Archive for October 6th, 2006
Calling it an “unprecedented intrusion into newsroom operations,” the RTNDA is asking the FCC to stop its investigation into the use of VNRs in local television newscasts. “Determining the content of a newscast, including when and how to identify sources, is at the very heart of the responsibilities of electronic journalists, and these decisions must remain far removed from government involvement or supervision. The government would not dream of inserting itself into a print newsroom to dictate or otherwise oversee how newspaper editors utilize press releases,” said the letter to the FCC.
October 6th, 2006
As much as Jon Stewart says The Daily Show is just fake news, a new study by the University of Indiana found that it’s “just as substantive as network (news) coverage.” The study found while The Daily Show featured more humor that coverage, network news had more hype than substance. I don’t know if I believe that, but perhaps for cable news…
October 6th, 2006
Mark Cuban just spoke at the ONA 2006 conference, and he answered questions from the audience. Cuban said Google would be “crazy, crazy, crazy” to buy YouTube because of the legal exposure over copyright issues. Also, Cuban reacted to the news earlier this week that the NFL is further restricting the use of video online. “[It’s] a huge mistake,” he said. He said they should be making content more available to build audience when times are good, because when times are bad for them, they’ll have a loyal audience. When asked if he’d pick print or web as a business, he said they’re complementary. “I’m not going to read 20 pages on the web,” he said. “Have I taken my Sidekick into the bathroom? Yes. Have I taken the paper into the bathroom more often? Yes.” More in ONA’s write-up here. (Thanks, Dale for your IM reports!)
October 6th, 2006
Today there’s word that Google is in talks to buy YouTube for $1.6 billion, although nothing has been decided to date. Despite Google’s best efforts, Google Video still ranks behind YouTube, MySpace and Yahoo in video traffic. And Microsoft just launched its own competitor in beta. But in doing a deal, would Google open itself to some serious legal exposure? In the last week, Forrester Research and Mark Cuban both predicted YouTube will get sued — and lose. But, you could argue, Google has plenty of leverage to defend itself. Also, how would YouTube mesh with Google Video? Killing YouTube’s brand and seperate site independence to me seems like a mistake. But trying to distinguish it from Google Video could be confusing. Any ideas…?
October 6th, 2006
The annual Online News Association conference is now underway, and we’ll post a series of updates over the next couple days. (PaidContent is there, as well). Dale Steinke, news and operations manager for KING5.com and NWCN.com (yes, same company as me), just attended today’s session from Adrian Van Klaveren on BBC’s new “Creative Future” initiative. Dale’s report follows after the break…
Read the full post October 6th, 2006
The Rep. Foley scandal has resulted in a bunch of articles reminding people that instant messages don’t necessarily go away in an instant. The Washington Post looks at some of the features of AIM and ISPs that archive IMs, Computerworld tackles the security issues of IM software, and then there’s this advice from a subject in an article in the San Jose Mercury News: “If you don’t want something to get out, don’t put it in any computer form at all.'’
October 6th, 2006
If you happen to be in the neighborhood, Lost Remote is hitting the road, big time, in the upcoming weeks for a bunch of panels. Here’s where you can find us:
Oct. 12, 11am - 12:15 pm: FAIR Media Council “Connection Day” Long Island Hilton, Huntington LI, NY. Blogging: The Power of Citizen Journalism. (I’m on that one, along with LR pal and Media Blogger Assn Founder Bob Cox also on panel among others.)
Oct. 25, 1:30-3 pm: RTNDA News and Technology Summit (in conjunction with NAB New York Content Creation + Show). “Making the Web Work: Lessons from the LostRemote.com Guys.”(Steve Safran, Stephen Warley & Rich Warner) Javits Convention Center, New York, NY
Nov. 1, 4:15 PM - 5:00 PM: Streaming Media West, “Streaming Sites That Do it Right” (Safran and Warley), San Jose McEnery Convention Center, San Jose, CA,
If you want to meet up or book us for your event, send me an email: mail (at) stevesafran.com.
October 6th, 2006
You’re seeing two models developing in the mobile video space: the pay-per-channel model (see: CBS O/O sites) and the aggregation model (see: MobiTV). So the question is: which model is more likely to work? I tend to think aggregation is the way to go. It seems like you get more choices for your money. On the other hand, with the cry for a la carte cable pricing, there’s clearly demand for channel-by-channel choice. So, LR Faithful, whaddya think? What model would you want? Would you pay $4.99 a month for mobile access to content from your local TV station?
October 6th, 2006
You may not like it, but online ticket sales have meant that the prices have changed to more of what the market will bear. This is at least good news for the concert promoters and artists who get the money directly, as opposed to the weasel scalpers who used to get the $300 people would spend anyway for good seats. The web also gives people some legit (and extra-legit) venues to resell tickets for events they can’t attend.
October 6th, 2006
