Journalism

New York Magazine Digs into Matt Drudge's Past

In a story for New York Magazine, Philip Weiss digs deep into the childhood of Matt Drudge: The divorce and child-support papers in the Maryland State Archives offer a heartrending picture. About the time Drudge failed bar mitzvah, his mother left her job as a staff attorney for Ted Kennedy, where she had worked on health issues, "because of sickness" and remained unemployed for at least two years. The Washington Post's Howard Kurtz has reported that she was hospitalized for schizophrenia. ... ... (read more)

2007/08/28

Utah Mine Owner Makes Google News Comment

The owner of the Utah coal mine where six miners are missing has used the new Google News comment feature to respond to news coverage. Robert E. Murray posted the following comment to at least nine stories: Comment from Robert E. Murray regarding trapped miners - 18 hours ago August 22, 2007 - We are totally focused on the recovery of these miners and in administering to the welfare of their families. The trauma from this natural disaster has been great for many, but we will not be deterred, ... (read more)

2007/08/23

Computer Solves Rubik's Cube in 26 Moves

This morning, Guardian reporter Alexandra Topping covers a record-breaking computer solution to Rubik's Cube: It is the holy grail for puzzle-lovers around the world. A task that has thwarted the greatest minds for generations. But the ultimate solution to the Rubik's cube may be within grasp. A supercomputer has been working without pause to provide conclusive evidence that the cube can be returned to its original state in no more than 26 moves. The computer took 63 hours to provide the proof, ... (read more)

2007/08/17

Journalist Defends Misquoting Her Sources

I'm running this quote from syndicated newspaper columnist Penelope Trunk to make my wife -- and every other journalist I know -- cringe: As a journalist I hear all the time from people in business that they are misquoted. And you know what? People need to get over that, and I'm going to tell you why. ... If you do an interview with a journalist, don't expect the journalist to be there to tell your story. The journalist gets paid to tell her own stories which you might or might not be a part ... (read more)

2007/07/23

My Guess: Opie and Anthony are Screwed

The media's covering a tasteless sexual rant by a guest on Opie and Anthony's radio show Wednesday that was targeted at Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and First Lady Laura Bush, but no one's explaining what the guy said. I put the transcript and audio up on Watching the Watchers, so people can judge for themselves. I don't listen to the show, so I can't judge the comments in the context of what they do every day. I have trouble imagining a context in which the sentiments aren't ugly as ... (read more)

2007/05/11

Councilman: Stop Apologizing to American Indians

I filed my first story today for Watching the Watchers -- a Republican city councilman in Texas thinks its time to stop apologizing to American Indians: A Houston city council member said on his radio talk show that the U.S. should "stop the continuous apology for what was done to the American Indians" and drop federal programs and treaties that provide casino rights, educational support and welfare. Michael Berry, a Republican councilman in his third term and mayor pro tempore who hosts a ... (read more)

2007/04/02

Lee Padgett, the Blogger to Be Named Later

I'm pretty thick-skinned when it comes to criticism, because in eight years of blogging I've made the occasional gigantic mistake that sends my credibility crashing through the guardrails into a ravine like Toonces the Driving Cat. But a recent cheap shot by Paul McNamara, editor and blogger for Network World, has stuck with me: Cadenhead is a former newspaperman ... who appears to have forgotten a lot about the journalism business. (By the way, I worked for 20 years as a local newspaper editor ... (read more)

2007/03/23

Putting a Blogger's Identity on the Record

Network World blogger Paul McNamara covers the St. Augustine Record's attempt to out a local blogger, calling me a "former newspaperman ... who appears to have forgotten a lot about the journalism business." The Record, believing Padgett to be part of an organized political group out to unseat Rich, not merely a lonely pamphleteer voicing his displeasure with a public official, decided that making public Padgett's identity was the right to do. They were correct. While there may be a long-held ... (read more)

2007/03/11

Newspaper Asks Public to Identify Local Blogger

A Florida newspaper appears to have hit an all-time low in the relationship between bloggers and the media. The St. Augustine Record is asking the public to help expose the identity of a local blogger who recently started a site critical of county politicians. This evening, the paper's home page has a grainy surveillance photo of a man accompanied by this text: Who is this man? Believed to be connected to a politically charged but anonymously-run Web site targeting the character of members of ... (read more)

2007/03/08

Judge Censors Stories on Kansas City Power Company

A circuit court judge in Kansas City has issued a temporary injunction ordering two news sites to remove articles from their web sites published Friday about the city's Board of Public Utilities on the grounds the power company would be "irreparably harmed" by their publication. The articles, published by the Kansas City Star and The Pitch, describe a confidential document produced for the company in November 2004 that evaluates whether to tell the EPA that power plant upgrades did not comply ... (read more)

2007/03/06

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