NEW YORK TIMES standards editor Philip Corbett recently issued a memo to NYT’s reporters and editors concerning the use /abuse of anonymous sources. The document, posted on Gawker, is interesting reading for media watchers. I can’t speak to what’s going with most other papers, but I read the NYT a fair bit, and now that I think [...]
Entries Tagged as 'Currently'
All the names that aren’t fit to print
September 3rd, 2010 · View Comments · Currently, Media Matters
Tags:anonymous sources·editing·media·New York Times·newspaper·Philip Corbett·reporting·standards
Get in ma belly!
August 31st, 2010 · View Comments · Currently, Pop Culture
IT’S MY BIRTHDAY today, so rather than write a serious, thought-provoking post, I thought I’d indulge in a little fantasizing about what may just be the greatest food invention of all time: deep-fried beer. You heard me right: ravioli-like pieces of salty pretzel dough filled with beer and dunked into a deep fryer. My god, [...]
Tags:Canadian National Exhibition·CNE·deep-fried beer·deep-fried butter·fair·food·Mark Zable·Texas
Getting over Katrina
August 26th, 2010 · View Comments · Around the World, Currently, God Bless America, Media Matters
WITH THE five-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina drawing near, the U.S. media is busy pumping out special reports and retrospectives on the day disaster struck the Gulf Coast. Most of this reporting is naturally focusing on Katrina’s aftermath and the botched response that continues to impact the area; notably the work done by CNN’s Anderson Cooper, who’s returned to [...]
Tags:African Americans·America·Anderson Cooper·CNN·equality·floods·government·Gulf Coast·Hurricane Katrina·media·natural disasters·New Orleans·Pakistan
Wyclef: Not presidential material
August 23rd, 2010 · View Comments · Around the World, Celebrity Scandal, Currently, Media Matters, Pop Culture
WHAT WAS Wyclef thinking? Hatian-American hip-hop star Wyclef Jean made a huge media splash earlier this month when he announced on Larry King Live that he was running for president of his native land, effectively positioning himself as the saviour of that earthquake-ravaged country. Only one teeny tiny problem: Clef doesn’t meet the requirements for those seeking to become president; [...]
Warning: Journalism being attempted here
August 16th, 2010 · View Comments · Around the World, Currently, Media Matters, Oh Canada
SELF-PROCLAIMED “geek comedian” Tom Scott has a funny-cause-it’s-true bit on his blog that really sticks it to crappy newspapers: Journalism Warning Labels. “It seems a bit strange to me that the media carefully warn about and label any content that involves sex, violence or strong language — but there’s no similar labeling system for, say, [...]
Tags:bad journalism·geek comedy·journalism·Journalism Warning Labels·media·PR·public relations·Tom Scott
Making the most of a meltdown
August 12th, 2010 · View Comments · Around the World, Currently, God Bless America, Media Matters, Pop Culture, Weird and wacky
IT WAS EASY to predict that the Steven Slater story would quickly turn into a media circus. After all, America was in desperate need of a fresh hero / villain to obsess over, and, eventually, give a reality show to. UPDATE: Steven Slater offered reality show There’s really nothing left to say about the whole Slater and the slide incident, so [...]
Tags:air safety·air travel·flight attendant·JetBlue·meltdown·NextMedia Animation·Steven Slater
Facing reality
August 8th, 2010 · View Comments · Around the World, Currently, Media Matters
THE COVER of the Aug. 9 issue of Time has generated a fair bit of controversy among those on both sides of the debate over the war in Afghanistan. The magazine’s front features a disturbing image of an 18-year-old Afghan woman who had her nose and ears cut off as punishment for fleeing an arranged [...]
Tags:Afghanistan war·mutilation·New York Times·Richard Stengel·Taliban·Time magazine·violence
Man’s best friend
August 4th, 2010 · View Comments · Currently, God Bless America, Weird and wacky
THIS ZANY STORY gives new, weird meaning to the old adage “dog is man’s best friend.” Jerry Douthett of Rockford, Mich. had an infected toe. Yet despite pleas from his wife, Rosie, a nurse, Jerry refused to go to the doctor to get it looked at. A few weeks ago, the couple were out celebrating Rosie having [...]
Shit show
July 28th, 2010 · View Comments · Currently, Pop Culture, Weird and wacky
KINGS OF LEON had a shit show in St. Louis last week – literally. During a concert Friday at the Verizon Amphitheatre, birds in the rafters pooped on the band and their equipment. After one of the droppings ending up in bassist Jared Followill’s mouth, the group ended the show. “They couldn’t deal any longer,” their publicist said. “It’s [...]
Tags:bass guitar·Jared Followill·Kings of Leon·rock band·Verizon Amphitheatre
The biggest buzz of all
July 25th, 2010 · View Comments · Around the World, Currently, Media Matters, Pop Culture, Weird and wacky
YOU’VE GOT to hand it to BrewDog – they sure know how to create a big buzz. The Scottish brewery made headlines this week for producing a 55%-alcohol beer, ominously named the End of History. “This blond Belgian ale is infused with nettles from the Scottish Highlands and fresh juniper berries,” the proprietors say on [...]
Tags:alcohol·beer·BrewDog·brewing·End of History·Sink the Bismarck!·Tactical Nuclear Penguin·taxidermy
Keeping Apple honest
July 21st, 2010 · View Comments · Around the World, Currently, Media Matters, Pop Culture
NEW YORK TIMES media columnist David Carr had an interesting piece in last Sunday’s paper looking at the role Consumer Reports played in the iPhone4-reception debacle. The magazine said it can’t recommend the phone because of issues with the antenna, which wraps around the outside of the device. If the phone is held a certain way, dropped [...]
Tags:apple·Canada·Consumer Reports·David Carr·Gizmodo·iPhone4·New York Times·Steve Jobs·wireless
Goosegate
July 17th, 2010 · View Comments · Around the World, Currently, Oh Canada, Unusual Punishments, Weird and wacky
CANADA GEESE are a complete and utter nuisance. They happen to bear this country’s name, and, as such, have come to be seen as a national symbol of sorts, along with Mounties, beavers and maple syrup. But our default national bird can also be quite a pain, particularly beyond our borders. Recall Canada geese were [...]
Tags:America·animal cruelty·animal culling·Bald Eagle·Brooklyn·Canada goose·Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger·freedom·New Jersey·U.S.A.·United States·US Airways Flight 1549
