An amusing consequence of state-controlled media: In countries with a closed press, satire, by definition, doesn’t exist, and so when satirical pieces leak over from other countries, they’re often interpreted as real news. In other words, Iranians have more of an excuse for mistaking The Onion for reality than these people do. source
It was like pulling teeth to get information yesterday…a lot of senators were frustrated. And you pick up major newspapers in the country and you find details not shared with you.Senator Lindsey Graham • Voicing frustration within the Senate GOP caucus that the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal received more detailed briefing on the Libya attacks than did congress. Senator Bob Corker called it “the most useless, worthless briefing I have attended in a long time,” and John McCain accused the Obama administration of holding the Senate in “disdain.” The closed-door briefing in question presumably also included Senate Democrats, but none have made hay about it in the way Senate GOPers have.
![thepoliticalnotebook:
13 Mexican journalist have disappeared since 2003: here’s a map of their disappearances. These folks, as Atlantic Cities notes, were most likely killed, but unlike a number of their colleagues, their bodies have never been found. The map was made by Articulo 19. They also made an infographic of instance of attacks on the media with firearms and explosives.
[Atlantic Cities]
Nothing sadder than knowing that hard-working journalists went missing on a hunt for the truth.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mang797kL91qchhhqo1_500.jpg)
13 Mexican journalist have disappeared since 2003: here’s a map of their disappearances. These folks, as Atlantic Cities notes, were most likely killed, but unlike a number of their colleagues, their bodies have never been found. The map was made by Articulo 19. They also made an infographic of instance of attacks on the media with firearms and explosives.
Nothing sadder than knowing that hard-working journalists went missing on a hunt for the truth.
New Jersey papers like it when Christie points.
Chris Christie has an index finger, and he’s not afraid to use it.
I have exhausted my knowledge about this subject. Usually, when someone hands me a beer I don’t ask how it was made, I just drink it.White House Press Secretary Jay Carney • Responding to a reporter’s questions about the process and recipe used by the Obamas for the White House homebrew. Having become the Beltway’s most recent obsession, following confirmation of the homebrew’s existence earlier this month, Carney was apparently tasked with spilling the beans on the name (White House Honey Ale), taste (like honey), and varieties available (light and dark) for consumption by those in the White House. Clearly, he thought there were more important matters worth discussing. To be fair, while we did get an amusing quote, he was probably right. source (via • follow)
Just announced! Political Ad Sleuths: Campus Challenge, a national project aimed at shining some much needed sunlight on who is paying for all those political ads on local TV.
We are mobilizing and training political ad sleuths on college campuses around the country from now through the election. And there are prizes!
Interested in learning more? See my blog post here, and email CampusChallenge@freepress.net and please help spread the word.
For student journalists who want to sleuth a little and fans of muckraking.
‘Slam Drunk’
In which Jason Kidd is reminded of why being a sports star in NYC isn’t the easiest job title — and why the NY Post and Daily News should call each other before using the same headline.
A news website for the new generation: “Traditional news sources aren’t in any way talking to millennials,” Newark Mayor Cory Booker said. It’s a start-up company that aims to connect on the news and issues with the younger generations by using a ton of video content; “If more people could find their voice and be part of the national dialogue,” Booker said, “we could solve these problems.” Sound cool or not? source
Everyone Slow Down, Redux Edition
This is an update to our post earlier this morning about slowing down, digesting and getting things right before rushing to report.
CNN didn’t and instead ran banner headlines on its site about the Supreme Court striking down the individual mandate.
Fox too but, well, somehow that’s less surprising.
This is tagged “slow news movement.” I like that.
Congrats Tumblr!
Don’t screw this up Yahoo.
In 2007, I was...
I started tumblr when I was at one of the lowest points of...
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soon
Yahumblr.
![gifhound:
OMG. Ann Curry is out at the Today Show, according to reports from the New York Times. “[Matt Lauer] and Ms. Curry noticeably lack the kind of on-camera rapport that Mr. Lauer had with Ms. Vieira and, before her, Katie Couric,” writes NYT media reporter Brian Stelter. NBC News’ Savannah Guthrie’s name is being mentioned most as a possible co-host replacement, Stelter tweeted.
(Via New York Times)
She’s no Katie Couric, and that’s the problem.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m5xrjiAhdL1rtxen9o1_400.gif)
OMG. Ann Curry is out at the Today Show, according to reports from the New York Times. “[Matt Lauer] and Ms. Curry noticeably lack the kind of on-camera rapport that Mr. Lauer had with Ms. Vieira and, before her, Katie Couric,” writes NYT media reporter Brian Stelter. NBC News’ Savannah Guthrie’s name is being mentioned most as a possible co-host replacement, Stelter tweeted.
(Via New York Times)
She’s no Katie Couric, and that’s the problem.
The surplus wealth I have has no utility to me. It has all kinds of utility to the rest of the world if used properly.Warren Buffett: My Extra Money Would Be More Useful To Others (via huffingtonpost)
Conor Friedersdorf: In Defense of Chris Hayes
Very few Americans wake up early on weekend mornings to watch public intellectuals chat. For the tiny number who do, Up With Chris Hayes, a show hosted by Chris Hayes of The Nation, has distinguished itself for its unusual success bringing thoughtful, intellectually honest conversation to cable news. The show’s producers try to cover what they judge to be important, even when more trivial topics would result in higher ratings. During the panel portion of the show, the host and most guests actually grapple with fraught issues rather than shying away from them. Straw men, ad hominem attacks, and cheap point-scoring are exceptions* rather than the rule. Partisan hackery is discouraged. And Hayes tends to highlight rather than elide complicating facts and arguments that cut against his ideological instincts, preferring to interrogate his own views and to treat positions with which he disagrees fairly (something I’m attuned to because my politics are different enough from his that we’re often at odds).
Despite all this, Hayes is suddenly under fire for weekend remarks he made about heroism, war, and politics. Our public discourse is such that anyone can find him or herself viciously denounced by complete strangers based on a single sound-byte from which everyone extrapolates wildly. This controversy is worth highlighting because Hayes’ words and the reaction to them helps explain why so few broadcasters forthrightly discuss complicated, controversial subjects. Hayes subsequently issued an apology, but it’s his critics who’ve behaved badly.
An impassioned defense of Chris Hayes. We’ve read a few in the past day or so.
It’s important to realize that no matter what crazy thought that enters your head, there’s now a minor media outlet out there willing to tell you that you are right…And we get trapped in the sort of reality dysmorphia, this idea that we can just view what it is that we want to see in the world without that actually being attached to reality.Clay Johnson on a healthier “Information Diet” (via newshour)
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