Collected and Edited by Rick Kaempfer
Highlights and links to the big stories in the news this week about the media. This column appears twice a week at MEDIA NOTEBOOK
Rachel Maddow to replace Dan Abrams
(New York Times) Bill Carter writes: "Just in time for the closing rush of the presidential election, MSNBC is shaking up its prime-time programming lineup, removing the long-time host –- and one-time general manager of the network — Dan Abrams from his 9 p.m. program and replacing him with Rachel Maddow, who has emerged as a favored political commentator for the all-news cable channel. The moves, which were confirmed by MSNBC executives Tuesday, are expected to be finalized by Wednesday, with Mr. Abrams’s last program on Thursday. After MSNBC’s extensive coverage of the two political conventions during the next two weeks, Ms. Maddow will begin her program on Sept. 8."
Obama's Wide Web
(Washington Post) Jose Antonio Vargas writes: "Amid the cramped, crowded cubicles inside Sen. Barack Obama's campaign headquarters here, sandals are as ubiquitous as iPods. Two young guys in shorts and T-shirts throw a football around. An electoral college map (California 55, Texas 34, etc.) is taped to the wall in the men's bathroom. A BlackBerrying staffer sneezes and blurts out, "Whew! I think I'm allergic to hope!" This is Triple O -- Obama's online operation...This year's primary season, spanning six months, proved that online buzz and activity can translate to offline, on-the-ground results. Indeed, the Web has been crucial to how Obama raises money, communicates his message and, most important, recruits, energizes and turns out his supporters. With less than three months to go before the election, Triple O is the envy of strategists in both parties, redefining the role that an online team can play within a campaign."
Is Jon Stewart the most trusted man in America?
(New York Times) Michiko Kakutani writes: "When Americans were asked in a 2007 poll by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press to name the journalist they most admired, Mr. Stewart, the fake news anchor, came in at No. 4, tied with the real news anchors Brian Williams and Tom Brokaw of NBC, Dan Rather of CBS and Anderson Cooper of CNN. And a study this year from the center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism concluded that “‘The Daily Show’ is clearly impacting American dialogue” and “getting people to think critically about the public square.” While the show scrambled in its early years to book high-profile politicians, it has since become what Newsweek calls “the coolest pit stop on television,” with presidential candidates, former presidents, world leaders and administration officials signing on as guests. One of the program’s signature techniques — using video montages to show politicians contradicting themselves — has been widely imitated by “real” news shows, while Mr. Stewart’s interviews with serious authors like Thomas Ricks, George Packer, Seymour Hersh, Michael Beschloss and Reza Aslan have helped them and their books win a far wider audience than they otherwise might have had."
CLICK HEREChicago Tribune completes newsroom layoffs
(Chicago Tribune) Phil Rosenthal writes: "The Chicago Tribune shed more than 40 newsroom employees today, which, coupled with last week's voluntary exit of more than 30 journalists, means the paper has cut 80 people from its editorial staff as part of cost-cutting campaign at all of parent Tribune Co.'s newspapers. 'Endings are never easy,' Tribune editor Gerould W. Kern said in a note to staff, adding that 'with the departure of 80 individuals through today, the editorial staff of the Chicago Tribune stands at 480, the largest news organization in Chicago by a wide margin and one of the largest and most accomplished in the United States. ... While painful, these staff reductions are necessary to establish the foundation for a sustainable future.' The latest round of cutbacks is the paper's fourth since late 2005, when the newsroom was said to have had 670 positions. Other departments at the paper have been making cuts, as well."
Minority Journalists hit hard in Trib Layoffs
(Maynard Institute) Richard Prince writes: "The Chicago Tribune laid off more than 40 newsroom employees on Friday, including a disproportionate number of journalists of color, according to newsroom employees there. 'Coupled with last week's voluntary exit of more than 30 journalists,' the additional cutback 'means the paper has cut 80 people from its editorial staff as part of cost-cutting campaign at all of parent Tribune Co.'s newspapers,' Phil Rosenthal wrote on the Tribune's Web site. Among those called in Friday and told their jobs were eliminated was Ray Quintanilla, a 14-year Tribune veteran. 'It's sad because if you look at the list, it's heavily minority. It looks bad,' he told Journal-isms. He said his marching orders came a day after he challenged a powerful white Tribune columnist who for the fifth time had hired a white assistant, asking the columnist if he had considered any people of color. He recalled that owner Sam Zell had told employees to question authority. Quintanilla said the columnist publicly challenged him to a fight, and said he has filed a complaint with the Tribune's human relations department. The reporter said he could not prove his layoff was related to the Thursday incident, but said, 'It just smells bad to me.'"
CLICK HERE
Mini Interview: Bionce Foxx
(Chicago Radio Spotlight) Every week I'm featuring excerpts from my SHORE Magazine article about 14 local radio voices. This week: WGCI's Bionce Foxx.
Chicago Radio Spotlight interview with Dan McNeil(Chicago Radio Spotlight) Last weekend I spoke with ESPN Radio's Dan McNeil. It's the third time I've written about Dan, but the first time for Chicago Radio Spotlight. We talked about his relationships with his co-hosts (Jurko & Harry), his former feuds, and much more. Coming this weekend; an interview with former WLIT programmer Mark Edwards.
Billion Dollar Boy Band
(Portfolio) Sophia Banay writes: "Don't know who they are? You're obviously not a woman between the ages of three and 30, the parent of a teenage girl, or someone with regular access to any form of mainstream media. The Jonas Brothers are a budding tween franchise with dark locks, bright hooks, and the ability to actually play their instruments. They're currently busy invading Manhattan. Click here for the numbers behind the Jonas Brothers. The trio appeared at the Virgin Megastore in Times Square at midnight Monday to celebrate the release of their new album with several thousand frenzied fans. The album, A Little Bit Longer, is their second for Walt Disney Co.'s Hollywood Records label, and it immediately went platinum. The next day it was iTunes's most-downloaded album. The band hosted MTV's Total Request Live this week, and is making the rounds of other programs: 20/20, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Live With Regis and Kelly, and the Teen Choice Awards, where the brothers won six awards."
CLICK HERE47% favor government mandated 'balance' in the media
(Radio-online) Nearly half of Americans (47%) believe the government should require all radio and TV outlets to offer equal amounts of conservative and liberal political commentary, while 39% say they don't want the government mandating political "balance" in broadcast media. At the same time, 71% say it is already possible for just about any political view to be heard in today's media, according to a Rasmussen Reports survey. 57% say the government should not require web sites and blog sites that offer political commentary to present opposing viewpoints. But 31% believe the web sites should be forced to balance their commentary. In a July, 2007 survey, Americans were evenly divided on whether or not the government should require political balance.
Rupert Murdoch: Stock down 29%, salary down 14%(LA Times) Media company News Corp., whose stock fell 29% in fiscal 2008, reported compensation of $27.5 million for Chairman Rupert Murdoch during the period. Murdoch's compensation for the fiscal year that ended June 30 was 14% lower than in 2007, New York-based News Corp. said in a regulatory filing Tuesday. The base salary was $8.1 million. The company allocated $17.5 million in cash bonuses to Murdoch, and also reported stock awards and other compensation. News Corp. shares fell the most since April 2003 on Aug. 6 after analysts cut profit estimates, citing weak local television and newspaper advertising sales.
Harry Shearer mines gold with "off-air" videos
(Huffington Post) Shearer's "Found Objects," a semi-regular feature of the "My Damn Channel" Web site, is a place where news personalities don't want to find themselves. His videos capture them in that television netherworld: on set or on location but before (they might think) the cameras are rolling. It's the time that obsessions about hairstyles or worries that they've done their homework surface _ or when real personalities bubble through the makeup. If anyone should realize that the camera is never really off, it's the people who make their living in front of it. When they forget, Shearer has his material."
