How big a threat does misinformation pose to democracy?

Monday, November 6, 2023

How big a threat does misinformation pose to democracy? “At the time of this writing, it is difficult to avoid the realization that one side of politics — mainly in the U.S. but also elsewhere — appears more threatened by research into misinformation than by the risks to democracy arising from misinformation itself.” By Joshua Benton.

This is the beginning of the end for The San Diego Union-Tribune Under new owner Alden Global Capital, there’s no plan for the future. There’s just revenue extraction for as long as a generation of older newspaper subscribers live to keep paying their bills. By Andrew Donohue, Voice of San Diego.

What We’re ReadingThe Pulitzer PrizesBroadcasters will now be eligible for the Pulitzer Prizes →So long as their entries “rely essentially on written journalism.” Administrator Marjorie Miller: “Although video may be part of the entry, these are not awards for broadcast journalism.”Variety / Chris WillmanGannett’s full-time Taylor Swift reporter is 35-year-old Bryan West →“I would say this position’s no different than being a sports journalist who’s a fan of the home team…I just came from Phoenix, and all of the anchors there were wearing Diamondbacks gear; they want the Diamondbacks to win. I’m just a fan of Taylor and I have followed her her whole career, but I also have that journalistic background: going to Northwestern, winning awards, working in newsrooms across the nation.”The Verge / Wes DavisAI companies have all kinds of arguments against paying for copyrighted content →“Sound policy has always recognized the need for appropriate limits to copyright in order to support creativity, innovation, and other values, and we believe that existing law and continued collaboration among all stakeholders can harmonize the diverse interests at stake, unlocking AI’s benefits while addressing concern.”Associated PressPhilippines radio journalist shot dead during live broadcast →“The gunman gained entry to the home-based radio station of Juan Jumalon, a provincial news broadcaster known also as DJ Johnny Walker, by pretending to be a listener. He then shot him twice during a live morning broadcast in Calamba town in Misamis Occidental province, police said…The Philippines has long been regarded as one of the most dangerous places in the world for journalists.”The New York Times / Jeremy W. PetersJewish viewers find a refuge in Fox News →“…more than any of the other major cable news channels — and perhaps more than any other major American media outlet — Fox News has wrapped itself in the Israeli flag in the weeks since the Hamas attack. Its coverage tends to emphasize the radical and antisemitic elements of the pro-Palestinian opposition, particularly on college campuses, while playing down the civilian casualties from Israeli strikes.”The Washington Post / Elahe Izadi and Karla AdamNew Washington Post CEO Will Lewis has faced big stories and corporate drama →“We’re going to expand. We’re going to get our swagger back…I know that right now is not our greatest time, but we’re going to grow again. And we’re going to get that confidence back and that swagger back. I can tell you that with absolute confidence.”The Guardian“We can’t take it”: Journalist breaks down on air reporting colleague’s death in Gaza →“Bashir delivered an emotional report from outside the hospital where Hatab and his family were pronounced dead. The Palestinian news anchor in the studio could be seen crying as Bashir said journalists were not being protected and the protective vests and helmets labelled ‘press’ were ‘merely a slogan.'”The Washington Post / Taylor TelfordA newspaper giant tried to diversify its staff. White workers sued. →“The case is among the first to test the legality of corporate diversity practices in the wake of a June Supreme Court ruling that struck down affirmative action in college admissions. That decision has sparked a wave of litigation aimed at racial considerations in the workplace, including claims that corporate efforts to increase diversity have disadvantaged White employees.”Wired / Vittoria ElliottWhere the hell Is X CEO Linda Yaccarino? →“Linda Yaccarino has been the CEO of X since June, but you’d never know it. Elon Musk, the company’s owner, CTO, and super-user, still remains the gravitational force at its center…after a disastrous interview in late September at the Code Conference, Yaccarino has been mostly absent from public view.”LAist / Frank StoltzeAn LAist reporter has reached a $700,000 settlement after being arrested covering 2020’s Black Lives Matter protests →“If approved by the County Board of Supervisors at their next meeting on Tuesday, the settlement would be one of the largest in the nation to an individual reporter whose rights were violated while covering the 2020 protests in the wake of the murder of George Floyd.”Press Gazette / Aisha MajidAt 1,500 stories published per day, Mail Online is the U.K.’s most prolific news website →“Between 13 and 19 September, Mail Online published an average of 1,490 stories each day — or 1,640 stories per weekday and 14 stories per hour between Monday and Friday.” (Other weekday totals: The Independent 449, The Guardian 373, BBC News 199.)Semafor / Max TaniSatellite companies are restricting news orgs’ access to Gaza images →“Planet, a San Francisco-based company launched in 2010 by former NASA scientists, has in recent days heavily restricted and obscured parts of images over the Gaza Strip for many users…The satellite company told some subscribers that during active conflicts, it may modify pictures published to the archive.”The New York Times / Madison Malone KircherThe anonymous woman behind a YouTube gossip channel reveals herself as an ex-TMZ writer →“I was fascinated by the fact that people were interested in news about YouTubers, because at the time I didn’t think mainstream media was covering it. They’re not on People magazine when you’re at the grocery store.”Press Gazette / Dominic PonsfordThe death count for journalists in the Israel-Hamas war is up to 36 →“The dead include 31 Palestinians either bombed or shot by the Israeli military in Gaza Strip, many of whom were killed alongside family members. A number of others are missing.”The Verge / Amanda Chicago LewisThe people who ruined the internet →“As the public begins to believe Google isn’t as useful anymore, what happens to the cottage industry of search engine optimization experts who struck content oil and smeared it all over the web? Well, they find a new way to get rich and keep the party going.”The Verge / Wes DavisChatGPT subscribers may get a “GPT builder” option soon →“According to The Decoder, leaked screenshots and videos show a custom chatbot creator with many of the same features already available in ChatGPT using GPT-4, like web browsing and data analysis. OpenAI will apparently also have a new marketplace where users can share their chatbot or browse those made by others.”New York Times / Katie RobertsonNew York Times Magazine writer Jazmine Hughes resigns after breaking newsroom policies on public protests →Hughes signed a letter that voiced support for Palestinians and protested Israel’s siege in Gaza. According to the Times, Hughes had previously violated the policy by signing a different public letter, protesting the newspaper’s reporting on transgender issues, earlier this year. Second Rough Draft / Richard J. TofelWhat a close look at Marty Baron’s memoir can tell us about an editor’s view of his publishers →“Bezos was fixated on distinguishing between news staffers who were customer-facing and those who were not, producing a relative weakening in the ranks of editors as the staff grew.”Adweek / Mark StenbergThe Verge is converting more “fly-by readers into loyal readers” with redesign →The tech news site has seen a drop in overall traffic since redesigning its website last year but its loyal user base — defined as a reader who visits the site at least five times per month — increased 62%. The homepage is consistently the highest-trafficked single page across Vox Media.WIRED / Paresh DaveYouTube’s crackdown spurs record uninstalls of ad blockers →“Previously unreported figures from ad blocking companies indicate that YouTube’s crackdown is working, with hundreds of thousands of people uninstalling ad blockers in October.”NPR / Kelly McBrideAudiences have a lot to say about coverage of the Israel-Hamas war. NPR’s public editor is listening →“Out of 130 selected notes that came into the public editor’s inbox between Oct. 8 and Oct. 25, just over 60% directly accused NPR of an anti-Israeli bias. Roughly 24% accused NPR of being biased against Palestinians.”The Colorado SunThe Colorado Sun donates its shares in two dozen weeklies to the National Trust for Local News →“The Sun received no compensation for this transfer of shares … Our goal was to preserve the important hyperlocal journalism that these newspapers produce for their communities and to help in any way that we could.”

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