The "Truthiness" election-ad fact-check project we’ve been publishing along with Newsdesk.org and Spot.Us is almost done, but suspicion from the public that anyone can remain dispassionate when it comes to politics definitely remains. That sets a high hurdle for a startup journalism project trying to break into coverage of San Francisco in a significant way. […]
Category: From the Newsroom
Posted inFrom the Newsroom, News
Ad slump batters papers, again
Our colleague Tom Murphy, over at RedwoodAge.com, picked up an AP story the other day: "Soft economy speeds newspaper decline, job cuts." McClatchy, owner of the Bees in California, is among the chains leading the cutbacks, with the Sacramento Bee offering buyouts to a majority of its full-time employees. While it’s true that, as the […]
Posted inFrom the Newsroom, News
SF pioneers journalism ‘crowdfunding’ model
Update on the political ad fact-checking project, a Public Press collaboration with Newsdesk.org: As of Aug. 24 we have raised 89 percent of the $2,500 goal, courtesy of David Cohn’s experimental "crowdfunding" tool, Spot.us. We’re already working with two reporters who have started researching ballot initiatives and candidacies on the Nov. 4 election in San […]
Posted inFrom the Newsroom, News
Consolidation woes
Two interesting postings from journalists, expressing outrage at the destructive effects of corporate consolidation in the newspaper industry: Alan Mutter, media blogger at Reflections of a Newsosaur, describes the slashing of staff, infrastructure, institutional memory and community connection at the San Mateo County Times under the management of Northern California newspaper oligopolist MediaNews. His […]
Posted inFrom the Newsroom, News
The Public Press’ bid for tech-innovation grant goes public
The Public Press is gearing up to compete in the Knight News Challenge this year. The $5 million award from the Knight Foundation goes to a handful of projects deemed by the judges to be innovative uses of technology for the fulfillment of the unmet information needs of society. This year the foundation opened up […]
Posted inFrom the Newsroom, News
S.F. Chronicle refugees needed
We were saddened to learn late last week that the San Francisco Chronicle again is pursuing another round of staff reductions, seeking to eliminate 125 jobs through buyouts. Carl Hall, the eternal curmudgeon (we love you, Carl!) at the Northern California Media Workers Guild, told SF Weekly that "It looks like the end for print […]
Posted inFrom the Newsroom, News
Help us fundraise: Fact-checking political ads for upcoming election
Newsdesk.org, The Public Press and the Knight Foundation-supported SPOT.US "crowdfunding" project are teaming up to raise $2,500 to support investigative coverage and fact-checking of San Francisco-focused election advertisements. Your micro-donation will make a difference! [Newsdesk.org editor Josh Wilson interviewed by David Cohn of Spot.Us] Pledge Your Support for SF Election Ad Fact-Checking: http://wiki.spot.us/election If […]
Posted inFrom the Newsroom, News
San Francisco Magazine discusses the Public Press
Check out the capsule interview San Francisco Magazine did with me in the current issue of the magazine, in "The Next Big Charity: News." The subhead is: "With newspapers on life support, a new/old solution may provide a cure." The Public Press is featured in a breakout box alongside David Talbot’s San Francisco Free Press […]
Posted inFrom the Newsroom, News
Desperate times call for innovation
It’s the same old song, second verse: The old ways of paying for quality journalism are slowly dying and will continue to decline until a new model that works has been created. Though what the best news model looks like is always up for discussion. American Journalism Review’s senior editor, Carl Sessions Stepp, wrote a […]
Posted inFrom the Newsroom, News
Whither the Sunday Chronicle?
In the midst of a year that has seen a truly existential crisis for print journalism, it’s instructive to ask ourselves just what kind of paper product newspapers are selling these days. The photo above is what landed on my front stoop last Sunday. Inside the advertising bag was a free sample of what’s reputed […]