Journalists are burned out. Some newsrooms are fighting back.

Monday, January 29, 2024

Journalists are burned out. Some newsrooms are fighting back. Keeping reporters healthy over the long term often requires both systemic and behavioral changes, and getting buy-in often isn’t easy. By Christina Couch.

Disinformation often gets blamed for swaying elections, but the research isn’t so clear “Our belief in free will is ultimately a reason so many of us back democracy in the first place. Denying it can arguably be more damaging than a few fake news posts lurking on social media.” By Magda Osman.

What We’re ReadingThe Washington Post / Ben StraussSports Illustrated’s union has filed a labor grievance over mass layoffs →“According to the complaint, the NewsGuild alleges Arena fired employees because of their “support of the Union engagement in Union activities and/or engagement in other protected activities.” In a statement, the guild said managers and supervisors who are not eligible for the guild were not targeted by the layoffs.”Talking Biz News / Chris RoushBloomberg is now providing AI-generated summaries of corporate earnings →“The company has developed a tool that will look for news-related topics in earnings calls, such as guidance, capital allocation, hiring and labor plans, the macro environment, new products, supply chain issues, and consumer demand.”Semafor / Ben SmithThe Washington Post’s new CEO thinks the next opportunities are in social, AI, and personalization →“I think you’ll find that acquisitions will be part of how we’re going to grow. But my hunch is that the industry is changing so rapidly that actually probably social, AI, and personalization are the next opportunities. So the newsletter stuff — we have great newsletters, and they’re going to get better. But the next phase is probably not trying to copy what was done five years ago, but to move forward.”The Washington Post / Timothy BellaHow NBC’s Dateline took back its true-crime throne via podcasts →“With more than 1.3 billion downloads since 2019, Dateline continually ranks near the top of the major podcast charts. Apple ranked it as the No. 3 podcast across all genres for the second straight year — mentioned in the same breath as powerhouses like This American Life and Barstool Sports’ Pardon My Take. It was Podtrac’s No. 1 true-crime podcast of 2023, when the Alex Murdaugh trial in South Carolina whetted a public appetite for crime-scene reconstructions and courtroom drama.”Axios / Alex FitzpatrickWordle accounts for about 60% of all the puzzles and games played at The New York Times →“The New York Times’ puzzle and games were played more than 8 billion times last year, the company tells Axios exclusively, led by breakout hit Wordle, with 4.8 billion plays — and a Games app redesign is on the way.”The Intercept / Daniel Boguslaw and Ryan GrimThe New York Times postponed an episode of The Daily amid debate over its Hamas sexual violence article →“As criticism of Gettleman’s story grew both internally and externally, producers at ‘The Daily’ shelved the original script and paused the episode, according to newsroom sources familiar with the process.”Reuters / Kirsti Knolle and Sarah MarshGerman state broadcaster ARD is asking Israel to let two of its workers leave Gaza →“One of the two ARD workers, Mohammed Abusaif, had already been evacuated eight times since the beginning of the Israeli offensive and was now living in a tent in the southern town of Rafah, the broadcaster said. He was worried both about the Israeli strikes and about reprisals from Hamas.”The New York Times / Cecilia KangA key player in the future of generative AI? The sleepy U.S. Copyright Office →“The attention stems from a first-of-its-kind review of copyright law that the Copyright Office is conducting in the age of artificial intelligence. The technology — which feeds off creative content — has upended traditional norms around copyright, which gives owners of books, movies, and music the exclusive ability to distribute and copy their works.”Global Investigative Journalism Network / Laura DixonA global tour of 2013’s best investigative podcasts →“With podcasts from the Nordic countries, Mexico, Spain, France, Germany, and the US, and featuring stories that uncover mysteries in Haiti, Cuba, and Syria, here is our list for 2023.”Press Gazette / Charlotte TobittU.K. government research plays down the BBC’s impact on for-profit local news outlets →“In December bosses from five commercial local news providers — Reach, Newsquest, National World, Iliffe Media, and Midland News Association — made a rare joint statement calling for the BBC to ditch its planned expansion of local news online and do more to link to other publishers, calling the corporation their ‘neighbor from hell.'”Semafor / Diego MendozaCan MrBeast do what Western media companies haven’t: break through on the Chinese internet? →“Donaldson’s extravagant giveaways in the West are contrary to Beijing’s socialist values, and Ryan suggested that Chinese viewers and censors will likely frame his content as a critique on ‘American decadence’ that highlights ‘the unequal nature of society in America.’ Some of the most successful foreign influencers on Chinese social media have been those that depict the ‘less palatable’ aspects of the West.”The Guardian / Mark SweneyA new investigation is pushing back The Telegraph’s sale to UAE money →“The new investigation will cover the same ground, with Ofcom tasked at looking into the implications of the deal on the need for accurate presentation of news, free expression of opinion, and a sufficient plurality of views and control of ownership. The CMA will look at any potential competition concerns.”Poynter / Pete CroattoWhy “Shattered Glass” is a journalism movie that endures →“In deference to this milestone, the film’s enduring appeal in J-school classrooms, and its rent-free existence in the backs of reporters’ minds, Poynter spoke with more than a dozen people involved in either Glass’s rise and fall or the making of ‘Shattered Glass’ over three months. They offered varying accounts of the man and the film, from inappropriate aggrandizing to a life-defining experience.”The New York Times / Ryan Mac, Benjamin Mullin, and Katie RobertsonL.A. Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong clashed with editor Kevin Merida over an unpublished dog-bite article →“A Los Angeles Times spokeswoman said in a statement that Dr. Soon-Shiong didn’t want the newspaper to be used as a ‘source of exploitation’ in the dispute between Dr. Michelson and the woman who had sued him.”Press Gazette / Bron MaherBusiness Insider will no longer have a dedicated news desk, combining it with lifestyle and business →“‘These consolidations and our smaller staff size greatly reduced our need for managers, which is why some editor roles have been eliminated today in the U.S.,’ the memo added.”The New York Times / Rory SmithWhen soccer’s content mine loses sight of reality →“What unites all of the documentaries that have followed in its wake is how little they actually reveal of the reality of soccer. There are, of course, noteworthy moments…But mostly, they are so tightly controlled, so carefully edited, so highly polished and skilfully produced that any hope of insight is lost in the gleam. They are documentaries cast through the most flattering Instagram filter. They capture the story that the club or the individual concerned wishes to be told.”The New York Times / Sam RobertsR.I.P. Jon Franklin, pioneering apostle of literary journalism →“An author, teacher, reporter, and editor, Mr. Franklin championed the nonfiction style that was celebrated as New Journalism but that was actually vintage narrative storytelling — an approach that he insisted still adhere to the old-journalism standards of accuracy and objectivity.”The Verge / Wes DavisTwitter plans to create a content moderation hub in Austin →“The plan comes, as the article notes, just a few days before CEO Linda Yaccarino’s scheduled January 31st hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding [Twitter’s] handling of child sexual exploitation moderation.”Press Gazette / James RosewellWhy news publishers should fight to stop rollout of Google Privacy Sandbox →“Whether you measure it by advertising revenue share, browser usage or any other factor Google is a monopolist. Google doesn’t deny this. Privacy Sandbox further entrenches this monopolist status by inserting their business into every advertising interaction on Chrome. This is not good for competition on any level.”The Guardian / Kate ConnollyGermany unearths a pro-Russia disinformation campaign on Twitter →“Using specialized monitoring software, the experts uncovered a huge trail of posts over a one-month period from 10 December, which amounted to a sophisticated and concerted onslaught on Berlin’s support for Ukraine. More than 1m German-language posts were sent from an estimated 50,000 fake accounts, amounting to a rate of two every second.”Wired / Kate KnibbsHow beloved indie blog The Hairpin turned into an AI clickbait farm →“This would be a nasty end for any independent media property. For The Hairpin, it’s especially repulsive, because the site was the antithesis of a content mill. It never courted a huge audience or chased trending topics — it was a writer-led website that found an audience by being experimental and intimate and odd…Moving forward, distressed media properties will need to prioritize estate planning, because this type of domain squatting is likely to become more commonplace.” CJR / Cameron JosephThe death of the Washington bureau →The cuts at L.A. Times have left eight reporters covering the entire federal government — for a state with 39 million people. “But if the L.A. Times — the largest, most powerful paper not on the Eastern Seaboard — can’t maintain a serious presence in the nation’s capital, who can?” New York / Shawn McCreeshCondé Nast and other publishers stare into the abyss →“Increasingly, journalists have moved on from ascribing blame for the collapse of the news business to ‘the internet’ and vast technological forces beyond their control. They’re blaming corporate executives who seem unable to come up with plans that cobble together revenues from subscriptions, dwindling advertising money, e-commerce sales, and events — which is what successful executives have accomplished at the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and elsewhere. It’s not a business model that’s glamorous or sexy; it’s a slog, scraping together pennies, a reality that no amount of union activity is going to avoid.”

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