Wednesday, June 12, 2024 |
| Plus: News participation is declining, online and offline; making personal phone calls could help with digital-subscriber churn; and partly automated news videos seem to work with audiences. By Mark Coddington and Seth Lewis. |
What We’re ReadingThe New York Times / Jack Nicas
No, a remote Amazon tribe did not get addicted to porn →“Many of the sites that distorted this detail are news aggregators, meaning their business model is largely designed around repackaging the reporting of other news organizations, with often sensationalist headlines to sell ads…To an informed internet user, their tactics are familiar. For the Marubo, however, the experience was bewildering and infuriating.”Android Authority / C. Scott Brown
In a strange twist, a real photo just won an AI photo contest →“I feel bad about leading the jury astray, but I think that they are professionals who might find that this jab at AI and its ethical implications outweighs the ethical implications of deceiving the viewer, which, of course is ironic because that is what AI does.” – Photographer Miles Astray WIRED / Vittoria Elliott
An AI bot is (sort of) running for mayor in Wyoming →“‘I realized that this entity is way smarter than me, and more importantly, way better than some of the outward-facing public servants I see,’ [said Victor Miller]. According to Miller, [the chatbot he created] will make the decisions and Miller will be its ‘meat puppet,’ attending meetings, signing documents, and otherwise doing the corporeal job of running the city.”NPR / Meg Anderson
This prison newspaper has been publishing for more than a century →“The Prison Mirror is one of the oldest prison newspapers in the country, running since 1887. Publications like this aren’t common, but in an era where many journalism outlets in the free world are struggling to thrive amid scores of layoffs, journalism behind bars is actually growing.”Pew Research Center / Elisa Shearer, Sarah Naseer, Jacob Liedke, and Katerina Eva Matsa
How Americans get news on TikTok, X, Facebook and Instagram →“Majorities of Facebook, Instagram and TikTok users say keeping up with news is not a reason they use the sites. X (formerly Twitter) is the exception to this pattern: Most X users say that keeping up with news is either a major or minor reason they use the platform, and about half say they regularly get news there.”Axios / Cuneyt Dil
Will Lewis seems to want to bring back the Post’s local coverage →Lewis and colleagues are apparently floating an idea called “Local+,” a new offering “for readers who want to pay extra for premium local content.” This is quite a change of tune, given the Post’s Bezos-era turn towards becoming the “Everything Newspaper” and the cuts it made to the metro desk as part of last year’s buyouts. Poynter / Amaris Castillo
How ProPublica kept focus on humanity at every stage of series on homelessness and possession loss →Pen and ink illustrations, written testimonials, ride-alongs with advocates, and dozens of interviews helped shape the first in what is going to be an ongoing series of stories about homelessness.The Guardian / Erum Salam
Book about book bans banned by Florida school board →Alan Gratz, author of Ban This Book: “They banned the book because it talks about the books that they have banned and because it talks about book banning. It feels like they know exactly what they’re doing and they’re somewhat ashamed of what they’re doing and they don’t want a book on the shelves that calls them out.”The New York Times / Mike Isaac
Games are proving their pull on news and tech sites →“‘A publication is more than the stories it produces. It’s an experience to look forward to, a pleasure,’ said John Temple, a former journalist and co-founder of Amuse Labs, which sells a software platform that helps publishers create puzzles. ‘They want to recreate that same satisfying experience for people that they might have had over years of doing a crossword in the newspaper.'”Refinery29 / Habiba Katsha
Black women are leaving journalism and it’s a huge loss →“Unsurprisingly, so many Black journalists are pivoting to different careers. We feel underpaid, devalued, and taken for granted. But, without Black writers, we lose out on important Black stories.”
Nieman Lab / Fuego
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