Media

Whose Line Is It, Anyway?

by Diane Farsetta — July 30, 2008 - 1:36pm

It's an "open secret of lobbying," writes Jeffrey Birnbaum. "Public relations firms regularly solicit authors of opinion-page articles, draft the pieces for them and place the articles in publications where they will have the most impact -- all for a fee." Recently, an op-ed criticizing a bill that would reduce credit card fees appeared in Southern newspapers, attributed to Charles Steele Jr., the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).

Main Source: 
Washington Post, July 29, 2008

Taking out the Trash

by Bob Burton — July 27, 2008 - 6:54pm

On parliament's last day before its summer break, the British government publicly released thirty ministerial statements, including one listing the salaries of "special advisers," one detailing the siting criteria for new nuclear power stations and another detailing the guests entertained at

Main Source: 
Guardian (UK), July 22, 2008

Wake Up and Smell the Product Placement

by Diane Farsetta — July 22, 2008 - 12:16pm

"Two cups of McDonald's iced coffee (BUY!) sit on the Fox 5 TV news desk" during Las Vegas station KVVU's morning news show, writes Abigail Goldman. It's a "punch-you-in-the-face product placement" that will last six months.

Main Source: 
Las Vegas Sun, July 21, 2008

Time for a Federal Shield Law for Journalists

by Judith Siers-Poisson — July 18, 2008 - 5:57pm

The New York Times editorial board supports a proposed federal shield law for journalists that is currently in the Senate. The bill, which would provide journalists with protections against having to reveal sources in federal court, also makes allowances for genuine needs on the part of law enforcement and security concerns. Despite those exceptions, the bill faces "near hysterical opposition from the Bush administration. ...

Main Source: 
New York Times, July 17, 2008

The White House Exploited Lynch and Tillman to Market Their Wars

by Bob Burton — July 16, 2008 - 6:32am

A U.S. House of Representatives committee has released a report investigating the White House's media management efforts over the death from friendly fire of Army Ranger Pat Tillman and the rescue from an Iraqi hospital of Private Jessica Lynch.

Main Source: 
United States House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, July 14, 2008 (Pdf)

Nuking the Media

by Bob Burton — July 15, 2008 - 2:27am

Two years ago, an editorial in the Columbia Journalism Review (CJR) referred to the dream run that Patrick Moore and Christine Todd Whitman were getting in the media representing the Clean and Safe Energy Coalition.

Main Source: 
Jay Hancock's blog, Baltimore Sun, July 12, 2008

Is Bush Guilty of Murder? Don't Ask That on Our Show

by John Stauber — July 8, 2008 - 3:42pm

"As a Los Angeles county prosecutor, Vincent Bugliosi batted a thousand in murder cases: 21 trials, 21 convictions, including the Charles Manson case in 1971. As an author, Mr. Bugliosi has written three No. 1 best sellers and won three Edgar Allan Poe awards, the top honor for crime writers. More than 30 years ago he co-wrote the best seller Helter Skelter, about the Manson case. ... [H]is latest, a polemic with the provocative title The Prosecution of George W.

Main Source: 
New York Times, July 7, 2008

Analyze This: Cable News Gets Loose with Its Labels

by Daniel Haack — June 30, 2008 - 2:13pm

Daniel Libit of The Politico reports that "among the things that the proliferation of TV cable news has wrought is slackened standards for what constitutes a political strategist," a term which has lost its meaning now that it is "used as a catchall tag for a whole host of people with varied -- and often peripheral -- backgrounds in electoral politics." Jane Fleming Kleeb, a so-called "Democratic strategist" --

Main Source: 
The Politico, June 24, 2008
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