for people."
Las Vegas Review-Journal |
01-11-2010 11:13 am |
Industry News
New Creative Loafing CEO Named One of 'Ten People to Watch' in 2010new
Marty Petty, who was named the six-paper company's first post-bankruptcy CEO in November, has been dubbed one of the people to watch in the Tampa Bay business scene by the St. Petersburg Times. "Petty has her work cut out for her. Any newspaper is a business challenge in these lean days. Creative Loafing faces direct competition from tbt* Tampa Bay Times, the free, Monday-through-Friday alt-like tabloid that belongs to the St. Petersburg Times," the Times reports. "But Petty, 57, now controls a geographically diverse audience with five other alts published in Sarasota, Charlotte, Atlanta, Chicago and Washington, DC. Let the games begin."
St. Petersburg Times |
01-11-2010 8:29 am |
Industry News
Tags: Management, CL, Inc.
Local Nonprofit Honors Colorado Springs Independent Publishernew
John Weiss has been named the recipient of the Citizens Project's 2010 Divine Award, which is given each year to someone who "create[s] a vibrant democracy in which equal rights are protected and differences are respected." Weiss' "leadership has created a more diverse, progressive and green Colorado Springs over the last 27 years," the Project says.
Citizens Project |
01-11-2010 8:22 am |
Honors & Achievements
Google Offers Local Search on Mobile Devices with 'Near Me Now'new
Computerworld |
01-11-2010 9:49 am |
Industry News
Tags: Electronic Publishing, Management
Register Today: Limited Space Available at AAN West Conference
With well over 150 registrants from 20 AAN member publications, the 2010 AAN West conference, slated for Jan. 29-30 in Berkeley, is already exceeding expectations. Seats are limited, so interested publications should register their attendees soon to guarantee admission to the conference. Detailing programming information and links for registration can be found at this link.
(FULL STORY)
AAN |
01-08-2010 3:31 pm |
Association News
Court: Bay Guardian Can Place Lien on SF Weekly Parent Co.'s Assetsnew
A San Francisco Superior Court commissioner has granted the San Francisco Bay Guardian's request to place a lien on the Weekly's holding company and the firm's interests in the Village Voice Media chain, as the Guardian attempts to collect the millions of dollars it was awarded in 2008's predatory-pricing trial. The Guardian's lawyer says the lien would enable it to seek another court order allowing it to sell off any of the VVM papers -- including SF Weekly - or simply take money from them to pay the judgment. But the Weekly's lawyer says the ruling is much narrower, and doesn't allow the Guardian to go after any of VVM's assets. Meanwhile, the Weekly continues its appeal of the initial ruling.
San Francisco Chronicle |
01-08-2010 12:25 pm |
Industry News
Video Game Developer Makes Giant Westword Logo out of LEGOsnew
The Denver alt-weekly's cover story this week details how video game developer NetDevil is creating a LEGO version of World of Warcraft with the game LEGO Universe, so Westword decided to have NetDevil's digital model model designer create a giant LEGO version of its logo. The designer worked with Westword art director Jay Vollmar to create a four-foot-long, bright-red logo, which is on the paper's cover and now sits in the office window of editor Patricia Calhoun, "much to the amazement of passersby."
Westword |
01-08-2010 9:18 am |
Industry News
Former Salt Lake City Weekly Editor Running for Officenew
Holly Mullen, who left the alt-weekly in February 2009 after nearly two years at the helm, has entered the 2010 race for the at-large Salt Lake County Council seat currently held by her step-daughter, Jenny Wilson. "She will be running as a Democrat in one of the few major races where a Democrat can actually win," the Weekly reports. READ MORE from the Salt Lake Tribune.
Salt Lake City Weekly |
01-07-2010 2:59 pm |
Industry News
Appeals Court Upholds Dismissal of Suit Against Cleveland Scenenew
A three-judge panel of the federal 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in December upheld a U.S. District Court's 2008 dismissal of a defamation suit brought against the Scene and one of its reporters by an Ohio doctor. The circuit court found Dr. Edward Patrick failed to demonstrate the threshold requirement of falsity in regards to a 2004 article that the doctor claimed falsely suggested his resume was misleading, his medical credentials were not valid, and that his board certification process was fraudulent.
Toledo Legal News |
01-07-2010 1:17 pm |
Legal News
Jonathan Gold Finally Joins Staff of L.A. Weeklynew
Gold, who has won a Pulitzer Prize for his work at the Weekly, had always been a freelancer for the paper -- until now. He's now on staff, where he'll continue writing his columns and also beging contributing to Squid Ink, the Weekly's food blog.
LA Observed |
01-07-2010 8:37 am |
Industry News
