Luke Russert Remembers His Dad Tim On The Today Show:



I have to tell you, as decent and talented a guy as Tim Russert was, MSNBS is beginning to over do their coverage of his death. Candlelight vigils and unending coverage for a news man, however tragic his death, is just too much. However, I did find this appearance by his son Luke on the Today show this morning quite moving. I hope you enjoy it as well.

At 58, Russert Collapses At NBC's News Bureau:

Tim Russert, NBC journalist and political heavyweight host of "Meet the Press," has died after collapsing at NBC's Washington news bureau, a source said. He was 58 years old.

In his role as host of the seminal Sunday morning political program "Meet the Press" - which he took over in 1991 - he became renowned for his hard-nosed interviews where he frequently cornered some of Washington's cagiest political figures with tough questions.

The industry is quite obviously in shock as no one saw this coming. Russert was actually recording promotional clips for Meet the Press when he had this fatal heart attack. He was an amazingly influential figure in the political world. Meet the Press will never be the same.

He will be missed...

Additional details to follow...

Dan Rather Addresses Free Press About Media Reform?

Now, I have spent my entire life in for-profit news, and I happen to think that it does not have to be this way. I have worked for news owners who, while they may have regarded their news divisions as an occasional irritant, chose to turn that irritant into a pearl of public trust. But today, sadly, it seems that the conglomerates that have control over some of the biggest pieces of this public trust would just as soon spit that irritant out.


So what does this mean for us tonight, and what is to be done?

It means that we need to be on the alert for where, when, and how our news media bows to undue government influence. And you need to let news organizations know, in no uncertain terms, that you won't stand for it...that you, as news consumers, are capable of exerting pressure of your own.

It means that we need to continue to let our government know that, when it comes to media consolidation, enough is enough. Too few voices are dominating, homogenizing, and marginalizing the news. We need to demand that the American people get something in exchange for the use of airwaves that belong, after all, to the people.

It means that we need to ensure that the Internet, where free speech reigns and where journalism does not have to pass through a corporate filter... remains free.

We need to say, loud and clear, that we don't want big corporations enjoying preferred access to - or government acting as the gatekeeper for - this unique platform for independent journalism.

The man is who encompasses everything that is wrong with the old media lectures those in the new media on partisan press coverage. Really? The man still denies what everyone else on the planet, or at least at CBS News, has admitted to and he's lecturing other people on biased coverage. Dan Rather doesn't get it. He never did and he never will. His breed is a dying one and soon the rest will fall. The fact that both he and PBS loon Bill Moyers (see: previous post) are featured speakers at the 2008 NCMR says a lot about the agenda pushed by Free Press. Dan Rather is now officially irrelevant.

PBS Stalwart Bill Moyers Is Still Feisty For An Old Guy:

At the National Conference for Media Reform 2008, a producer for FOX's The O'Reilly Factor, Porter Barry, ambushes PBS's Bill Moyers and peppers him with questions regarding his political affiliations and his "refusal" to appear on O'Reilly's show. Moyers disputes FOX's "facts" for the record and asks to interview someone at The O'Reilly Factor about Rupert Murdoch and the show's coverage during the run-up to the invasion of Iraq. The journalist crowd then reacts, chasing down Barry and intentionally giving him a dose of FOX-style bullying reportage.

Moyers is a coward. He finds one point early in the argument and sticks to it. Somehow Bill Moyers is convinced that Rupert Murdoch is responsible for high gas prices. How? Hell, I don't know, I can't follow his broken logic. Regardless, Moyers has made a million statements in his journalist career that turned out to be just as wrong. And why would Bill O'Reilly, host of the most popular cable news talk show, make an appearance on a PBS show that no one watches. To me, Moyers is much more offensive than O'Reilly because he's clearly pushing an agenda and his paycheck, at least a portion of it, comes from tax dollars. Bill Moyers treated this producer like a child, holding his shoulder and wagging his finger in his face. He clearly caught him off-guard and the reporters, mocking the producer for his ambush-style tactics, ambushed him at the end.

Returning To The Today Show With A 'Major Announcement':



I have no problem admitting when I'm wrong. I was way wrong in suggesting a possible Couric comeback months ago. Though there was a slow crawl-back for a brief time for CBS in the ratings game those gains have now been erased. Katie has avoided the Today Show like a plague since she began her stint at CBS News and this 'major announcement' may just live up to the hype.

I don't think she's even dreaming of returning to the Today Show with her tail between her legs so let's speculate a bit on what exactly she will be announcing. We all know Bob Schieffer is staying on with CBS News as his surprise deal was reported some time ago. There's a decent chance Katie will announce her departure from CBS News and Bob Schieffer, even at 71-years-old, is a solid choice for her replacement. He's done well in the ratings before and you can really only go up from where CBS is at the moment. But where will Katie go?

There have been rumors flying around for weeks that Couric and CNN's Anderson Cooper would be switching places. I'm doubtful of this because why would Katie announce it on rival network NBC? There are two scenarios that do make sense. This whole thing could be a ratings ploy for some Today Show retrospective clip show. I'm not sure why they would do this because it doesn't fall on any particularly important anniversary for Today but it's a possibility. It seems a little more unlikely when you take in the fact that this is sure to drum up more speculation, as it is right now, that Katie and CBS are on the outs. The second and much more likely possibility is that Couric will be leaving CBS to do a 60 Minutes-style magazine show on NBC. Then again, there has been persistent rumors that she could be tapped to replace Larry King. But his contract was just renewed! I'm confused... I'll fill you in tomorrow with the details.

Update: That was fast. It appears there will be a joint cancer research telethon on all major networks and Katie Couric will be hosting it. Damn! That was the least exciting of the possibilities.

Warning Graphic Language - Pick Your Favorite Among These:



I have to say I like the CNN weather guy outburst. And you?

Advance Copy - Next Issue Compares Iwo Jima To Global Warming:



Time Magazine has long been obsessed with the overblown myth of human induced global warming. Next week's cover marks the breaking point for a magazine on the brink. Time Magazine has officially jumped the shark... In comparing the 'battle' against global warming to the real battle of Iwo Jima they have offended many veterans. Maybe this newly adopted tactic explains Time's massive circulation drop over the past several years. The magazine could be following the rest of the ancient publications around the bowl but a move like this will have them leading the charge downward.

Tabloid-Style Satire Paper Sets Aims Towards Rupert Murdoch:

It seems someone at The Wall Street Journal really likes a biting new parody of the paper — likes it enough, in fact, to leave at least one newsstand with no copies remaining for anyone else to buy.

The tabloid-format satire, “My Wall Street Journal,” mostly sets out to skewer The Journal’s new owner, the News Corporation, and its chairman, Rupert Murdoch, with swipes at News properties like Fox News, The New York Post and The Journal itself. It takes aim at other targets, too, including Wall Street firms and traders, and assorted politicians and pundits.

The first edition also features this piece on Ann Coulter:



At least one newstand owner says someone from the Wall St. Journal purchased all available copies of the satire. Then again, that story could be nothing more than an attempt to drum up buzz for this semi-funny parody paper. Either way, the battle lines exist.

Michael Lacey, Owner Of The Village Voice, Drops The N-Bomb:

The executive editor of the nation's largest alternative newspaper company angered dozens of Arizona journalists Friday night when he used a racial slur during an awards speech.

Michael Lacey, co-owner of Village Voice Media, which publishes a chain of weekly newspapers across the United States including Phoenix New Times, used the slur while accepting an award from the local chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Lacey's reference to an old friend of his, the late Pulitzer Prize winning reporter Tom Fitzpatrick, as "my (n-word)," sparked immediate reaction from those who attended the event. The short, impromptu speech also included some vulgar phrases.

Billye Paulson, a black journalist who works for the Tribune, called the speech "offensive" and fired off an angry e-mail to Lacey demanding an apology.

If Rupert Murdoch made a statement like this, we'd never hear the end of it. Because Mike Lacey is an avowed Liberal he's getting a pass. Check the wires, nothing but tumbleweeds on this one.

From 4.5 Million To 6.4 Million Viewers In Just Six Months:



Granted, it's a slow crawl back from the depths but it's a crawl none the less. Six months ago the entire media world was predicting a prompt replacement of Katie Couric. I remember watching her broadcasts go downhill as she tried to shoehorn long interview pieces into 'Evening News.' It was her attempt to step out of the haunted shadows of her predecessor Dan Rather and it failed miserably.

I watch all three evening newscasts, simultaneously. I watch, on any given night, as all three broadcast news heavyweights lead with the same predictable story. I watch as piece after piece, anything from medical research stories to water cooler topics, is mirrored on all three networks with few exceptions. Brian Williams is your friend next door, Charlie Gibson is your well-informed grandfather and Katie Couric is... well Katie's different. She doesn't fit the mold. Her delivery is awkward and her interview skills are lackluster. Her producers, however, have found a way to finally make some ratings gains... Timing. More specifically, commercial block timing.



NBC doesn't take their first commercial break until about :47 after the hour. That's a lead-off segment that is only surpassed by ABC who doesn't take that break until closer to :49 after. Couric and CBS take their first break much earlier, around :44 after. Why would they shorten their first segment so drastically? In an attempt to grab viewers who channel surf as the other two newscasts take their first commercial breaks. This strategy seems to be working.

In just six short months Couric has gained nearly 2 million viewers. CBS News is still in third place by a wide margin (about 1.8 million viewers) but, if this rate of growth continues, she could close that gap in another six months. To be fair, the competition has seen some decent gains as well but not as large as Katie's. CBS obviously had more ground to gain after hitting rock bottom in September with only 4.5 million viewers but that doesn't make this unimpressive.

The critics were loud and plentiful after Katie's initial ratings bounce faded, and the bottom fell out at CBS News, but they are silent and nonexistent in penning her slow assent. Alright, so she's not the 'ratings juggernaut' they once hoped she would be but she's sticking it out and making some gains. Who knows, maybe 6 months from now Williams and Gibson will be in her rear-view mirror?

Newspaper Association Reports Steep Decline In Ad Revenue:

Overall print advertising revenue fell 9.4% last year, according to new data from the Newspaper Association of America.

That's the biggest drop in more than 50 years, according to Editor & Publisher.

The trade group says online advertising revenue continued to increase, albeit at a slower rate.

“Even with the near-term challenges posed to print media by a more fragmented information environment and the economic headwinds facing all advertising media, newspaper publishers are continuing to drive strong revenue growth from their increasingly robust Web platforms,” NAA President John Sturm says in a press release.

Another step in the transformation from old to new media.