Category Archives: Media Business

On the Central Political Role of Modern Media

Posted on 08/11/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

In a wide-ranging ZNet interview on both the history and future of U.S. media, Robert McChesney (8/11/09) gets to the kernel of reform activism: The media is one of the key areas in society where power is exercised, reinforced and … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Business, Politics | Tagged , | 3 Comments

U.S. Media's 'Connection' to Honduras Coup

Posted on 08/11/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Foreign Policy In Focus analyst Conn Hallinan (8/6/09) has yet another debunking of "the story most U.S. readers are getting about the coup" in Honduras, being "that Zelaya–an ally of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez–was deposed because he tried to change … Continue reading →

Posted in International, Media Business | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Left's Non-Smears Worse Than Right's Nazi Talk?

Posted on 08/09/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Glenn Greenwald has responded via his regular Salon feature (8/6/09, ad-viewing required) to Rush Limbaugh, "speaking to his audience of 15 million, compar[ing] Barack Obama to Adolph Hitler and Nancy Pelosi to Nazi leaders," by asking you to instead compare … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Business | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Dobbs OK Because Not 'Actually Questioning the Facts'

Posted on 08/05/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Reporting for Associated Press (7/3/09), David Bauder has an update on CNN's insistence on "standing behind" Lou Dobbs, who has "become a publicity nightmare for CNN, embarrassed his boss and…on top of all that, his ratings are slipping." Bauder asks … Continue reading →

Posted in Barack Obama, Media Business, Politics, Race | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

WaPo Argues: Censor Blog for Sending Us Readers

Posted on 08/05/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Quipping that "usually newspapers are big defenders of free speech, but not the Washington Post," economic reporting critic Dean Baker (Beat the Press, 8/2/09) takes down the paper's recent piece giving over "nearly 2,000 words to complain that a website … Continue reading →

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New Bill to Keep Internet Open, Discrimination-Free

Posted on 08/05/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Free Press's newest release (7/31/09) touts some fresh congressional legislation that "Would Protect Net Neutrality Once and for All." According to the media reform activists, the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2009 "would protect Network Neutrality under the Communications Act, … Continue reading →

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Big Media 'Worth More Than a Warm Bucket of Spit?'

Posted on 07/23/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Having recently "published a report on 1,200 photos of U.S. torture that I have examined but the public at large has not seen," activist David Swanson (AfterDowningStreet.org, 7/21/09) now relates how he talked about the photos on a few progressive … Continue reading →

Posted in Healthcare, Media Business | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

'Strength in Bargaining' Still, When Deals 'Done Fairly'

Posted on 07/23/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Joe Strupp of Editor & Publisher (7/21/09) is reporting that newspaper union representatives claim a victory of sorts in the Boston Newspaper Guild's refusal to accept a deal that "called for smaller benefit cuts and a furlough, but a higher … Continue reading →

Posted in Healthcare, Media Business | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Indy Filmers Create Most Jobs, Own Least Content

Posted on 07/20/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Toxic Avenger creator Lloyd Kaufmann has a new McClatchy column (7/16/09) "speaking out on behalf of the little guy–or, in the case of independent film and TV producers, the belittled guy," who generally is still "at the mercy of a … Continue reading →

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On Google, HuffPo and the Business of Conveying Information

Posted on 07/17/2009 by Jim Naureckas

I give Peter Osnos credit for not being as nutty as Richard Posner or as self-pitying as Dana Milbank; his piece from CJR on "Whatâ┚¬Ã¢”ž¢s a Fair Share In the Age of Google?" (7-8/09) is the most reasonable version I've … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Business | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

When Reporters Are Present, Yet 'Fail to Bear Witness'

Posted on 07/16/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Arianna Huffington's latest column (Huffington Post, 7/13/09) presents a compelling portrayal of the power of new democratic media–versus the self-preserving corporate model of news gathering–in the Chinese government response to major riots last week: "It choked off the Internet and … Continue reading →

Posted in International, Iraq, Media Business | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

On the Limits of 'Reports and Facts' vs Propaganda

Posted on 07/14/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Viewing "two excellent pieces by the American News Project about the Fed's astonishing actions during the current meltdown," A Tiny Revolution's Jonathan Schwarz (7/12/09) confirms that "ANP does great work, and I commend them for taking on this subjectâ┚¬”especially since … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Media Business | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Even Corporate News 'Isn't Just Another Commodity'

Posted on 07/14/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

A Seattle Times op-ed column (7/4/09) by Free Press' Victor Pickard and Joseph Torres discussing the fact that "the public's changing media habits have eroded the newspaper industry's monopoly on the local ad market" describes the corporate response thus: "The … Continue reading →

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NYT's 'Egregious and Absurd' Editorial Priorities

Posted on 07/13/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

Brad Jacobson is resurrecting the "NYT Front|Back" feature of his Media Bloodhound blog (7/10/09)–spotlighting the New York Times' "penchant for placing a supremely unnewsworthy story on its cover while burying a vital one in its back pages"–only for "the most … Continue reading →

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'No Worries' in Fox Coverage of Murdoch Crimes

Posted on 07/13/2009 by Gabriel Voiles

News Corpse blogger Mark Howard (7/8/09) has linked to a London Guardian "story that simply must be read": Rupert Murdochâ┚¬Ã¢”ž¢s News Group Newspapers has paid out more than £1m to settle legal cases that threatened to reveal evidence of his … Continue reading →

Posted in Media Business | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments