Monday, November 13, 2023 |
| Plus: Silent corrections to stories, how viral videos draw attention to right-wing news, and journalists’ (somewhat) like-minded Twitter networks. By Mark Coddington and Seth Lewis. |
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| “So this can really give some incentives to both companies and artists just to work together on this thing, right? Rather than just a company taking everything from artists because they can.” By Jon Keegan, The Markup. |
What We’re ReadingAl Jazeera
Nepal is banning TikTok because it “disturbs social harmony” in the country →Nepal’s Minister for Communications and Information Technology Rekha Sharma said the ban was decided because content shared on TikTok “disturbs social harmony and disrupts family structures and social relations.”The New York Times / Choe Sang-Hun
President’s war against “fake news” raises alarms in South Korea →“The president, a former prosecutor, is turning to lawsuits, state regulators and criminal investigations to clamp down on speech that he calls disinformation, efforts that have largely been aimed at news organizations. Since Mr. Yoon was elected last year, the police and prosecutors have repeatedly raided the homes and newsrooms of journalists whom his office has accused of spreading ‘fake news.'”Twitter / NYTimes Communications
The New York Times snaps back at Sen. Tom Cotton over false Hamas claims →“As I am sure you agree, the spread of disinformation and incendiary rhetoric threatens the health of our democracy. Sadly, your letter to The New York Times of November 9 exacerbates those very problems…To make it plain for you: the only connection The New York Times has to Hamas is that we report on the organization fearlessly and at times at great risk, bringing essential information to the public about the terrorist attacks in Israel and the ongoing conflict in Gaza.”TechCrunch / Sarah Perez
Automattic is pulling back on investing in Tumblr, which loses $30 million a year →“This week, WordPress.com owner Matt Mullenweg confirmed his company would be shifting the majority of Tumblr’s workforce to other areas at parent company Automattic in light of the social blogging site’s continued financial woes.”Rsf
Media groups unveil the Paris Charter on AI and Journalism →“The commission comprised 32 prominent persons from 20 different countries who are specialists in journalism or AI. The goal was clear — to determine a set of fundamental ethical principles to protect the integrity of news and information in the AI age, when these technologies are poised to transform the media industry.”The Guardian / Moira Donegan
The death of Jezebel is the end of an era of feminism, and we’re worse off without it →“Jezebel and its peer sites interrupted this misogynist turn, offering an invaluable alternative. They pioneered a voice-forward, irreverent and acerbic take on news, culture and women’s issues, advancing a tone and vocabulary that would have been unthinkable in print media, but which were the lingua franca of the internet.”Business Insider / Sebastian Cahill and Hannah Getahun
We watched 1,000 TikToks in one sitting. The algorithm served up a shocking number of ads, rivaling network TV. →“The main thing we took out of our experiment is the astounding amount of products advertised to us daily, often without us fully comprehending their influence. Even the most conscientious of us have probably bought something they would have had no idea about if they weren’t on social media.”Press Gazette / Dominic Ponsford
A British journalist was questioned by police because his stories on car crashes were so “in depth” →““They asked if I knew any officers within Police Scotland, and who they might be…I was taken aback by their approach and felt it was unacceptable interrogation and very much a bully approach.”The Guardian / Adam Gabbatt
The British are coming! U.S. media sees influx of Britons in top roles →“In the past 12 months, the Wall Street Journal, CNN, and most recently, the Washington Post, have all appointed British bosses. The Times — the UK version — is beefing up its US office, after recent expansions by fellow British publications the Independent and the Sun, as British news organizations seek to attract American readers. The BBC, too, has hired a slew of journalists as it seeks to crack the US market, while the Guardian and the Daily Mail have had dedicated US offices for more than a decade.”The Guardian / Gloria Oladipo
Alabama town grieves mayor who killed himself after far-right blog outed him →“Prior to his death, many had grown concerned for Copeland’s wellbeing after the hard-right website 1819 News in Alabama shared images of Copeland wearing makeup and dressed as a woman as well as excerpts of erotic fiction Copeland had written…Copeland specifically asked 1819 News not to publish such information. The Guardian reached out to several members of 1819 News’ editorial team, but did not receive a response.”Reuters / Dan Williams
Israel holds off on its threatened shutdown of Al Jazeera’s local bureau →“The omission pointed to a balancing act by Israel, which has been angered by Qatari ties to its arch-foe Iran and Hamas, but is looking to Doha to persuade the Palestinian militant group to free scores of hostages held in the Gaza Strip.”Press Gazette / Phil Chetwynd
How Agence France Presse is approaching Gaza coverage →“As AFP works around the clock to explain fast-moving events, we are exposed to accusations of both pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian bias. Every word we write is picked over for signs we are leaning one way or the other. Our staff are subjected to unacceptable abuse. It is an extremely difficult environment in which to do quality journalism.”The Guardian / Lili Bayer
Hungarian plan to target foreign influence fuels fears of independent news outlets →“The draft bill, which Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party is expected to submit on Tuesday, is set to propose creating a new office tasked with investigating activities that threaten Hungary’s ‘sovereignty.'”Associated Press / David Bauder
The group that accused journalists of coordinating with Hamas now says it was just “raising questions” →“We don’t claim to be a news organization,” said Gil Hoffman, executive director of the group “HonestReporting.” The insinuations led two Israeli politicians to suggest the journalists be killed. Several of the world’s biggest news organizations — CNN, The New York Times, The Associated Press, and Reuters — issued statements denying claims they had advance knowledge of the attack. 404 Media / Jason Koebler and Emanuel Maiberg
Advertisers don’t want sites like Jezebel to exist →“Lauren Tousignant, Jezebel’s interim editor in chief, said a couple of weeks ago the ads sales team asked if it could remove Jezebel’s tagline — ‘Sex. Celebrity. Politics. With Teeth’ — from the site…’It was very much the problem here that no one will advertise on Jezebel because we cover sex and abortion.'”The Washington Post / Jonathan Edwards
Right-wing site’s reporting on mayor raises ethics questions after his death →“1819 News, which touts itself as ‘an independent news organization operated by people with Alabama values,’ launched in October 2021 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Alabama Policy Institute. Although the institute bills itself as nonpartisan, it released in 2022 ‘A Conservative Platform in Alabama” that it described as ‘a fully developed legislative to-do list for true conservatives in the legislature or seeking elected office.'”The Washington Post / Monica Hesse
Jezebel gave us the tampon story when we needed it most →“When girls and women frantically forwarded one another this essay in 2008, it seemed like the kind of apocryphal fable you might have been warned of in health class, except it was horrifyingly real — and haunting enough to stick with me for 15 years, apparently, to the point that when I learned Thursday that Jezebel’s parent company would be ceasing publication of the feminist news and culture site, my first thought was, Oh God, the tampon.”The New York Times / Yousur Al-Hlou and Nikolay Nikolov
The war in Gaza is also unfolding on Instagram →“While Israel and Egypt are preventing most journalists from entering Gaza, these Palestinians are documenting the devastation of Israel’s airstrikes and ground invasion in stories and reels. Their posts are intimate and raw — capturing images that mainstream media might consider too graphic to run.”Adweek / Mark Stenberg
Leaked audio from The Information reveals subscription wins and advertising woes →“In the first half of 2023, business and tech publisher The Information saw consistent subscription growth, an $800,000 boost from a new product and lagging brand partnership revenue, according to an audio recording of an internal meeting obtained by Adweek.”The Washington Post / Laura Wagner and Will Sommer
Hundreds of journalists sign letter protesting coverage of Israel →“For some of the journalists, signing the letter was a daring or even risky move. Reporters have been fired from some newsrooms for espousing public political stances that could open them to accusations of bias. But those who organized the newest letter argue that it is a call to recommit to fairness, not abandon it.”
Nieman Lab / Fuego
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