AAN News
More Accusations of 'Extortion' by Yelpnew
Six businesspeople tell the East Bay Express that sales reps from the popular user-generated review site promised to move or remove negative reviews if their business would advertise. "In another six instances, positive reviews disappeared -- or negative ones appeared -- after owners declined to advertise," the Express reports. Similar accusations were made by California small business owners last fall. Yelp officials deny that they move negative reviews. "We wouldn't be in business very long if we started duping customers," chief operating officer Geoff Donaker says.
East Bay Express |
02-18-2009 8:32 am |
Industry News
Dan Pulcrano Buys Online Paper in Los Gatos, Calif.new
Pulcrano, the CEO and executive editor of Metro Newspapers Group, has signed an agreement to purchase the Los Gatos Observer. The site will be run by the division of Metro known as Boulevards.
Los Gatos Observer |
02-17-2009 1:17 pm |
Industry News
Four AAN Members Win Scores of Regional Press Awardsnew
Boston Phoenix staff writer David Bernstein was named Journalist of the Year by the New England Press Association. He also brought home two additional first-place awards for the Phoenix -- in the Investigative Reporting and Serious Columnist categories. "Mr. Bernstein's in-depth articles are compelling and hyper-relevant, challenging myths and assumptions with sharp, clear reporting and a highly readable writing style," the judges write. "Very impressive!" All in all, the Phoenix won another nine awards, including additional first-place wins for Convergence and Reporting on Religious Issues. Worcester Magazine took home six awards, including first-place finishes in the Personality Photo, Social Issues Feature Story and Local Ad: Color categories. Boston's Weekly Dig won four awards, finishing first in Educational Reporting, Infographics and Transportation/Commuter Reporting. The Portland Phoenix also won four awards, and placed first in the General News Story category.
New England Press Association (PDF) |
02-17-2009 8:38 am |
Honors & Achievements
Mobile Entertainment Foundation Releases Top 10 Trends for '09new
Mobile Entertainment Foundation |
02-17-2009 12:52 pm |
Industry News
Tags: Electronic Publishing, Management
More on the Alt-Comics Meltdownnew
Washington City Paper recently saved $8,000 by dropping all of its syndicated comics, the Chicago Reader's Michael Miner reports. City Paper still carries one local strip, "Dirtfarm," only because author Ben Claassen lets the paper run it for free. "City Paper feels like family to me," Claassen tells Miner by way of explanation. But Lynda Barry, who quit her "Ernie Pook's Comeek" strip, and her friend Matt Groening are feeling less familial these days about their former alt-weekly clients. Nevertheless, Groening keeps plugging away, creating "Life in Hell" every week even though his success with The Simpsons has left him financially secure. "I like sitting down once a week and knocking something out all by myself," says Groening. "The rest of my life is full of collaborators."
Chicago Reader |
02-13-2009 3:30 pm |
Industry News
Phoenix New Times Duped by NBA Tattoo Cap Hoaxnew
Takes one to know one? Maybe not. Despite New Times' propensity to publish the occasional tall tale, staff writer Niki D'Andrea admits that this time the paper fell victim to another publication's spoof. In a lengthy cover story about the tattoos of Phoenix Suns basketball players, D'Andrea credulously reported that NBA Commissioner David Stern was proposing a "tattoo cap" limiting each team's "roster as a whole to 61 percent tattoo coverage of the 'upper arms and necks.'" D'Andrea says she picked the story up from Foxsports.com, which posted an item originally published on a blog called the Gerbil Sports Network. Bloggers Alana G, who first caught New Times' mistake, and Heat City, weigh in on the incident.
Phoenix New Times |
02-13-2009 2:36 pm |
Industry News
N.C. Alt-Weeklies Win Handful of State Press Awardsnew
In the North Carolina Press Association's annual contest, the Independent Weekly won a total of nine awards and Mountain Xpress took home three. The Indy finished first in three categories: criticism (which it swept), investigative reporting and news coverage. The Xpress finished first in the Special Section category. In addition, the Indy collected five awards, including one first-place win, in the the North Carolina Press Photographers Association's annual contest.
North Carolina Press Association |
02-13-2009 2:22 pm |
Honors & Achievements
News Editor Reflects on 10 Years at the Providence Phoenixnew
"I've been privileged to enjoy the alt-weekly journalist's brief of reporting and writing lengthy articles on the various topics, from the serious to the fanciful, appealing to the wide-ranging interests of Rhode Islanders," writes Ian Donnis. He is leaving the alt-weekly to become public radio station WRNI's political reporter.
The Providence Phoenix |
02-13-2009 12:09 pm |
Industry News
Small Local Businesses Not Keeping Up With Online Presencenew
Though 63 percent of consumers and small business owners turn to the internet first for information about local companies and 82 percent use search engines to do so, only 44 percent of small businesses have a website and half spend less than 10 percent of their marketing budget online, according to new research from Webvisible and Nielsen.
The Center for Media Research |
02-13-2009 8:25 am |
Industry 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
Former Alt-Weekly Columnist Drops Out of Mayoral Racenew
Joe Lance, who wrote the "Civic Forum" political column for Chattanooga's The Pulse until early 2008, entered that Tennessee city's 2009 mayoral race back in November, but has since withdrawn and endorsed former Parks & Recreation director Rob Healy. Election officials tell the Chattanoogan that Lance's name will remain on the ballot because they didn't know he was giving up his run.
The Pulse |
02-12-2009 10:45 am |
Industry News
Tags: Management, The Pulse
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
