The Daily Show’s John Oliver discovers that pretend news is the media world’s sole remaining home for intrepid investigative journalists.
In other news, I’m weeping under my desk, clutching my diploma.
via @danfrakes
Category: Journalism
CNET Editor Speaks Out⇢
Lindsey Turrentine, Editor-in-Chief at CNET:
We were in an impossible situation as journalists. The conflict of interest was real — a legal case can impact the bottom line of our company and introduce the possibility of bias — but the circumstances demanded more transparency and not hurried policy.
I could have quit right then. Maybe I should have. I decided that the best thing for my team was to get through the day as best we could and to fight the fight from the other side. Every single member of the CNET Reviews team is a dedicated, ethical, passionate technology critic. If I abandoned them now, I would be abandoning the ship.
Greg Sandoval Quits CNET⇢
Here’s his tweet on the matter:
Hello all. Sad to report that I’ve resigned from CNET. I no longer have confidence that CBS is committed to editorial independence.
His resignation comes in the wake of CBS forbidding CNET from covering or giving CES Awards to products whose owners were litigation with the parent network.
CBS Forbids CNET From Covering Dish Products⇢
CNET, on the “Best of CES” finalists page:
The Dish Hopper with Sling was removed from consideration due to active litigation involving our parent company CBS Corp. We will no longer be reviewing products manufactured by companies with which we are in litigation with respect to such product.
According to this note, Dish might not be the only company that will be denied coverage in the future.
Sure seems like censorship to me. This is what happens when media outlets are owned by larger corporations.
Forbes Contributor, to Apple: Hang Up on the iPhone⇢
Richard Saintvilus, at Forbes.com:
However, for the company to truly move forward as a tech power, Apple should hang-up on the iPhone after one more iteration – presumably the iPhone 6. You might disagree. Granted, the phone is still selling well. However, aside from a different chip and larger screen, the change from the 4S to iPhone 5 was not that significant.
Where should Apple go, after killing off one of the most profitable products in modern history?
On Back to the Future’s Newspaper⇢
Jonathan Chait takes a look at The Hill Valley Telegraph. Thanks, Tim!
TNW Drops Support for Android With Its Tablet Magazine⇢
Boris at The Next Web:
We tried an Android magazine, and found out it just isn’t worth the effort. Does that mean that Android sucks? Ehm, no, and there is no reason to tell us how cool Android is in the comments, because we understand it is. It just means that with the current state of technology and the way the market is divided we can’t afford to invest in it anymore.
Best News Bloopers of 2012⇢
I didn’t study broadcast journalism in school, but I sure hope they show these kinds of videos to students.
Newsweek Ends 80-Year Print Run With a Hashtag⇢
Adi Robertson at The Verge:
On December 31st, Newsweek magazine will end its print run, shifting its content to an online-only format called Newsweek Global. It’s now posted the cover of the final issue on Twitter, showing a stark black and white photograph of the old Newsweek Building in New York — which the magazine itself vacated in 1994. While it’s eye-catching and pretty timeless, Newsweek couldn’t seem to resist topping the whole thing off with a hashtag, apparently either hoping people will take to Twitter to post about the #LastPrintIssue or just unable to resist a bid for relevancy.
Brightcove CEO, on Apple TV⇢
I felt really weird reading Jeremy Allaire’s dream diary on All Things D.
Also, this is how his company is described:
Jeremy Allaire is the founder, chairman and CEO of Brightcove, a leading provider of cloud platforms for distributing media and apps, with a suite of platform APIs, SDKs and Web services aimed at Web and app developers and the businesses they help to drive.
I’m not all that sure I understand what he does for a living.
Just the Names⇢
A stunning front page from The New York Times.
The Tim Cook Interview⇢
You’ve got to hand it to Tim Cook — he did a great job with Brian Williams on NBC.