Newsworthiness

With Osama Bin Laden’s last tape, we can see that he is not only acting as a celebrity but he is also being treated as one. Of course, this also applies to Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi, Ayman Al-Zawahiri and the other "stars" of our news bulletins. Having said this, I must confess to having doubts and questions about how these situations are dealt with and indeed whether they should even be covered...

THE SABC no longer apologises for its blatant promotion of the African National Congress almost every night on its various news bulletins, flashing the ANC’s logo and flag more than any news item on its agenda. The recent complaint of unfair treatment by the Democratic Alliance (DA) elicited the following response from SABC group CE Dali Mpofu: "Equitable coverage does not mean we give every party...

The chief editor of the Taipei City Government's English-language Web site was dismissed yesterday after a column offering tips on how to attract women touched off media frenzy and drew complaints from some residents. After the column, "Macking in Taipei," described as a guide to attract women "for guys who want to meet Cinderella," sparked criticism that it was too provocative to be on a...

MADISON, Wis. - Wisconsin's second-largest newspaper is letting readers help decide what to put on its front page in an experiment designed to boost interest in the paper. The Wisconsin State Journal is posting a poll on its Web site allowing readers every weekday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. to pick their favorite out of five story ideas. Barring late-breaking news, the story typically will appear on...

In an attempt to bolster ad revenues at The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones & Company, has just appointed its first nonjournalist chief executive. Richard F. Zannino, the company's chief operating officer since 2002, will replace Peter Kann and Karen Elliot House, the premier journalistic power couple, who led the business publishing empire for nearly two decades. Unlike Pulitzer Prize winners Mr...

JSE-listed media stocks have benefited from SA's buoyant consumer confidence levels as much as the country's retailers have over the past few years. The media index was among the best-performing sectors on the local bourse last year, largely driven by the surge in share prices of the publishing and electronic media groups. During the past year, Johnnic Communications (Johncom) shares climbed 79,9%...

One of the central problems for scholars seeking to study ideological bias in the media is the lack of agreed-upon data. Natural scientists and even most social scientists can run experiments where their variables are to a considerable extent controlled. But this is simply impossible in the coverage of politics. An impeachment scandal over a fib about extramarital sex is simply not comparable to...

Look at the headlines in recent months - besides those focused on industry layoffs and cutbacks, of course - and times don't look so bad for American newspaper journalism. The New York Times revealed domestic spying by the National Security Agency without court orders; the Washington Post exposed secret prisons operated by the Central Intelligence Agency for suspected terrorists and the Los...

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav today announced a contribution worth Rs 11 lakh towards a journalist foundation to be set up by renowned journalist Kuldeep Naiyar. Mr Singh made the announcement after Mr Naiyar sought financial aid from him towards the proposed journalist foundation. Earlier, Mr Naiyar announced to set up the foundation with Rs five lakh given to him by...

NEW YORK (Opinion) You would think the senseless murder of a decent, just-retired gentleman on the streets of Washington, D.C. would never be exploited, especially by a former colleague, but never underestimate New York Times columnist John Tierney. On Saturday he joined the ranks of those identifying, and pressing, some larger political point in the killing of David E. Rosenbaum. Earlier this...