January 2005 Archive
Note that some of these links are short term and will expire after two weeks. If you have access to Lexis-Nexis at your college or university library, you can retrieve many of the stories that are no longer on the web.
Main Archive List
Monday - January 31 - 2005
Friday - January 28, 2005
- Because I Can Dept. - Composer Steve Reich Profiled
Ok, this item has little to do with mass communication, but Steve Reich (along with John Adams) is one of my favorite contemporary composers. He has written a number of ground-breaking "minimalist" pieces (think of the sort of things that Phillip Glass does, only much better, IMHO) including Music for 18 Musicians and Drumming. The NY Times takes a look at the composer as the city's music community is getting ready to celebrate Reich's 70th birthday. You owe it to yourself to discover something about this amazing composer.
- Sundance Film Festival - Is Indie Film Necessarily High Art?
Manohla Dargis (NY Times) takes a look at why the Sundance Film Festival has become so important and considers the question of whether the challenging, alternative, explicit films shown there are actually high art.
- Less Fun But More Important Dept. - FCC Drops Appeal of Media Rules
As you may recall, in 2003 the FCC proposed a controversial set of rules that would allow large media companies to own more television stations and more media properties within a single market. Although the Big Six media companies were all thrilled with the rules (they should have been, it was as though they had written the rules themselves), almost no one else was. A fascinating coalition of politicians, as well as conservative and liberal action groups, strongly opposed the new rules, fearing that increased concentration of ownership would cut out the diversity of views being expressed through the media.
The proposed rules were suspended by the U.S. Court of Appeals before they went into force. There is now a move afoot by the industry to appeal this ruling to the U.S. Supreme court, but the FCC announced Thursday that it would not be joining in on the appeal. The Washington Post notes that the court would be far more likely to consider the appeal if it came from the FCC than from industry alone.
- FCC Rejects 36 Indecency Complaints
The FCC continues to wrestle with what "indecent" means with recent rulings.
Thursday - January 27, 2005
- Time For TeleTubbies Dept. - PBS in Hot Water Over Postcards from Buster
How do you handle gay or lesbian parents on a show about diversity for kids on PBS? Apparently you don't. PBS has pulled the plug on an episode of Postcards from Buster in which Buster Baxter (the bunny friend of Arthur from the popular book and TV series) visits a kid in Vermont who has two mommies. The show was to look at it from the point of view of the child - i.e. how do you get along in the world if your parents are a lesbian couple. (NY Times)
- Time for TeleTubbies Dept. Part II - Is SpongeBob a Gay Advocate?
Over the last week or two there has been considerable debate going on as to whether pop icon SpongeBob Squarepants is an advocate for the "homosexual agenda." The yellow dude came to the forefront when James Dobson of the conservative American Family Association accused a music video of We Are Family of being gay propaganda. The video features SpongeBob, along with a wide range of cross-corporate children's puppet and cartoon characters, While there is nothing relating to homosexuality in the video, if you go to the video's web site (http://wearefamilyfoundation.org) you will find a tolerance pledge which calls for children to respect people's differences, including sexual orientation. That pledge, and the fact that SB is sometimes portrayed holding hands with Patrick the Starfish and the Mermaid Man, led to accusations of SB being a gay advocate. Complicating things is the fact that the gay community has reportedly taken a liking to SB. So there's the background. Without further comment, here are several links to articles from around the country on the SpongeBob controversy. For me, the main interest is not whether SpongeBob is gay or a gay icon - it's how an interest group can use a strong statement to command media attention.
- Why Are Today's Entries Slugged Time for TeleTubbies Dept.?
Wednesday - January 26, 2005
Oscar Nominations Announced
Oscar nominations were announced on Tuesday. Let the second-guessing begin! Here's a round-up of stories, commentary, and Oscar pages.
- Washington Post Oscar Page
- NPR Oscar Page
Includes Oscar roundups, protecting the nominee list, coverage of Golden Globes, and numerous other awards (like the 10 worst films)
- NY Times Oscar Page
Now let's see how long the coverage stays up before they start charging for it.... And you wonder why I rarely link to the Times? On the other hand, they do have a couple of nice multimedia materials, including an audio slide show on the acting races, and photo gallery on the nominees.
- BBC News Oscar Page
The British take on the American movie awards. Includes feature on Vera Drake, the British great Oscar hope.
- USA Today Oscar News
Oscar gets the USA Today treatment. Photos, movie trailers, critic best bets, predictions, the works.
- AICN Commentary on Nominees
As only Ain't It Cool News can do (with blue type!)
- Oscar.com
The "official" Oscar page.
Tuesday - January 25, 2005
- WP Ombudsman Talks About His Job
If you've been reading LIAMW for any time at all, you know that I frequently link to Michael Getler's ombudsman column for the Washington Post. You can get to know a little bit more about what he does from this article about Getler at PR Week.
- Getler: A Horror Story Doesn't Hold Up
Getler's column this week is about a July 21, 2003 story that the Post ran about a woman who had been tortured by Saddam Hussein's police. The only problem is that futher investigation shows that the story doesn't hold up. An interesting example of what reporters need to verify what they are being told.
- Meet the Real Coach Carter
Christianity Today has a fascinating interview with the real Coach Carter, whose story is told in the movie of the same name, starring Samuel L. Jackson. I always find it interesting to see how the subjects of movies like how they are portrayed. This one looks pretty good. (Thanks to Librarian.net for this item.)
Monday - January 24, 2005
Johnny Carson Remembered
The great Johnny Carson died this weekend, leaving a legacy of what late-night talk could be. He is remembered as the man who could make fun of people and still be their friend. He could also make fun of himself and his flops. Here's a range of remembrances and tributes from around the country:
Friday - January 21, 2005
- Powell Resigning as Head of FCC
Michael Powell, son of Secretary of State Colin Powell, is resigning as the chairman of the Federal Communication Commission. Powell has been one of the more controversial heads of the commission, leading efforts to deregulate media ownership and to prosecute broadcast stations for carrying indecent material. (Washington Post)
- But Super Bowl Still Isn't Inviting Janet Jackson Back
Never mind that Powell has resigned. The Super Bowl folks still aren't taking any chances. Paul McCartney will be the headliner for this year's halftime show. Lord help us all if he has a wardrobe malfunction... Seriously, though, the NFL is working hard to protect the value of its brand this year. (USA Today)
- Just Say No To SI Swimsuit Issue
Do supermodels wearing (or barely wearing) scanty bikinis offend you? If so, Sports Illustrated now has a hotline you can call to keep the annual swimsuit issue from being delivered to your door. What's more, if you opt out of the swimsuit issue, you get your subscription extended by one issue. What a deal! Apparently the option has always been there, SI just didn't bother to tell people about it. (NY Times)
Thursday - January 20, 2005
- Was Network a Documentary? Dept. - CBS Considers Alternative Formats for Evening News
The other day I was interviewed by a student journalist about the report on Memogate/Rathergate/BushMemoFussGate and was asked what I though was the future of network news at CBS. In the story, I was (correctly) quoted as questioning whether network television news had much of a future. But the reporter left out the portion where I suggested that network news might be something very different in the future -- something more like the Today show, for example. Well, surprise, surprise, on Wednesday, the discussion from CBS was for a format that might mimic The Early Show. And that Daily Show host Jon Stewart (Stop Hurting America!!!) might have place on it as well. BTW, does anyone remember the brilliant 70s movie Network? You might want to take a look if you haven't seen it in a while. A number of things from that movie appeared to be ruthless satire at the time. Today, they simply look like the news. And when are we going to get a Special Edition DVD with commentaries and bonus material. "We're mad as hell, and we aren't going to take it anymore!"
Wednesday - January 19, 2005
- One State, Two State, Red State, Blue State
One of the big criticisms of the Eastern press this fall is how badly it misjudged how voters in the middle states felt about Bush, Kerry, and a variety of "moral" issues. Critics love to scream "liberal bias" as an explanation. And I can't help but be dissatisfied by it. The Washington Post has been attempting to remedy its misunderstanding of mid-America by doing more reporting about that vast sea of red states between the east and west coasts. And in a cover story from its Sunday magazine, I think the Post has hit on something. People in the rural states between the coasts see things differently. I won't pretend to be able to summarize reporter David Von Drehle's arguments in a paragraph, so I would urge you read this terrific piece of journalism that takes a serious look at how the Eastern press could be so badly out of touch with so much of America. Von Drehle, along with photographer Greg Miller, travelled for more than 700 miles from Nebraska to Texas without passing closer than 100 miles to a blue county. The live chat on the Post's web site on Monday also yielded some interesting conversation. What I read from this story is that if the news media want to understand what is happening in America today, they need to talk to people, liberal and conservative, outside of the big cities on the coasts. Read the magazine article and the chat session, and you'll have a better handle on what the real debate is.
Tuesday - January 18, 2005
Not That There's Anything Wrong With That Dept. - Two Bloggers Took Payments as Dean Consultants
What are the obligations of a blogger? Is a blogger supposed to live up to the same ethical standards as a professional journalist? (And for that matter, what is a professional journalist? Armstrong Williams said he never viewed himself as a journalist.)
For example, recent talk online has pointed out that bloggers Jerome Armstrong (MyDD) and Markos Moulitas Zuniga (DailyKos) both were paid consultants to the Dean campaign last year. Zuniga notes he put a disclaimer at the top of his page throughout the time he worked for the Dean campaign.
How is this different from the Armstrong Williams case? First of all, at least for the DailyKos the relationship was disclosed. And secondly, the Williams case involves potential violation of FCC payola rules.
But one of the key differences between the Internet and traditional media is that there are no gatekeepers on the web. Anyone can put up anything, and it's up the reader to decide the value of the material. In the past, we have looked at how record labels have used blogs to semi-covertly promote their own acts, for example. On the other hand, why shouldn't blatant partisans be out there blogging? Isn't that the point of a blog? To be able to write what you want in support of what you want?
(In fact, there has been considerable debate as to who is a blogger. For example, there is no question that The Unknown Blogger runs a blog. He is a journalism major at West Virginia University, and he gives his thoughts on political issues on a pretty much daily basis. He writes his blog for his own reasons with no compensation. Then there is my blog (which you are reading at this moment). I write it to support my classes and to promote my textbook. I don't get paid to write this blog, but it is clearly part of my work. And I don't have any advertising on it. But Shock and Blog claims that Wonkette is a phony blogger because she works on a for-profit blog published by Gawker Media. I don't know that the fact that she is employed by Gawker has ever been a secret. But if that makes her a phony blogger, where does that put Jim Romenesko, who writes the Romenesko media news blog for Poynter Institute. He's writing it for a non-profit group, but he's still being paid for it.
This is going to be an interesting issue as it plays out. BTW, I see that Jay Rosen addressed the question of what are bloggers in his blog on Jan. 15th.
(The link at the start of this item is to Romenesko, but I first found the story through Wonkette.)
Monday - January 17, 2005
Looking Back on MLK, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Press
Friday - January 14, 2005
- It's Gotta Be the Shoes Dept. - What Happens When Fans Can't Buy What They See in Movies
It's easy to be cynical about things being promoted and sold through product placement in movies. But sometimes an item featured in movies take on a life of their own without any apparent effort on behalf of the company. That's what's happening with the shoes worn by Bill Murray in The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. At least some of the buzz over the retro Rom design shoes is coming from the blog Cool Hunting. Gee, what do you want to do with your blog? Bring down an news anchor or get a new pair of sneakers made... (USA Today)
- Jon Stewart Book Reprieved From Library Ban
Daily Show host Jon Stewart's book America features a photo of nine naked people with the faces of the U.S. Supreme Court Justices pasted on them. In December, a library in Mississippi voted not to have the book in its library because of the photo. But following national publicity, the library has decided to put the book back into its collection. BTW, notice the two ways I wrote about this: I used the word "ban" in the headline and "voted not to have the book in its collection" in the body of the item. Ban seems to imply a much more sinister purpose and raises feelings of righteous indignation, but the "not to have the book in its collection" is probably a fairer statement. (Sun Herald)
- Wally World Turns to PR
It's no secret that the Wal-Mart discount store change has had some image problems. The company is finally fighting back with a wide ranging public relations campaign that includes interviews with major news organizations, an advertising campaign, and a new web site. We'll see how well it works. (Washington Post)
Thursday - January 13, 2005
- Don Wycliff: Doing Something Right
The job of the ombudsman is often to deal with what a news organization does wrong. But every now and then he (or she) gets a more pleasant job - pointing out what's been done right. Chicago Tribune ombudsman Don Wycliff in his column this week talks about a couple of stories from the Sunday Trib that he really liked. One was a story by Meg McSherry Breslin on the drug Humatrope used to treat shortness in children. In addition to being a fascinating concept - that shortness could be a disease - he says that it is a really well written piece. He was also impressed with an article by reporter Lisa Anderson from Sri Lanka about the tsunami. It is easy when writing about the media to get bogged down in all that is wrong with the media; it's nice at times to remember what is right about our business.
- Advertising Ethics: Kraft to Change Ads Targeted at Kids
Kraft Foods has announced that his is going to reduce its advertising of high calorie snack foods, such as Oreo cookies and regular Kool Aid, that is targeted at children ages 12 and under. (AP in USA Today)
- Stop Hurting America Dept. - NYT's Frank Rich Lets Crossfire Have It Over Armstrong Williams Interview
NYT columnist Frank Rich lets CNN's nearly dead Crossfire have it with both barrels for playing softball with commentator Armstrong Williams when he was a guest on the show just days after being outed as a paid spokesman for the Department of Education. (Armstrong was paid $240,000 to promote the No Child Left Behind program through commentary on programs where he appears) Rich claims that the Crossfire hosts lobbed easy questions at Armstrong and failed to hold his feet to the fire. (Thanks to my colleague Lynn Reinke for pointing out this article.)
Wednesday - January 12, 2005
Is this the real life?
Is this just fantasy?
Caught in a landslide
No escape from reality
-Freddie Mercury
- And She's Surprised? Dept. - Feminist Greer Calls Big Brother House a "Fascist Prison"
Australian writer and feminist Germaine Greer has apparently been living on another planet for the last few years when she agreed to be on the British reality show Celebrity Big Brother. She said the house on the show was like a "fascist prison," and that the producers acted with "complete irresponsibility." And her point is? (AP via Washington Post)
- The Virgin Makes its Debut
Start with a 26-year-old virgin and have 20 men on a reality show compete for her love, and virginity.
No, The Virgin is not a new television show, it's a novel. But you were wondering for a moment there, I can tell. And it will probably be a show on Fox by next fall... (Reality Blurred) And someone is actually talking about a show where the prize is making a woman pregnant through artificial insemination.
- Saudi's Cell Phone Users Banned From Voting in Reality Show
Saudi Arabia's top wireless phone provider has blocked customers from using their phones to vote in the musical reality program Star Academy 2 because it does not "match the values" of the country's culture. (Reuters)
Tuesday - January 11, 2005
CBS/Bush Guard Memo Roundup
On Monday, CBS's Independent Review Panel released a report analyzing the network's handling of a 60 Minutes story based on memos that supposedly showed that President Bush had been criticized by his superior officer during his national guard service. Within minutes of the story airing, conservative bloggers started raising questions about the story - most notably that the memos appeared to be forged. For today's entry, I'm going to provide links back to previous coverage here of the Bush memo story, and then provide a roundup of coverage about Monday's report. (Gee, Armstrong Williams couldn't have picked a better time to get outed for being paid $240,000 by the Bush administration to promote No Child Left Behind. Who will remember that lapse with the juicy Dan Rather story out there?)
Monday - January 10, 2005
- Commentator Leaves Judgment Behind
You may remember last March and October there was a bit of a fuss over a video news releases produced by the Karen Ryan Group on behalf of the Bush administration. There was some debate as to whether the videos constituted illegal government propaganda. Well, the same questions are being raised over a $240,000 payment given to talk show host Armstrong Williams to have him promote the No Child Left Behind act. Here's a series of links to stories about the topic. A good case study on how far you can or can't go in public relations to build support for your client. (And what the backlash can be if you do go too far!) (Wonkette)
- Coming on Tuesday - Extensive Coverage of Memogate Report
Friday - January 7, 2005
- Plenty of Splatter to Hit Everyone Dept. - CJR Says CBS and Bloggers Both "Screwed Up Badly" in Memogate
Just because Dan Rather and the crew at CBS royally botched the Bush/Memo story doesn't mean that the bloggers had the story right, writes Corey Pein in the latest issue of Columbia Journalism Review. Which I think is an interesting point - journalism is not a zero-sum game with one winner and one loser. When we have lousy journalism we all suffer.
- What's Up in Minnesota?
Reading the wealth of stories on Romenesko this week shows a couple dealing with journalistic problems at Minnesota newspapers. The first deals with the Winona Daily News firing a columnist for plagiarism. In this case it was a local, volunteer columnist who had been apparently copying most, if not all of her columns from newspapers elsewhere. It is interesting to note that it was a reader who caught the problem. The second is about a $625,000 libel verdict against the Chanhassen Villager for an editorial which criticized a local elected official. Remember that it's quite difficult for a public official to win a libel suit, having to show "actual malice" on the part of the press.
- CD Sales Headed Up
For the first time in four years, CDs had a slight increase in sales, and legitimate online music had a mammoth increase in sales. Maybe the Internet isn't putting musicians out of business after all... (Washington Post)
Thursday - January 6, 2005
- Stop Hurting America Dept. - CNN Canceling Crossfire
One of the sublime moments in our media world this fall was when comedian/commentator Jon Stewart was a guest on CNN's Crossfire and told the hosts to "stop hurting America" with the yelling that passes as political debate. On Wednesday, CNN/U.S. president Jonathan Klein decided he agreed with Klein and decided to bring Crossfire to a close as an independent show. He also announced that CNN would not be renewing conservative commentator Tucker Carlson's contract. (Washington Post, though I first read about this story on Wonkette)
- Does Annie Leibovitz Have a Place in Susan Sontag's Obit?
Thanks to Romenesko for addressing a question I had when reading writer Susan Sontag's obit in the NY Times last week - Why didn't the New York Times (or the LA Times) mention Sontag's long-time relationship with photographer Annie Leibovitz? I would not so much argue that Sontag's lesbianism was news, but certainly the fact that a major writer had a long-term relationship with a major photographer should certainly be a fact of note. Certainly when writer Erskine Caldwell died there was mention of the fact that he had been married to photographer Margaret Bourke-White.
Wednesday - January 5, 2005
Tuesday - January 4, 2005
More Year in Review Items
- NPR: Best CDs of the Year
Critics and writers at NPR pick their favorite CDs of 2004.
- All Songs Considered's Music Picks for 2004
NPR's web-only feature on music heard on NPR looks at best music of the year.
- WXPN: Top 50 CDs
University of Pennsylvania's public radio station looks at the best in indie, folk, rock, country, indie-folk-rock-country...
- NPR: Top NPR Stories of the Year
Certainly not the most important stories of the year, just the best work to have come out of NPR this last year. Among the stories are an interview with the voice of SpongeBob (previously featured here), Danny Pearl's mother remembering her slain son, the story of the "numbers stations," (another story we looked at earlier in the year, except our link was to the Washington Post; if you love the mysterious freakiness of Lost, check this story out.), and Walter Cronkite talking about the Joseph McCarthy episode of the CBS documentary series See It Now.
Monday - January 3, 2005
- Working On The Dead Beat - The Life of an Obit Writer
Recently retired Washington Post obituary writer Bart Barnes talks about what it's like to always be writing about people dying. He should know; when he retired last March he had written at least 15,000 obits. I must confess as a former obit writer myself I have a certain fascination with the last story written about each of us. My local paper runs paid obits written by the funeral home or family that leave out critical details such as what people died of. This is a wonderful story, full of life. Read it.
BTW, Carl Hiaasen wrote a wonderful comic thriller with an obit writer as the hero - Basket Case.
- Personal Captioning Comes to D.C. Area Movie Theaters
You're likely already familiar with television's closed captioning and the subtitles on DVDs. And if you've been to a major opera house recently, you may have seen the translations of the libretto that get projected above the stage. But now captioning technology is finding its way into major metropolitan movie theaters to allow deaf and hearing-hearing impaired viewers to fully enjoy the big screen experience. (Washington Post)
- How Low Can You Go Dept. - NY Daily News Puts Model Petra Nemcova on the Tsunami Cover
I haven't ranted lately about how the real bias in the news media is towards the entertaining rather than the left of the right, but the NY Daily News just ran a cover that is to me beyond the pale. On the day after the tsunami devastated costal areas of Asia, the Daily News cover photo and headline talked about how supermodel Petra Nemcova survived the tidal wave. And, oh yeah, tens of thousands of people died... Thanks to Gawker for pointing this one out.
Late December 2004
Mandatory End of the Year Round Ups
This is the time of year when journalists feel compelled to look back over the year that has passed and put together endless number of Top 10 lists discussing the best/worst movies, books, CDs; over-covered/under-covered stories; most significant stories, you name it. Partly it's from a need to look back and reflect, and partly it's to fill space with copy that can be written before you go on vacation. But at any rate, for the next few days we will be looking at journalism and mass comm related end-of-the-year lists. Look for updates through-out the list.
- News Year in Review
- UPDATE - Hartford Courant: Media Critics Look at Year in News
Hint - It isn't pretty. Commentators who are frequently featured here talk about the big stories of the year. There's hot stuff - Geneva Overholser suggests that "objectivity has outlived its usefulness"; NPR's Jeffrey Dvorkin says journalists have hobbled themselves to avoid charges of bias; and the co-founder of CNN notes that Rupert Murdoch, with his purchase of DirectTV, now has a nationwide distribution channel for any programming he wants to put up. Required reading! (Thanks to Romenesko for the link.)
- Television Year in Review
- 2004 Movie Season Reviewed
- WP's Stephen Hunter: Look Back in Anger
He wasn't amused by 2004. Cranky, very, very cranky!
- WP's Anne Hornaday: Bully Pulpit Films
One of the great thing about the Washington Post is that it has multiple film reviewers, who sometimes review the same films. I like the idea of a paper not presenting a single monolithic view. (Even though I really do like the cranky Stephen Hunter.) At any rate, Hornaday gives some good insight on why the year's polemic films got tiresome. (And why she really liked the more obscure Control Room.)
- Overtly Self Referential Item Dept. - Webster's Declares 'Blog' Word of the Year
Every year, Mirriam-Webster (the dictionary folks) build a list of the most heavily researched words at its web site. This year, after excluding perennial favorites such as affect/effect and profanity, the top word was blog. And if you are reading this item, you probably already know what it means! (Reuters by way of CNN International)
