United States

15 December 2010
Fox News viewers prone to misinformation, 63% don't know if Obama was born in the US

Fox News viewers prone to misinformation, 63% don't know if Obama was born in the US

Fox News viewers are much more misinformed than consumers of news from other sources. A recent study also shows that greater exposure to Fox News increases misinformation. The findings are from a survey by World Public Opinion, a project managed by the Program on International Policy Attitudes at the University of Maryland. The poll found that nine in ten voters said that in the 2010 election they...

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14 December 2010
Thomson Reuters starts service for US news media

Thomson Reuters starts service for US news media

Thomson Reuters Corp has launched a news service for US publishers and broadcasters in a bid to win business from the Associated Press and CNN, the news agency has announced. The new service, Reuters America, provides text stories, photos and video by Reuters journalists for newspapers, television stations and online publishers. Newspaper publisher and broadcaster Tribune Co is its first customer...

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14 December 2010
iPad news apps may hit US newspaper print subscriptions in 2011

iPad news apps may hit US newspaper print subscriptions in 2011

Apple's iPad is killing print newspaper subscriptions, according to a new survey by the Donald W Reynolds Journalism Institute at the University of Missouri. However, its data also suggests the iPad is becoming a new channel for people's daily news, offering hope that at least some of the iPad-exclusive publications in the pipeline can succeed. Users are predominantly well-educated, affluent men...

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14 December 2010
Freelance journalists in US make $25,000-30,000 a year

Freelance journalists in US make $25,000-30,000 a year

Freelance business journalists in North America make an average of $25,000 to $30,000 a year, and two out of every five were laid off, according to an informal survey conducted by the Society of American Business Editors and Writers (SABEW). More than two-thirds of those who responded said they would not go back to a full-time business news job if they could find one. The freelancers noted their...

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23 November 2010

Journalists arrested at US 'School of the Americas' protest

Two journalists from the Moscow-based broadcast outlet Russia Today were arrested on November 20 while covering a protest against the US military training centre formerly known as the "School of the Americas" at Fort Benning, Georgia. On-air correspondent Kaelyn Forde and cameraman Jon Conway, both of who are US citizens, were charged with unlawful assembly, demonstrating without a permit, and...

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29 October 2010

COICA, a repressive bill that threatens Internet users worldwide, must be stopped

Free speech organisations are urging the US Congress to abandon consideration of the proposed Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act (COICA), which Sen Patrick Leahy introduced into the Senate on September 21. At the Center for Democracy & Technology’s initiative, nine organszations and experts have sent the attached letter to the senator. COICA’s provisions include introducing a...

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30 September 2010

Cleric's threat forces Seattle cartoonist into hiding

Molly Norris, a political cartoonist for Seattle Weekly, went into hiding in September because of threats made after her tongue-in-cheek call for an "Everybody Draw Muhammad Day," according to Seattle Weekly. The call was included in a cartoon Norris drew to protest a decision by the cable television network Comedy Central not to broadcast an episode of "South Park" that tested the Islamic taboo...

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15 September 2010

Pentagon loosens restrictions for press in Guantanamo

The Pentagon has agreed to revise some of the rules that have restricted what journalists are free to report on from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, resolving a conflict that peaked in May when four reporters were expelled from the naval base there. The new rules contain three major changes: Journalists will no longer run the risk of being expelled or barred from Guantanamo because of information they...

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11 September 2010

US journalism groups team up on global reporting

Two journalism organisations in the US are joining forces to promote stronger international news coverage. The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University said Tuesday that it is forming a partnership with the Pulitzer Centre on Crisis Reporting to support international reporting initiatives. The collaboration will include a special focus on global health coverage. Journalists from the...

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1 September 2010

Washington Post columnist Mike Wise suspended for fake Twitter report

A Twitter experiment that went awry has landed a sportswriter for the Washington Post with a one-month suspension. Mike Wise, a respected Post columnist, was suspended by the newspaper on Tuesday, a day after he posted a fake report on his Twitter account. "Roethlisberger will get five games, I'm told," Wise wrote on his Twitter feed, @MikeWiseguy, on Monday in a reference to the length of the...

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