AAN News
Letter in Alibi Leads VA Nurse to First Amendment Awardnew
The PEN American Center named Laura Berg as the recipient of this year's prestigious PEN/Katherine Anne Porter First Amendment Award. Berg, who faced a sedition investigation after writing a letter to the editor of the Alibi criticizing the Bush Administration's handling of Hurricane Katrina and the Iraq War, will receive the $10,000 prize at a gala tonight in New York City. "When Laura Berg sat down to write her letter to the editor, she was enacting her most basic constitutional right and affirming our national faith that exercising this right is an act of patriotism and civic engagement," PEN Freedom to Write program director Larry Siems says in a release. "That her letter was greeted instead as a threat to overthrow the government shows just how far we deviated from our national values in the years following 9/11." The New York Times applauded the PEN Center's decision, editorializing this weekend that Berg was "well chosen" to receive award.
The PEN American Center | The New York Times |
04-28-2008 8:50 am |
Industry News
Two Magazines Turn to Cellphones to Make Print Ads More Interactivenew
The New York Times |
04-28-2008 8:54 am |
Industry News
Ex-Village Voice Film Critic On His Departure and the State of Criticismnew
"In some sense, getting fired from the Voice was maybe the best thing to happen in my career," Nathan Lee tells Rotten Tomatoes. "Before I wrote for the Voice, a certain number of people were familiar with my work ... But I think having been able to write at the Voice for about a year and a half, I got to show a lot of people what I could really do. Because you can write at length and it's very unfettered; you can sort of say whatever you want, and I did." He says he's been fielding a lot of freelance offers since he was dismissed in March. When asked about the nationwide trend of the "disappearing critic," Lee doesn't mince words. "I mean, it's really sad that all these film critics are losing their jobs, but I think most film criticism is terrible. And not useful. And frankly, really boring."
Rotten Tomatoes |
04-25-2008 3:13 pm |
Industry News
OC Weekly Staffer in New Feature Filmnew
Luke Y. Thompson has a role in Wicked Lake, a horror film premiering this weekend in Hollywood. According to IMDB's roll call of cast members, Thompson plays "Half-Idiot." The film was written by Adam Rockoff, directed by Zach Passero, and features music by Ministry frontman Al Jourgensen.
OC Weekly |
04-25-2008 8:39 am |
Industry News
The Memphis Flyer Prints its 1,000th Issuenew
In a letter from the editor celebrating the milestone, Bruce VanWyngarden traces the history of the Flyer, from its February 1989 debut to this week's issue. VanWyngarden gives props to previous editors Tim Sampson and Dennis Freeland, as well as Flyer publisher and former AAN Board President Kenneth Neill, and the staffers who rarely get such recognition. "The people who do count are those who create your weekly Flyer -- the writers, editors, art directors, ad sales folks, and others who make this publication possible," he writes.
The Memphis Flyer |
04-25-2008 8:21 am |
Honors & Achievements
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
Metro Pulse Story Leads to Gay Athlete's Induction to Hall of Famenew
Jackie Walker, a Knoxville-area high school football star and all-American linebacker at Tennessee in 1970-71, will be posthumously inducted into the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame July 17. "The city and the university were reminded of his distinguished career last fall," the New York Times reports, after an article in Metro Pulse "introduced Walker to a new audience and asked a pointed question: Had his sexual orientation denied him Hall of Fame recognition?" Metro Pulse editor Coury Turczyn tells AAN News that the original piece, by Betty Bean, "most definitely put things in motion," adding that "several of the interview subjects were made aware of the issue in the process of being asked about it," including people "who nominate athletes for
various halls of fame." Read more on Walker's induction from Metro Pulse.
The New York Times | Metro Pulse |
04-24-2008 12:26 pm |
Industry News
L.A. Weekly Eliminates #2 Editor Positionnew
Deputy editor Joe Donnelly's position was cut by Village Voice Media, LA Observed reports. "I can tell you that Joe Donnelly was one of the reasons the L.A. Weekly has been so strong over the past few years," Weekly editor Laurie Ochoa says. "The good news is that Joe plans on doing a lot more writing, much of which we plan to publish. He's been the guiding force behind so many books through the years -- I think it's time he writes his own book." According to LA Observed, Donnelly will do just that -- he plans on writing a novel. Also, longtime copy editor Sheila Beaumont, who has worked at the paper for 26 years, has retired rather than make the commute to Culver City, where the Weekly is moving next week.
LA Observed |
04-24-2008 10:52 am |
Industry News
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
Boston's Weekly Dig Brings The Internet to Print
Boston's Weekly Dig Press Release |
04-24-2008 1:38 pm |
Press Releases
The Associated Press Taps Verve Wireless to Build Mobile News Network
Dig Communications Press Release |
04-24-2008 9:04 am |
Press Releases
Toronto Film Festival Taps Alt-Weekly Critic as Programmernew
Matthew Hays, who has been film critic for the Montreal Mirror since 1993, joins the programming staff of the Toronto International Film Festival as Canadian feature programmer, according to a press release.
Toronto International Film Festival Group Press Release |
04-23-2008 8:49 am |
Honors & Achievements
Phoenix New Times Account Exec. Wins $1 Million in Rafflenew
Ted Myers learned earlier this month that he was the grand prize winner for the Health & Wealth Raffle and would be awarded a home, a 2008 Mercedes and $100,000 -- a total package valued at more than $1 million, the Arizona Republic reports. Myers, a 22-year-old recent college grad who lives with his parents, must now choose between accepting the house and the car or taking the cash equivalent by Thursday. He's leaning towards the cash, in part to help his band record its first full-length. "I don't think I could afford to live in the house," he says. "I don't think I could afford the electric bill or have the furniture to put in it."
The Arizona Republic |
04-22-2008 12:06 pm |
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
Medill's Abe Peck Given American Society of Business Publications' Lifetime Achievement Awardnew
Poynter Online |
04-22-2008 12:07 pm |
Honors & Achievements
