Media News
Thursday, Dec 22
Morning Media Newsfeed 12.22.11
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Coverage Of Economy And International News Jumps In A Year Of Major Breaking Stories (PEJ)
The faltering U.S. economy was the No. 1 story in the American news media in 2011, with coverage increasing substantially from a year earlier, when economic unease helped alter the political landscape in the midterm elections, according to "The Year in the News 2011," a new report conducted by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism.
FCC Expected Thursday To Vote On Proposed Media-Ownership Changes (B&C)
According to various sources, the Federal Communications Commission was expected Thursday to announce that a majority of commissioners had voted to propose scrapping the radio-TV cross-ownership rules, but to leave in place the radio and TV local-market-ownership caps and essentially preserve the FCC's attempted loosening of the newspaper-broadcast cross-ownership rules, which the FCC tried to do under Republican chairman Kevin Martin. Multichannel News: Small-market TV-station representatives met with commission staffers Monday to make their case for shared service agreements and other similar arrangements, pointing out that they can be a local programming lifeline for stations, which saw their pretax profit average plummet by 95 percent between 1999 and 2009.
Sun-Times Sold To Group Of Local Investors (Chicago Tribune)
The deal to acquire Chicago's No. 2 newspaper is done. Sun-Times Media chairman Jeremy Halbreich confirmed Wednesday evening that a new company led by Chicago technology entrepreneur Michael Ferro and media executive Timothy Knight has entered into a definitive agreement with Sun-Times Media Holdings to acquire the media company's properties. NYT / Media Decoder: The new company, called Wrapports, is led by Ferro, CEO of Merrick Ventures, a technology holding company in Chicago, and Knight, former chief of the Newsday Media Group and former Newsday publisher.
The New York Observer, In A Bid To Go National, Will Expand Its Editorial Department (Capital New York)
The New York Observer is gearing up to go national. The 25-year-old weekly newspaper is considering spinning off a nationally focused website, and it will increase the size of its full-time editorial staff in the new year in a bid to widen its digital footprint across the United States, according to people familiar with the paper's expansion strategy.
Sports, It Seems, Explains Recent Skirmishes In Cable Industry (NYT / Media Decoder)
The battle between sports programming and cable providers continues to heat up. Are consumers on the losing team? WSJ: Facing a heated battle with MSG over rising rates, Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt said sports channels should be sold separately from the main cable TV package of channels.
Pool Reporters Follow Obama To Best Buy, Ruin Sasha's And Malia's Christmas (Yahoo! News / The Cutline)
President Barack Obama, stuck in Washington gridlock while his family is already on vacation in Hawaii, did some Christmas shopping Wednesday. A group of pool reporters traveled with him to Alexandria, Va. -- where the commander-in-chief bought gifts for his daughters, Malia, 13, and Sasha, 10 -- and quite possibly ruined their Christmas surprise in the process.
Steve Jobs will be honored with a Grammy for helping to transform the way music is distributed and consumed. Mashable: This 2012 Special Merit Award will be presented posthumously at an invitation-only ceremony to be held Feb. 11, with a formal acknowledgment made during the 54th Annual Grammy Awards television broadcast Sunday, Feb. 12.
Without Regis, Kelly Keeps Up Ratings In Morning (NYT / Media Decoder)
For the moment, at least, the departure of Regis Philbin from his longtime perch in the morning has not sent his former show's ratings into a tailspin.
Robinson Exit To Cost New York Times Over $15 Million (Reuters)
Janet Robinson, who will step down as CEO of The New York Times Co. Dec. 31, will receive an exit package in excess of $15 million, according to people familiar with the situation. paidContent: Robinson's $4.5 million consulting contract for 2012 was revealed in Securities and Exchange Commission documents filed late last week, but the details of the full package won't be filed until the company's 10-Q in late March.
Russ Mitchell, weekend anchor of CBS Evening News and The Early Show, is leaving CBS to return to local television. TVSpy: Mitchell is joining WKYC, the NBC affiliate in Cleveland, as managing editor of evening news and lead anchor of the 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts, the Gannett-owned station announced Wednesday.
How Many Journalists Were Killed In 2011? Depends Who You Ask (Yahoo! News / The Cutline)
For journalists, 2011 was a dangerous year, with political unrest stretching from Tunisia to Toronto and drug wars in Mexico resulting in a high number of deaths. Just how many died?
All Eyes On Viacom/YouTube Case After Court Rules For Veoh (paidContent)
A California appeals court Tuesday rejected Universal Music's claim that video-sharing service Veoh didn't do enough to protect content owners. All eyes now turn to New York, where another influential court is set to rule on the same issue: Who should be responsible for copyright enforcement.
The New York Police Department has "stepped up" its media training in the past month since news outlets complained of "abuses" by officers assigned to the scenes of protests, according to a department press officer.
Networks Tout 2011 Ratings Success (Multichannel News)
The end of the 2011 television year is still days away, but several cable networks Wednesday touted significant ratings and audience increases for the year. Adweek: BET's newfound focus on scripted programming this year seems to be paying modest dividends.
HBO Releases Game Change Trailer (TVNewser)
Fox News contributor Sarah Palin is among those portrayed in high-profile HBO movie Game Change, which will debut on the pay cabler in March. Business Insider / The Wire: Here you go, world: the first footage of Julianne Moore nailing Palin's Alaskan drawl. Mediaite: When HBO first announced its movie adaptation of John Heilemann's and Mark Halperin's best-seller, Game Change, about the 2008 election, many were puzzled. The movie would apparently only follow the John McCain/Palin side of the campaign, which really only made up one-third of the book. THR / The Live Feed: The telefilm, due in March, stars Ed Harris as McCain and Woody Harrelson as his campaign manager and marks the latest in a long line of politically themed fare from HBO Films.
