An editor from Quest Newspapers tells tales of newspapers with no journalists, Channel Nine is set for a makeover, the battle for business journalism gossip hots up, and more top tips.
August, 2009
Tips and rumours: When newspapers have no journos
HuffPost Social: the future or the death of journalism?
The Huffington Post has partnered with Facebook to release a new feature called HuffPost Social News, allowing users to track and share the HuffPo articles they’re reading. It’s the futureof journalism, says Chadwick Matlin, although it won’t necessarily be its saviour.
Wikipedia hits 3m articles: milestone or mess?
Collaborative online encyclopedia Wikipedia has reached its three millionth English language article. But is it a milestone for free and open knowledge, or a sign the site is becoming too bloated? The “quality or quantity” issue divides many of the site’s contributors.
ABC turns to video games: iView on Playstation
ABC’s iView — the online, on demand ABC television service — will be available on Sony Playstation 3 consoles as of next year. Other gaming console companies are expected to follow in the future.
BREAKING NEWS: PETA PR stunt pisses people off
Hot on the heels of its tasteful Unhappy Meal stunt, animal rights group PETA has a new campaign to get fists a-shakin’: a billboard depicting a fat woman in a bikini that says: “”Save The Whales, Lose The Blubber: Go Vegetarian.” to promote the weight-loss benefits of vegetarianism.
Kevin Rudd: the wordle
Sean Carmody has compiled 400 pages of text from Kevin Rudd’s speeches this year into our favourite of all data visualisations: the wordle. Just like the man himself, it’s pretty predictable: “government”, “global”, “Australia” and “world” all getting a lot of play.
Not president, but maybe 15 mins of fame and a govt job?
41 candidates in the Afghanistan election are running for president. While a few are serious, others are searching for fame, money or the possibility of a job in the new government.
Video of the Day: Notes and neurons: the audience as an instrument
Musician Bobby McFerrin demonstrates the power of the pentatonic scale and neural programming at the 2009 World Science Festival.
You’re just like the Nazis! The political insult that won’t die
Playing the Nazi card has become the standard political cheap shot. Politicians don’t have another significant political ideology or event against which to compare their morality, writes Brendan O’Neill.
The real threat to democracy in Afghanistan
The real concern about Afghanistan’s election isn’t that it will be fraudulent or a farce — that’s a given — it’s that international bodies will let them get away with it to save their own images.
Uneasy truce in Zimbabwe continues
How is Zimbabwe’s marriage of convenience between Morgan Tsvangirai and Robert Mugabe going? “We agree to differ” admits Tsvangirai, who says Mugabe will not change and laughs off critics who call him a tyrant.
The secret life of Steve Jobs
Along with shiny white gadgets, secrecy is one of Apple’s signature products, says the Times. A peek at the life of the world’s most paranoid power-broker.
A year in the life of Qantas
Qantas held its full year financial briefing this morning, revealing profits are down 87%, negative earnings in the second half, plans to lease more Airbus A330s, plus more premium economy and fewer business class seats.
Busting the media’s bogus “trends”
It’s a classic lazy page-padding tactic of the press: find a few interesting but isolated anecdotes, and declare them a “trend”. Jack Shafer tackles the latest media-fabricated fashions, including “potbellies are back” and “coffee shops are banning laptops”.
How Kim Dae-Young delivered a democractic destiny
Former South Korean president Kim Dae-Jung has died, age 83. His commitment to democracy, even when others believed it incompatible with Asian values, was a great legacy not only to his country, but the entire continent, says The Wall Street Journal.
Italian bank accepts cheesy collateral
Credito Emiliano SpA in northern Italy is accepting parmesan cheese as collateral to keep the region’s cheesemakers in business while the country weathers the recession. The bank’s vaults now hold 17,000 tons of high-quality parmesan, each 80-pound wheel valued at about 300 euros.
PHOTO GALLERY: London through a lens
A great collection of photos of 20th-century London and its inhabitants from a new exhibition at the at the Getty Images Gallery.
John Calvin: more than just a humourless killjoy
This year marks the 500th anniversary of Protestant reformer John Calvin’s birth — not history’s sexiest figure, but a more important one than you may realise.
Right battles over Libs power changes
Members of the NSW Right faction are expected to oppose the new powers of preselection given to Liberal leaders, after the messy treatment of Michael Towke in the federal seat of Cook.
Friedman: Why I won’t miss Robert Novak
Journalist Robert Novak’s death will be mourned — widely and loudly — by most in the media fraternity. But not by Jon Friedman.
More power for NSW Liberal leaders
New powers for NSW Liberal leaders mean that Malcolm Turnbull and Barry O’Farrell can personally pick candidates for pre-selection. Liberals traditionally oppose centralise power in party politics, writes Phillip Coorey.
Vale Bob Novak: Prince of Darkness, pussycat
Conservative American columnist Bob Novak has died, age 78. Newsweek’s Eleanor Clift remembers a staunch ideological adversary, but a must-read journalist and friend.
Shot by both sides
Robert Novak may have been a giant of the American right, but his opposition to the war in Iraq made him as unpopular with many conservatives as he was with liberals.
Cubbie won’t wash away govt water woes
The government is doing too little too late with water allocation in the Murray Darling Basin. Buying the controversial Cubbie Station will not improve the water woes, writes Ben Eltham.
NSW Newspoll: close, but no cigar
The latest NSW State Newspoll shows a two party preferred vote of 54/46 to the Coalition — a one point gain to the ALP. It’s still grim for the government, but try as he might, Barry O’Farrell just doesn’t seem to be able to drive the final stake into NSW Labor.
