Newspapers

The Wall Street Journal today launched a new “At Work” blog, focusing on management and careers. Aimed toward a professional, working audience, the blog also is beneficial for ambitious business and law students.

The blog gives readers a chance to a better understanding of the workplace landscape, with the framework for thinking through career strategies, management tactics, and productivity.

Edited by Francesca Donner and Nikki Waller, “At Work” is anchored by posts from a variety of management, education and employment reporters from The Wall Street Journal, including Work & Family columnist Sue Shellenbarger,  management and workplace reporter Rachel Silverman, education reporter Melissa Korn, employment and economy reporter Lauren Weber,  management and corporate strategy reporter Leslie Kwoh,  and executive careers reporter Joann Lublin. 

A look at what the blog has to offer after the jump.

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Let the record show that when Warren Buffett says he’s considering something, it means he’s definitely doing it. Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Media Group just announced that it is buying 63 daily and weekly newspapers from Media General for $142 million in cash. It was only last week when Buffett said that he “may buy more newspapers,” so he obviously had this purchase in mind already.

The papers involved in the deal — which is expected to close June 25 — are published in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Alabama. The acquisition also includes all of the papers’ digital brands and tablet apps. The only property not being sold to Berkshire Hathaway is Media General’s Tampa group.

In a statement, Buffett once again trumpeted the power of newspapers. ”In towns and cities where there is a strong sense of community, there is no more important institution than the local paper,” he explained. “The many locales served by the newspapers we are acquiring fall firmly in this mold and we are delighted they have found a permanent home with Berkshire Hathaway.”

Since we’re big newspaper fans, we might just send Buffett a thank you note.

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A bit of good news for you to start your Tuesday morning off: The New York Times’ continued circulation growth might be enough to offset its sagging ad sales. Earlier this month, when the ABC reported newspaper circulation numbers, the Times stood out among the other papers because its overall number jumped 73 percent.

All Things D, citing data from Barclays analyst Kannan Venkateshwar, reports that the Times’ expansion might just be enough to one day cancel out losses:

The best-case scenario for most old-line media businesses is that digital sales increase faster than physical sales drop, and that’s essentially what Venkateshwar says is happening here. A year after the Times introduced its pay wall, it now has 450,000 digital subscribers — a number that impresses lots of industry skeptics.

Venkateshwar estimates that this will happen sometime during 2014, so until then, hold tight.

If this isn’t enough good news to get you through the day, just remember that the Celtics lost last night. That always puts a smile on the faces of your FishbowlNY editors.

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Larry Kramer, the founder of Marketwatch, has been named the President and Publisher of USA Today. Kramer most recently worked as a consultant and an adjunct professor at Syracuse’s Newhouse School of Communications.

“As a journalist and media executive for many years, I have always had tremendous respect for USA Today and the reputation it has built as a trusted source for the day’s news and information,” said Kramer in a press release. “As an entrepreneur, I have also admired its strong legacy of innovation. I am honored and excited to have the opportunity to work with this talented team to reinvigorate USA Today’s mission and lay the groundwork for its next 30 years as a leading, multi-platform media brand and content powerhouse.”

Kramer’s appointment is effective immediately.

The Fair Media Council was created as a media watchdog on Long Island. Its main event for the year is the Folio Awards, held each April.  Beyond that, one piece of news captivated the Council.

Viewers are yet to see the full effects of WCBS/Channel 2′s acquisition of WLNY/Channel 10, 55.

Fair Media Council executive director Jaci Clement says this is important on so many levels.

“It’s a wonderful thing when you look at the total media landscape of the island,” Clement tells FishbowlNY. “Because what you have here is one major news source [Cablevision] that dominates the news of Long Island.”

Cablevision created News 12 Long Island in 1986. Then the Bethpage-based company bought Newsday in 2008, giving Long Islanders no recourse for finding news and information via TV and newspaper.

“Since they merged, you see more and more of them working closely together and actually producing less local news,” Clement says. “…We actually have less news now than we had in the past.”

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Here’s a look at what FishbowlNY stories made the most buzz this week.

1. Time Goes All in with Breastfeeding Cover, May 10
2. Viacom Yanks Never Before Seen Chappelle’s Show Beastie Boys Performance from YouTube, May 7
3. New York Post Columnist Phil Mushnick Draws Criticism for Using N-Word, May 7
4. The New York Times Company Makes Corporate Cuts, Including Veteran George Freeman, May 4
5. Hot 97′s Summer Jam 2012 Lineup Announced, May 4
6. The Atlantic Promotes Three Top Editors, May 7

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