Companies

When it launched its first Web sites a year and a half ago, Backfence held the promise of creating a collection of virtual town squares. By letting residents post news about their communities, it joined the emerging citizen journalism movement and was the first such start-up to land a sizable amount of money from private investors who shared its vision. Now Vienna-based Backfence has lost three...

NEW YORK, Jan 11 (Reuters) - The New York Times Co. (NYT.N: Quote, Profile , Research) said on Thursday it aims to cut about 125 jobs at its New England Media Group, including 19 editorial staff at the Boston Globe, through voluntary buyouts and outsourcing. The Globe's publisher Steve Ainsley said in a letter to employees that the buyouts would be offered in the first quarter to employees with at...

In some ways, as 2006 began it held out the promise of huge change, led by the changing of the guard at CBS with Katie Couric's long-anticipated rise to anchor of CBS's evening news show. Many thought Couric would pull the newscast out of the basement and raise it to No. 1. It didn't happen. CBS finished the year still at No. 3, though better off than before Couric took over. Yet among media...

LONDON (Reuters) - Traditional media companies are ideally placed to benefit from the explosion of user-generated content and should see it as an opportunity and not a threat even though the potential revenue is limited, a report says. The phenomenon of consumers contributing their own photographs, video and blogs took the media industry by storm in 2006 through Web sites such as YouTube and...

On New Year's Day an era came to a close as the world's oldest newspaper went out of print. Post- och Inrikes Tidningar (Post and Domestic Newspapers) has been churning out announcements since 1645. But from now on, following a parliamentary decree, the newspaper will only be available online. In 1645 Queen Kristina and her advisor, Axel Oxenstierna, were urged by the state to ward off rumour...

VNU, THE PARENT OF NIELSEN Media Research, ACNielsen and a variety of trade publications, Friday began part of a massive layoff that is expected to reduce its total workforce by about 4,100 jobs, or nearly 10% of its 42,000 worldwide organization during 2007. The cuts were first made known via pink slips handed out among some top editors of its trade publications. On Friday, entertainment industry...

Female correspondents working on the BBC's flagship television news bulletins earn £6,500 less than their male counterparts on average, according to figures released under the corporation's freedom of information scheme. The disclosure will support claims of the existence of a glass ceiling for women journalists at the BBC, and will raise questions about the fairness of the corporation's overall...

It is saddening to hear that The Chronicle, one of the most reliable independent newspapers in Malawi, since 1993, has closed down business for a reason that the owners Rob and Pushpa Jamieson are accusing The Guardian of having poached its entire brilliant and reliable staff. In a letter last week headlined ‘Staff poaching from The Chronicle’, Jamieson said that his paper believe that The...

The Fiji Times, which has been publishing since 1869, has been shut down. Fiji's biggest circulating daily newspaper and the oldest in the country, closed its doors Tuesday night after threats from the Fijian military which overthrew the Fijian government on Tuesday. The newspaper is one of the most respected publications in the South Pacific and has been a beacon of freedom and democracy...

The Indian entertainment industry is one of the fastest growing sectors. Its major segments are films, music, television, radio, print media and live entertainment. Recent reports say the industry is expected to grow up to Rs 837.4 billion by 2010 from the current size of Rs 353 billion. The rising income levels, improvements in infrastructure, technological developments, and the internet have...