Follow the story, not the agenda

How to (and how not to) cover campaign “events,” like Biden’s recent Detroit speech

By Anna Clark   Jul 31, 2012 at 03:45 PM

MICHIGAN — You show up, jot down a few quotes, take in a bit of scenic color, and translate it... More

Diet wars turn family feud

Why the Times’s Gina Kolata has it out for the Times’s Gary Taubes

By Paul Scott   Jul 31, 2012 at 03:00 PM

Gary Taubes is one of the most interesting health writers in the country. He is an exhaustive researcher, an astute... More

@GuyAdams is #suspended (Updated)

Did Twitter’s Olympics partnership with NBC lead to a journalist’s account suspension?

By Sara Morrison   Jul 31, 2012 at 12:00 PM

Guy Adams is still "trying to get to the bottom of" why his Twitter account was suspended on Monday. The... More

Piecemeal existence

For today’s young freelancers, what will traffic bear?

By Ben Adler   Jul 31, 2012 at 11:05 AM

In 2009, an editor for a new website called The Faster Times, which sought to be “an edgier Huffington Post,”... More

Does journalistic ‘balance’ hurt America?

What if Washington’s dysfunction was mostly one party’s fault: A Q&A with Thomas Mann

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 31, 2012 at 06:51 AM

Thomas Mann, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Norman Ornstein, a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute,... More

Audit Notes: Twitter’s censors, NYT apology, Craigslist’s aggregators

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 31, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Twitter gave itself a serious black eye today, censoring a journalist for reporting the easy-to-figure-out corporate email address of NBC... More

Big ad spending, little press scrutiny

NC journalists need to stay on the story of the political ad spending spree

By Andria Krewson   Jul 30, 2012 at 04:55 PM

NORTH CAROLINA — It’s hotter than usual in North Carolina this summer. And much of the heat is coming from... More

The British media after Leveson

Editors say more regulation could cripple the UK press

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 30, 2012 at 03:27 PM

If public outcry against alleged phone hacking sparked the Leveson Inquiry, the government-led investigation into ethics in the British press,... More

Bell curves

Lots of “ring” words

By Merrill Perlman   Jul 30, 2012 at 03:00 PM

“You must be a ringer,” the journalism instructor told the student, who insisted that, though he had many years of... More

Lehrer resigns from The New Yorker

Tablet busts the writer for fabricating Bob Dylan quotes in his new book, Imagine: How Creativity Works

By Curtis Brainard   Jul 30, 2012 at 02:45 PM

Science writer Jonah Lehrer has resigned as a staff writer for The New Yorker following revelations that he made up... More

Noticed: #countriesbyvoguewriters

Twitter users lampoon a line by former Vogue writer Joan Juliet Buck

By Kira Goldenberg   Jul 30, 2012 at 12:52 PM

This morning, Newsweek posted a story by Joan Juliet Buck which tells the backstory to her Vogue profile of Syrian... More

New Orleans gets a new Reporter

NewOrleansReporter.org is one of several news initiatives that will pick up the slack in a post-daily Picayune world

By Sara Morrison   Jul 30, 2012 at 12:30 PM

News-hungry New Orleanians, take heart: The hole in the city's news scene the cuts to the Times-Picayune's newsroom and print... More

Digital goes first at the FT (Updated)

The Financial Times now has more digital subscribers than print ones; running the numbers

By Dean Starkman   Jul 30, 2012 at 12:06 PM

Like them or not, newspaper paywalls continue better-than-expected performances, the latest good (for some of us) news coming from The... More

Look back on anger

At his best, Ambrose Bierce used vicious satire to puncture the smug complacency of America’s Gilded Age

By Bill Marx   Jul 30, 2012 at 11:10 AM

I s journalist, short-story writer, and poet Ambrose Bierce one of the biggest SOBs in American literature? He is certainly... More

Viral before the Internet

Things spread, but the content, often documentary, was darker and weirder

By Alissa Quart   Jul 30, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Was there viral documentary film and video before the Internets? You bet. As Kliph Nesteroff wrote recently in The Awl,... More

Laurels to the Las Vegas Sun and News & Record

For a strong ad factcheck, and for grappling with campaigns’ message control

By Liz Cox Barrett and Greg Marx   Jul 27, 2012 at 03:10 PM

Jay Jones has already heaped praise this week upon the Las Vegas Sun’s Anjeanette Damon, but we’ll go ahead... More

The Kickstarter Chronicles

Sports for the blind and magazines for young black women

By Sara Morrison   Jul 27, 2012 at 02:50 PM

Each week, dozens of journalistic endeavors turn to Kickstarter for funding. Pitching media projects to this online community brings another... More

Notes from our online readers

Comments erupt over David Simon’s paywall piece

By The Editors   Jul 27, 2012 at 11:08 AM

In May, David Simon, the former Baltimore Sun reporter who created the television shows The Wire and Treme, reiterated his... More

In VA, allegations of racism ignite a controversy

After national conservative media seize on a state senator’s words, local reporters pick up the story

By Tharon Giddens   Jul 27, 2012 at 11:00 AM

VIRGINIA — The butterfly effect has been in effect here this week, as a Democratic state senator’s comments about racism... More

What to remember about the ‘war over women’

Press is right to focus on the contest, but polls showing major shift deserve a closer look

By T.C. Brown   Jul 27, 2012 at 07:40 AM

OHIO — Both presidential campaigns this week made one thing clear—they’re intent on wooing this state’s women voters. First Lady... More

Medicare and misinformation

Is my premium rising? A beat memo for reporters

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 27, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Two weeks ago a Midwest businessman sent an email to a long list of his senior friends warning that their... More

Coming out posthumously

Sally Ride and questions of how to memorialize semi-closeted public figures

By Jennifer Vanasco   Jul 27, 2012 at 06:50 AM

In her column, Minority Reports, Jennifer Vanasco analyzes how the mainstream media covers social minorities. In the first obituaries about... More

Audit Notes: more NOLA rumblings, Journatic, well-squawked

A new buyer emerges in New Orleans, Quick and Sorkin did good, etc.

By Dean Starkman   Jul 26, 2012 at 11:36 PM

—Can we agree at this point that Advance Publications’s attempt to sell its plans for dramatic newsroom cuts and... More

A new Patch?

AOL’s hyperlocal startup is building something new, but the details remain closely guarded

By Kira Goldenberg   Jul 26, 2012 at 05:08 PM

At AOL’s second-quarter earnings call on Wednesday, CEO Tim Armstrong hinted that changes are afoot for Patch, the hyperlocal news... More

The press botches the tax debate—again

Narratives and ignorance trump accuracy in descriptions of Democratic proposal

By Brendan Nyhan   Jul 26, 2012 at 04:54 PM

NEW HAMPSHIRE — Yesterday, the Senate held symbolic votes on a pair of high-profile tax bills with important implications for... More

InsideClimate out front

Investigation of Kalamazoo oil spill calamity led the pack

By Curtis Brainard   Jul 26, 2012 at 03:23 PM

In early July, the media covered a long awaited report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which blamed the... More

A Washington reporter’s review of Barofsky’s book is unintentionally revealing

Shield’s up!

By Dean Starkman   Jul 26, 2012 at 11:20 AM

Jackie Calmes's review of Neil Barofsky’s new book, Bailout, to me, says so much more about Washington press culture... More

With a series of strong stories, Sun’s Damon shines

Articles ID big-money groups, track transparency battles, and call out a “laughable” ad

By Jay Jones   Jul 26, 2012 at 11:00 AM

NEVADA — One need only look at the last week’s worth of work by Las Vegas Sun reporter Anjeanette Damon... More

Copywrong

How well do you know fair use?

By Patricia Aufderheide   Jul 26, 2012 at 11:00 AM

Are the following scenarios responsible, or wrong? • Prithi did a beautiful arts feature on the history of a musical... More

False balance and the Medicare scare

Who’s been telling the truth in Florida?

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 26, 2012 at 06:51 AM

Last Thursday the president made a campaign stop in Florida, and—surprise, surprise—he talked about Medicare. Or at least he talked... More

Presenting #realtalk from your editor

CJR’s “place for super practical conversation about working in media”—in gifs!

By Ann Friedman   Jul 26, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Welcome to the new incarnation of #Realtalk from your editor! This weekly column was inspired by my now-defunct Tumblr blog,... More

Audit Notes: Macabre probe, Wall Street lethargy, linkless hype busters, ‘Chairman of the Fed,’ etc.

A compelling cross-border probe into the body parts business

By Dean Starkman   Jul 25, 2012 at 11:04 PM

“When my daughter-in-law touched it, she said that his foot was empty.” That’s right. Someone stole the inside... More

Follow-the-money stories Colorado reporters should do

Some suggestions for what to look at now and where to look

By Mary Winter   Jul 25, 2012 at 03:15 PM

COLORADO — Back-to-back disasters—massive wildfires, followed by Friday morning’s horrific movie-theater massacre outside of Denver—have rocked newsrooms here, including that... More

‘I don’t bluff’

Michael Mann’s lawyer says National Review must retract and apologize

By Curtis Brainard   Jul 25, 2012 at 02:45 PM

Penn State climate scientist Michael Mann is demanding that National Review retract and apologize for a July 15 post that... More

A big week for the British press

Rupert Murdoch resigns, Leveson Inquiry closes, UK journalists charged

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 25, 2012 at 02:36 PM

Rupert Murdoch’s recent resignation from the boards of his UK newspapers seems, at first glance, like a dramatic move to... More

Sacred cows

The Penn State story offers a glimpse of the problems with league- and team-owned broadcast operations

By Robert Weintraub   Jul 25, 2012 at 02:35 PM

Full-Court Press is a periodic column about the coverage of sports. On July 12, a report prepared by former FBI... More

Unfair use?

How a documentary filmmaker was (temporarily) foiled by the copyright cops

By Steven Rosenbaum   Jul 25, 2012 at 11:25 AM

It began with an invitation to present at a TEDX event in Grand Rapids, MI. I wanted to share... More

On Florida’s ‘anything but monolithic’ Hispanic voters

Miami Herald, Tampa Bay Times raise the reporting bar

By Brian E. Crowley   Jul 25, 2012 at 11:00 AM

FLORIDA — One of the most wearisome elements of media coverage of the 2012 election campaign is the often trite... More

A WSJ ‘A-hed’ covers the same topic twice

Tapping on the glass of a barometer for quality

By Dean Starkman   Jul 25, 2012 at 08:20 AM

Back when News Corp. took over Dow Jones & Co., which some of us didn’t think was a particularly... More

Movie violence chic

The journalistic buy-in to Hollywood hype

By Michael Massing   Jul 25, 2012 at 06:50 AM

In recent weeks, while watching baseball games, The Daily Show, and (I admit) some Seinfeld reruns, I saw what seemed... More

The Muslim Brotherhood’s post-uprising TV station

New since the regime change last year, Misr25 is navigating the line between coverage and advocacy

By Jared Malsin   Jul 25, 2012 at 06:50 AM

CAIRO, EGYPT — The Muslim Brotherhood’s year-old television station, Misr25, broadcasts from a building in Egypt’s Media Production City, a... More

Audit Notes: UK edition

On hack-gate and the paper that broke it open

By Dean Starkman   Jul 24, 2012 at 04:27 PM

Make no mistake about it: the criminal charges unveiled yesterday against former top News Corp. officials mark a major... More

Are journalists being too harsh to Tablet?

The Jewish online magazine made a mistake. Should that overshadow everything else it’s accomplished?

By Sara Morrison   Jul 24, 2012 at 03:50 PM

In the TV series Breaking Bad, a science teacher’s terminal cancer diagnosis prompts him to cook meth to make as... More

How undisclosed money works its way in

OpenSecrets, Morning Call report on “financial gymnastics” in PA Senate primary

By Ken Knelly   Jul 24, 2012 at 11:00 AM

PENNSYLVANIA — The US Senate primary here may be over, but the work of understanding how the contest was played—and... More

Blinded by the fight

In a new book on poverty in America, the authors’ lectures undercut their message

By Justin Peters   Jul 24, 2012 at 10:54 AM

In 2009, reporter Chris Hedges and cartoonist Joe Sacco set out to capture the state of American desperation. Over the... More

National Geographic launches a ‘ballsy’ online project

A community storytelling venture hopes to supplement good journalism

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 24, 2012 at 06:50 AM

When Aaron Huey started photographing the lives of Native Americans on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, he... More

Audit Notes: NOLA stirrings, Libor’s victim, Honda-driving billionaire, etc.

By Dean Starkman   Jul 23, 2012 at 06:25 PM

—With the news market in New Orleans suddenly up for grabs—thanks to Advance Publications's decision to slash the newsroom... More

Quest for science debate continues

15 top science organizations press Obama, Romney for answers

By Curtis Brainard   Jul 23, 2012 at 03:15 PM

The quest for a scientific tête-à-tête between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney continues. On Thursday, 15 top science and engineering... More

Memorializing

What to call those piles of flowers

By Merrill Perlman   Jul 23, 2012 at 03:00 PM

Bob Kamman, a regular correspondent, writes: When unexpected deaths occur that are newsworthy, what often happens is that people leave... More

When a news executive sits on a bank’s board

The FT Group’s Fairhead is a director of troubled HSBC

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 23, 2012 at 11:00 AM

It’s unusual—rare, even—for the CEO of a major financial news and information concern to serve on the board of directors... More

A helping hand

The Ford Foundation reaches out to broaden minority coverage

By The Editors   Jul 23, 2012 at 11:00 AM

Anyone who cares about the future of newsrooms is on the lookout for omens. And there have been plenty... More

The specter of ‘Socialized Medicine’ rides again

In the Massachusetts Senate race, no less

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 23, 2012 at 06:51 AM

Now that the Affordable Care Act is the law of the land and its system of private insurance, private doctors,... More

The real question about Romney’s Bain career

How, exactly, did his business career prepare the candidate to be president?

By Greg Marx   Jul 23, 2012 at 06:50 AM

The debate over Mitt Romney’s tenure at Bain Capital has been a series of cul-de-sacs and rabbit-holes. When the Republican... More

The WSJ on the fall of Nokia

The company that foresaw an iPhone-like device in 2000 is left in the dust

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 20, 2012 at 07:26 PM

The Wall Street Journal has an excellent page-one story on the fall of Finnish cellphone giant Nokia—the kind of deeply... More

ABC News: armchair psychologist

The network offers irresponsible speculation about the Colorado shooter

By Curtis Brainard   Jul 20, 2012 at 05:30 PM

Here we go again. A gunman fires on an unsuspecting crowd and the American media leap to conclusions about the... More

On that piece in Tablet

It was selfish writing that needlessly caused pain to others

By Kira Goldenberg   Jul 20, 2012 at 05:02 PM

When Nora Ephron succumbed to cancer late last month, many remembrances noted the writer’s embrace of her mother’s assertion that... More

Reactions to the Aurora shooting: the wrong, the sad, the irrelevant

How one tragedy led to many premature conclusions

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 20, 2012 at 03:48 PM

It doesn’t take long for news to travel about a tragedy like Friday’s midnight shooting at a screening of “The... More

The Globe advances the Romney/Bain story

Meanwhile, MoJo digs into Romney’s investments in offshoring

By Greg Marx   Jul 20, 2012 at 03:02 PM

This post has been updated (see bottom of second page). In the great politico-media debate over Mitt Romney, Bain Capital,... More

The Kickstarter Chronicles

A photographer’s Antarctica trip gets the iBook treatment and PBS finds another way to appeal to viewers like you

By Sara Morrison   Jul 20, 2012 at 02:50 PM

Each week, dozens of journalistic endeavors turn to Kickstarter for funding. Pitching media projects to this online community brings another... More

Could the iPad save magazines?

It’s looking ever more likely

By Molly Mirhashem   Jul 20, 2012 at 02:50 PM

Though it may have gathered the most attention recently, Huffington, The Huffington Post’s new iPad-only magazine, isn’t the only publication... More

How to handle oppo research?

It’s simple: If your scoop got a helpful boost from a campaign, let readers know

By Walter Shapiro   Jul 20, 2012 at 11:20 AM

For the political cognoscenti, the dominant story line in July has been the Barack Obama campaign’s mastery of the subterranean... More

Open Bar

The Billy Goat Tavern

By Tanveer Ali   Jul 20, 2012 at 10:47 AM

Year opened 1964 (original location, 1934) Who drinks here Mostly tourists, but journalists still turn up. It remains the... More

In Joe Willams’s firing, questions of race

Would the former Politico reporter have been dismissed for his comments if he were white?

By Jennifer Vanasco   Jul 20, 2012 at 06:50 AM

In America, talk about race is complex and fraught with danger. It is easy for people of good will to... More

How to worry about a clicks-driven Times-Picayune

A departing reporter’s worst-case fears

By Sarah Carr   Jul 20, 2012 at 06:50 AM

If clicks drove coverage at The Times-Picayune in New Orleans —a more realistic prospect than it’s ever been—what kind of... More

Audit Notes: Bloomberg on Libor, “can’t find workers” in the WSJ

At least 34 traders are under investigation in the widening scandal

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 20, 2012 at 12:57 AM

Bloomberg names names in the Libor investigation, reporting that at least 34 traders from more than a dozen banks are... More

An indictment in North Carolina

After NC Policy Watch investigates, a lawmaker faces criminal charges

By Andria Krewson   Jul 19, 2012 at 03:00 PM

NORTH CAROLINA — In August 2011, the nonprofit site NC Policy Watch published a lengthy, damning investigative report about Stephen... More

A hunger for the food-stamp story

Some 45 million Americans use them—Who are they?

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 19, 2012 at 02:50 PM

The press has shown only sporadic interest in the farm bill, a vast, important piece of legislation that must be... More

Editor in Chief’s Note

CJR’s business crew unveil The Best Business Writing 2012

By Cyndi Stivers   Jul 19, 2012 at 11:25 AM

What is Hugh Grant—yes, that Hugh Grant—doing in a book called The Best Business Writing 2012? Turns out the actor’s... More

Letters to the Editor

Readers respond to our May/June issue

By The Editors   Jul 19, 2012 at 11:25 AM

China syndrome Sambuddha Mitra Mustafi asks in “Sino the times” (CJR, May/June), “Can China’s billions buy media credibility?” The problem... More

Copyright and punishment

A panel of Internet entrepreneurs tackle property rights in the digital age

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 19, 2012 at 10:57 AM

“I’m a copyright moderate, but I get painted as a radical!” moaned the author Rob Reid to a woman clutching... More

Our gullible press

Ryan Holiday explains how the singular pursuit of traffic makes online media suckers for fake news

By Ryan Holiday   Jul 19, 2012 at 06:50 AM

One thing has been conspicuously absent from all criticism of online media and the future of news: an understanding of... More

Audit Notes: Ignoring Libor, Barron’s, rich kids and TV news

ABC and NBC evening newscasts ignore the huge scandal in its first two weeks

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 19, 2012 at 06:50 AM

The Washington Post's Erik Wemple points to Media Matters research that shows ABC's and NBC's nightly newscasts completely ignored the... More

A dart to the campaign press corps

…for acquiescing to that whole “quote approval” thing

By Liz Cox Barrett and Greg Marx   Jul 19, 2012 at 06:18 AM

It’s a diffuse target, but the campaign press corps writ large earns a dart this week for acquiescing to... More

With Borowitz acquisition, NewYorker.com launches a new humor vertical (Updated)

The magazine’s Web presence is expanding, says its online editor

By Sara Morrison   Jul 18, 2012 at 04:39 PM

NewYorker.com's acquisition of Andy Borowitz's The Borowitz Report isn't the only thing that's new to the site on Wednesday. The... More

More on NPR and manufactured quotes

Why lobbyist-provided rent-a-quotes subvert the news

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 18, 2012 at 04:38 PM

NPR Ombudsman Edward Schumacher-Matos (who teaches here at Columbia) takes a look at the network's poor showing with manufacturing sources... More

Ready, set for an interactive Olympics

Outlets strike deals to bump viewer engagement during the games

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 18, 2012 at 03:00 PM

The London Olympics officially open in two weeks, which means media outlets are gearing up to cover them. That requires... More

Cincinnati Enquirer unpacks campaign claims

Ohioans will need more help from their media navigating candidates’ rhetoric

By T.C. Brown   Jul 18, 2012 at 03:00 PM

OHIO — The drumbeat of political ads and campaign claims and counter-claims continues to grow louder in the Buckeye State—and... More

Journalism worth preserving

The profession should be “reconnect[ed] with its legacy of engagement with the humanities”

By G. Pascal Zachary   Jul 18, 2012 at 02:50 PM

Because journalism is increasingly being turned into an instrument - of the Internet, of commerce, of the popular will (to... More

On outsourcing, Colorado media mostly disappoint

But there’s still an opportunity to deliver the full account this story needs

By Mary Winter   Jul 18, 2012 at 11:31 AM

COLORADO — This state became the center of the battle over outsourcing last week, when Mitt Romney, responding to charges... More

Flames, causes and context

As Western wildfires rage, reporters grapple with stories beyond acreage burned and homes destroyed

By Tom Yulsman   Jul 18, 2012 at 11:00 AM

When faced with the explosive fury of multiple wildfires torching hundreds of homes like so many Roman candles, journalists can... More

Setting a new Record

Martin Gottlieb returns to his roots

By Mike Hoyt   Jul 18, 2012 at 11:00 AM

He traded Paris for Hackensack? Really? Well, not exactly. As global editions editor for The New York Times, Martin... More

Audit Notes: Too big to fail football, Guardian digital numbers, WaPo

Penn State and the ramifications of a possible NCAA death penalty

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 18, 2012 at 06:50 AM

It's not just the banks. Now elite college football programs are too big to fail, as well. Here's Bloomberg News... More

Roanoke Times excels at campaign ‘event coverage’…

…But will the paper turn its resources toward the rhetoric?

By Tharon Giddens   Jul 18, 2012 at 06:50 AM

VIRGINIA — Last month, the New York Times made an effort to help readers navigate some of the “selective truths,”... More

In Egypt, new newspapers and old problems

Citizens need good journalism to explain confusing times, but many Egyptians don’t trust their media

By Jared Malsin   Jul 18, 2012 at 06:50 AM

CAIRO, EGYPT — Egyptian newsstands today offer a lively range of options, including three government-owned papers, papers affiliated with political... More

En-gendered

Terms for sexual identity

By Merrill Perlman   Jul 17, 2012 at 03:00 PM

Dealing with gender identity these days is a tricky business. And while we prefer to use “sex” to describe biological... More

Unanswered questions in the Romney/Bain controversy

Don’t look to fact-checkers for resolution

By Brendan Nyhan   Jul 17, 2012 at 12:15 PM

NEW HAMPSHIRE — Fact-checkers have played a key role in the controversy over Mitt Romney's role in outsourcing at Bain... More

Stories I’d like to see

Soaring college costs and the Penn State private plane

By Steven Brill   Jul 17, 2012 at 11:05 AM

In his weekly “Stories I’d like to see” column, journalist and entrepreneur Steven Brill spotlights topics that, in his opinion,... More

The WSJ Editorial Page and the Libor scandal

Blaming everybody but the bankers

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 17, 2012 at 11:00 AM

When wrongdoing by Big Business is in the news, you can usually count on the WSJ editorial page to do... More

Networks schmetworks

The race is on to recast the newscast

By Sang Ngo   Jul 17, 2012 at 11:00 AM

While the big three networks struggle to adapt to the world of mobile, on-demand delivery, a number of experiments... More

The healthcare whatyamacallit

What’s a reporter to call that payment thing—tax or penalty?

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 17, 2012 at 06:50 AM

The Supreme Court decision on the Affordable Care Act handed journalists something of a semantic dilemma. What do we call... More

Audit Notes: Statute of limitations, whither The Daily, Romney’s taxes

The WSJ on how the clock may (or may not) be running out on the SEC

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 17, 2012 at 01:55 AM

The Wall Street Journal is good to keep an eye on the statutes of limitation clocks that are running out... More

Plagiarism and a resignation at Journatic

So why is the Chicago Tribune still involved?

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 16, 2012 at 05:46 PM

When CJR wrote about local news outsourcing company Journatic 10 days ago, its CEO, Brian Timpone, called the use of... More

New NYT public editor brings experience, online savvy

Margaret M. Sullivan is looking forward to having “an ongoing conversation with readers” both in print and online

By Sara Morrison   Jul 16, 2012 at 01:59 PM

On Monday, The New York Times announced that its search for a new public editor had ended with the appointment... More

Diane Sawyer’s ‘hot’ newscast

Paul Friedman discusses his CJR cover story on Howie Kurtz’s Reliable Sources

By The Editors   Jul 16, 2012 at 01:40 PM

Over the weekend, CJR contributor Paul Friedman appeared on Reliable Sources to discuss the subject of his CJR cover story,... More

Listen: Swing States Project staffer on weak coverage of Bain dispute

“This story isn’t going away”

By Liz Cox Barrett   Jul 16, 2012 at 12:20 PM

On Friday, Brendan Nyhan, The Swing States Project’s New Hampshire correspondent, talked with On the Media’s Bob Garfield about shortcomings... More

Weighing anchors

The nightly newscasts are retooling to suit their stars, and it’s working—for now

By Paul Friedman   Jul 16, 2012 at 11:10 AM

Five days before Christmas, on the night Congress deadlocked on payroll tax rates and unemployment benefits affecting more than 160... More

Do they get that it’s wrong?

Journalism students can be “truly baffled” when confronted for plagiarism

By Kristal Brent Zook   Jul 16, 2012 at 10:50 AM

Perhaps Liane Membis, the Wall Street Journal intern fired recently for inventing quotes, started out with noble intentions. As Miss... More

In Michigan, a one-man follow-the-money machine

Rich Robinson helps the state’s journalists track political cash

By Anna Clark   Jul 16, 2012 at 06:50 AM

MICHIGAN — Call him the perfect source. Whether they work in newspapers, radio, or online news, Michigan political journalists rely... More

Vimeo: AuteurTube

YouTube can make amateurs rich, but the video pros are congregating elsewhere

By Alissa Quart   Jul 16, 2012 at 06:50 AM

The Times mag the other week noticed that amateur star “YouTubers” could make six figures through the site’s comedy channels.... More

Media reactions to the Freeh Report

Revelations force turnarounds from journalists

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 13, 2012 at 05:24 PM

Media coverage of the 267-page Freeh Report on the Penn State child abuse coverup hasn’t stopped since it was released... More

The good old days of the Nixon campaign

A look back at a 1968 classic shows just how inaccessible candidates have become

By Walter Shapiro   Jul 13, 2012 at 03:00 PM

Maybe it’s the summer doldrums, or the Barack Obama campaign’s continual pain-from-Bain refrain, or the speculative no-news-here if-clauses surrounding Mitt... More

Audit Notes: JPMorgan’s Whale, rent-a-quotes, shark videos

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 13, 2012 at 03:00 PM

This New York Times story on JPMorgan's regulators is not well edited, but it has some interesting reporting: At one... More

The Kickstarter Chronicles

A newspaper funnies funnyman branches out and the other Jersey Shore gets it due

By Sara Morrison   Jul 13, 2012 at 11:18 AM

Each week, dozens of journalistic endeavors turn to Kickstarter for funding. Pitching media projects to this online community brings another... More

20 women to watch

A by-no-means-complete list of eXXcellent talents we’d bet on to map the future of the media business

By The Editors   Jul 13, 2012 at 11:00 AM

Molly Bingham (@4GJournalist) Descended from a venerable newspaper family, Bingham is an intrepid photojournalist and filmmaker who’s now launching ORBmedia, which... More

The Goldman Sachs of online retail

The FT with a good look at Amazon’s Marketplace platform

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 13, 2012 at 06:50 AM

The Financial Times is running a good series this week on Amazon, one of the country's most fascinating and frustrating... More

Covering the ‘ex-gay’ movement

An influential organization changed its stance on reparative therapy. What will this mean for media coverage?

By Jennifer Vanasco   Jul 13, 2012 at 06:50 AM

In her new column, Minority Reports, Jennifer Vanasco analyzes how the mainstream media covers social minorities. Recently Alan Chambers, president... More

Rehashing the debate about when Romney left Bain

After a much-discussed Boston Globe story, FactCheck.org stands by its take

By Greg Marx   Jul 12, 2012 at 05:12 PM

This post has been updated. The big political story of the day is a front-page article in The Boston Globe... More

The heatwave debate

How the science of probability affects science coverage

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 12, 2012 at 12:56 PM

We can all agree that the weather has been unseasonably warm this summer. But fewer people, including media types, agree... More

The divine sisterhood

All hail 40 women who changed the media business in the past 40 years

By The Editors   Jul 12, 2012 at 11:00 AM

Jill Abramson First woman to be executive editor of The New York Times Christiane Amanpour CNN’s fearless, globe-trotting war correspondent... More

Christmas in July for Reno TV stations?

Reno reporter tallies political ad buys in “the battleground county of the battleground state of Nevada”

By Jay Jones   Jul 12, 2012 at 07:00 AM

NEVADA - Every election cycle, as Americans prepare to hit the voting booths, Christmas comes early to television stations across... More

Audit Notes: Reuters on Chesapeake, Krugman on CNBC, Waldman on banks

The wire uncovers more emails showing potential collusion between competitors

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 12, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Reuters continues its tremendous investigation into natural gas giant Chesapeake Energy and its CEO Aubrey McClendon. Brian Grow and Joshua... More

Laurels for The New York Times and The Plain Dealer

Amid some Dart-worthy coverage, a few stories stand out

By Liz Cox Barrett and Greg Marx   Jul 11, 2012 at 03:20 PM

Brendan Nyhan’s post earlier this week about the lackluster coverage of President Obama’s “outsourcing” attack on Mitt Romney threw... More

Thomas Friedman’s fantasy America

Not telling it like it is

By Michael Massing   Jul 11, 2012 at 02:58 PM

Thomas Friedman was delighted by the Supreme Court’s recent decision to uphold the healthcare law. And he was positively thrilled... More

Katherine the great

In her searing portrait of an Indian slum, Katherine Boo demonstrates the potency of deep, patient reporting

By Kira Goldenberg   Jul 11, 2012 at 11:02 AM

When Katherine Boo worked at The Washington Post in the 1990s, the future Pulitzer Prize and MacArthur Fellowship winner... More

The Palm Beach Post exposes a hidden menace

Government cutbacks and the worst TB epidemic in 20 years

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 11, 2012 at 11:01 AM

Reporting on tuberculosis is not most reporters’ idea of a glamor assignment. It’s an ancient disease, drug companies aren’t keen... More

Audit Notes: The Fed and The Economist on Libor, Goldman and Louisville

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 11, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Reuters's Carrick Mollenkamp, who broke the Libor scandal open in 2008 with Mark Whitehouse when they were at The Wall... More

Manufactured quotes

News organizations fail to disclose “regular Joe” businessmen’s lobbying ties

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 10, 2012 at 06:06 PM

Two weeks ago The New York Times wheeled out that old chestnut of Great Recession-era economic reporting: Companies can't find... More

Tracking campaign cash in the commonwealth

The Virginia Public Access Project helps political reporters and citizens follow the money

By Tharon Giddens   Jul 10, 2012 at 04:15 PM

VIRGINIA — If you want to follow political money in Virginia—and there’s plenty of it here, as this is one... More

Saving Auntie: Meet the BBC’s new boss

Who is George Entwistle and what challenges does he face?

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 10, 2012 at 03:25 PM

Last Wednesday, the BBC announced the appointment of longtime employee George Entwistle to the corporation’s top post of director general.... More

The sixth W

Who, what, when, where, why—and women. A bow to those who helped close the media gender gap, and a cheer for leaders of the future

By Cyndi Stivers   Jul 10, 2012 at 11:10 AM

On the high wire Lynn Povich was named the first female senior editor of Newsweek in 1975. Here she... More

Stories I’d like to see

Digging deeper on the effects of Obamacare

By Steven Brill   Jul 10, 2012 at 11:00 AM

In his weekly “Stories I’d like to see” column, journalist and entrepreneur Steven Brill spotlights topics that, in his opinion,... More

Audit Notes: Daily Planet holds up, record collapse, presidential fundraising

The Onion on the least believable part of Superman comics

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 10, 2012 at 06:50 AM

This Onion article on the outdated Daily Planet is spot on: Frustrated fans of the Superman comic book said Monday... More

Sentimental journey

Evaluating a ‘journeyman’

By Merrill Perlman   Jul 9, 2012 at 03:00 PM

The article’s headline promised a story “on the life of a journeyman musician.” It discussed a man who has been... More

Arbitrating the dispute over Romney’s history at Bain

Reporters and editors need a better approach to covering the controversy

By Brendan Nyhan   Jul 9, 2012 at 03:00 PM

NEW HAMPSHIRE — Last Tuesday, the Obama campaign released a new ad here and in eight other swing states that... More

Something fishy?

John Solomon had grand plans for the digital future of the Center for Public Integrity. But there was always a catch…

By Mariah Blake   Jul 9, 2012 at 11:00 AM

When John Solomon took over as executive editor of The Washington Times in 2008, the conservative daily had long... More

A sober look at healthcare after the ACA

The Los Angeles Times leads the way

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 9, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Chad Terhune’s piece, “Supreme Court’s healthcare ruling: The outlook for California,” offered a clear-eyed look at the repercussions of the... More

In defense of covering position papers and official statements

Most of the time, what politicians say is what they’ll do

By Greg Marx   Jul 9, 2012 at 06:50 AM

In his latest Swing States column, Walter Shapiro grapples with the question of why campaign issue coverage is not only... More

Audit Notes: NYT on JPM, The Guardian’s future, Big Lie of the crisis

Jamie Dimon’s bank pressured brokers to steer clients into its own funds

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 7, 2012 at 12:44 AM

The New York Times reports that JPMorgan Chase pressured its brokers to steer its retail clients into its own investment... More

The Economist on the Libor scandal

What happened and why it matters

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 6, 2012 at 02:08 PM

If you haven't paid much attention yet to the Libor scandal, this Economist piece will get you caught up quickly.... More

A state C-SPAN in North Carolina?

UNC report looks at solutions to increase reporting capacity

By Andria Krewson   Jul 6, 2012 at 11:18 AM

NORTH CAROLINA — When the North Carolina General Assembly reaches its frenetic final days in session, news organizations traditionally feel... More

Opening Shot

What New Orleans is losing

By The Editors   Jul 6, 2012 at 06:51 AM

I n the years since the Times-Picayune and the city of New Orleans endured the trauma of Hurricane Katrina, it... More

Journatic busted for using fake bylines

CEO Brian Timpone says “we made a mistake”

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 6, 2012 at 06:50 AM

In May, CJR invited Brian Farnham, the founding editor of Patch, to write about a digital news service called Journatic,... More

Like steam, ping-pong balls, and Omar Sharif

The media has an entertaining struggle trying to explain the Higgs boson

By The Editors   Jul 6, 2012 at 06:50 AM

On Wednesday, scientists at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, which runs the world’s largest particle accelerator and collider... More

Audit Notes: Dark Ages, Mitt and Rupert, Chesapeake’s taxes

Stephen Moore on how “the greens” supposedly want to plunge America into darkness

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 6, 2012 at 06:50 AM

The Wall Street Journal editorial page's Stephen Moore uses the power outage in DC as a warning about what life... More

A laurel to Politifact Florida

Site pushes back against misinformation about Obamacare and small business

By Liz Cox Barrett and Greg Marx   Jul 6, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Our run of Swing States Project praise continues with a laurel to Politifact Florida, where reporters Tia Mitchell, Katie... More

Gawker’s new comment system

Will it help or hurt the site’s young writers?

By Peter Sterne   Jul 6, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Gawker Media publisher Nick Denton recently introduced a new commenting system, called Kinja, on his network of websites. Rather than... More

A difference of Opinionator

Tim Kreider’s recent essay about the “Busy Trap” is at odds with his earlier Opinionator piece

By Sara Morrison   Jul 6, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Cartoonist and essayist Tim Kreider’s latest piece for The New York Times Opinionator series on anxiety was well received by... More

The Lower Case

Headlines that editors probably wish they could take back

By The Editors   Jul 6, 2012 at 12:25 AM

Breivik killed with joyous "battle cry": survivors—Reuters, 5/16/12 Escaped wallaby caught using huge fishing net—BBCNews.com, 4/13/12 Police: Dismembered woman lived... More

Sree Tips

Social-media etiquette for journalists

By Sree Sreenivasan   Jul 6, 2012 at 12:25 AM

Q: It’s so hard to keep track of social media, so how do I make sure I miss none of... More

Sending out an SOS

A new low in Azerbaijan

By Amanda Erickson   Jul 6, 2012 at 12:25 AM

Radio Liberty’s Khadija Ismayilova has built her career on exposing corruption in oil-rich Azerbaijan. She did it largely without... More

D’oh!

Halo effect

By The Editors   Jul 6, 2012 at 12:25 AM

Today’s video games are so sophisticated, and the shenanigans at the UN can be so sophomoric. Perhaps that’s why,... More

Spinning the Supreme Court’s healthcare decision

The press rides a PR tsunami on Obamacare

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 5, 2012 at 02:42 PM

In the days before and after the Supreme Court’s decision, spin doctors were hard at work peddling their experts, positions,... More

Why is ‘issue coverage’ so boring—and often wrong?

Slavish fidelity to campaign position papers and official statements short-changes voters

By Walter Shapiro   Jul 5, 2012 at 11:10 AM

As we sipped red wine in Washington last week, Republican pollster David Winston suddenly asked me, “Why doesn’t the media... More

Reuters’s Chesapeake Energy drumbeat

Internal emails show companies scheming to lower bids on drilling rights

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 5, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Reuters continues to draw a bead on Chesapeake Energy and its CEO Aubrey McClendon, whose scalp it will be claiming... More

Audit Notes: Glass-Steagall II, beyond paywalls, warehouse work

The FT comes out in favor of hiving off investment banks

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 3, 2012 at 08:04 PM

This is important: The Financial Times editorial page comes out in favor of a Glass-Steagall II that would once again... More

The MSM overlooks a Supreme Court scoop

CBS’s Jan Crawford says Roberts flip-flopped on healthcare reform; why aren’t other outlets biting?

By Hazel Sheffield   Jul 3, 2012 at 05:00 PM

There was some pretty spectacular misreporting last week by the likes of CNN and Fox News on the Supreme Court’s... More

Climbing the Medicaid mountain

The press is starting to master the policy angles. Now for the people

By Trudy Lieberman   Jul 3, 2012 at 03:03 PM

The Affordable Care Act envisions a major expansion of health insurance in America, with some 30 million Americans gaining coverage.... More

The expectations game

Blogs drive MSM speculation about Higgs announcement

By Curtis Brainard   Jul 3, 2012 at 03:00 PM

Excited speculation about the discovery of one of physics’ most sought-after particles is coming in waves now, with media outlets... More

Stories I’d like to see

A new narrative for Fast and Furious, ICANN’s domain name jackpot

By Steven Brill   Jul 3, 2012 at 11:03 AM

In his weekly “Stories I’d like to see” column, journalist and entrepreneur Steven Brill spotlights topics that, in his opinion,... More

Why are lame ducks still raising campaign funds?

The Detroit Free Press takes a look at the books of 22 state lawmakers

By Anna Clark   Jul 3, 2012 at 11:00 AM

MICHIGAN — Who pays attention to lame-duck politicians during a restive election year? The Detroit Free Press does, and the... More

Your choice

Alternating between alternatives

By Merrill Perlman   Jul 3, 2012 at 06:50 AM

Cities that have hard winters have no “alternative” and must repair roads in the summer. And when they do, they... More

Audit Notes: Spain’s Dilemma, Brits’ outrage on Libor, Audit Radio

Martin Wolf on how the country’s woes show the roots of the euro crisis

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 3, 2012 at 01:32 AM

Martin Wolf of the Financial Times has an excellent blog post pointing out how wrong Germany and Co. are about... More

Don’t assume AP intern’s cause of death

Armando Montaño died in Mexico, a country notoriously dangerous to journalists. But we don’t know yet if his death was work-related

By Sara Morrison   Jul 2, 2012 at 05:22 PM

The death of Armando Montaño, a 22-year-old Associated Press intern in Mexico City, is a tragic loss to the world... More

Q&A: Confront and Conceal author David Sanger

“There’s nothing ‘childish’ about raising issues of great public import”

By Paul Starobin   Jul 2, 2012 at 03:02 PM

Confront and Conceal: Obama’s Secret Wars and Surprising Use of American Power | By David E. Sanger | Crown |... More

Anderson Cooper (finally) exits the closet [updated]

The CNN anchor announces he’s gay in a published email to Andrew Sullivan

By Peter Sterne   Jul 2, 2012 at 01:44 PM

Anderson Cooper’s sexual orientation has been something of an open secret for some time. But Monday morning, he finally came... More

Seven lessons Scandinavian media can teach us

On topics ranging from job training to self-regulation

By Lauren Kirchner   Jul 2, 2012 at 11:00 AM

Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Denmark are consistently ranked highest in the world for both freedom of the press and participatory... More

Inflating the regulatory state

TSA and border security account for almost all the increase in regulatory staff since 1980

By Ryan Chittum   Jul 2, 2012 at 11:00 AM

A Bloomberg News story last week on how the folks who oversee the regulators are overmatched these days raises a... More

Push Girls transcends its genre

Viewers might come for the drama, but they’ll stay for the realness that seeps through

By Alissa Quart   Jul 2, 2012 at 07:00 AM

In her new column, Reality Check, Alissa Quart delves into all things documentary. The new Sundance Channel reality-show Push Girls,... More

(Not) going to the candidates’ debate

Why are federal candidates in Florida ducking debates?

By Brian E. Crowley   Jul 2, 2012 at 06:50 AM

FLORIDA — Former Miami Herald humor columnist Dave Barry once wrote: “I can win an argument on any topic, against... More