journalism

Lady Gaga Is Going to Be a Newspaper Editor

Adrian Chen · 04/07/11 06:23PM

As if spending 72 hours in an egg wasn't bad enough: Lady Gaga is going to be a newspaper editor for an entire day. She'll be stopping by the office of the free tabloid Metro on May 17th to guest-edit the paper. Look for an infographic on prosthetic horn maintenance.

Press-Stifling Dictator Wins Journalism Award

Jeff Neumann · 03/30/11 04:09AM

Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez yesterday was awarded a prize from the communications department at Argentina's La Plata University for his support of "popular communication." Wow. We're assuming the award is for his stupid Twitter account? Or perhaps his talk show, Aló Presidente?

Libya Releases 3 More Journalists

Jeff Neumann · 03/23/11 06:24AM

The Libyan government today released three journalists — reporter Dave Clark and photographer Roberto Schmidt of AFP, and photographer Joe Raedle of Getty Images — after the three were captured by pro-Qaddafi forces on Saturday in eastern Libya, according to Agence France Presse.

Reporter High on Salvia: 'I Felt Like Gene Kelly'

Jeff Neumann · 03/22/11 04:48AM

Intrepid Daily News reporter Irving DeJohn has one of the better jobs in media. He gets paid to get "high" on video and dance like Gene Kelly! DeJohn convinced his editors that he should buy some salvia, a dorm-size bowl, and get high on the street. So, what happened? As you can see in the video above, DeJohn was underwhelmed by the experience, and lamented the fact that he didn't see any goblins or have the chance to float over the Empire State Building. That's understandable, since salvia falls under the fake drugs category. But, we've got a suggestion! Tell the culture desk that you need some PCP — You get dusted, fight a cop, and maybe even carjack a cab. You'll have a one way ticket to Central Booking! Not that's an experience.

Libyan Reporter Killed in Benghazi

Jeff Neumann · 03/19/11 03:11PM

Tireless independent Libyan journalist Mohammad "Mo" Nabbous was killed today in Benghazi as Muammar Qaddafi's forces assaulted the city. In the audio recording above — Mo's last, from his Livestream channel Libya al-Hurra — you can hear him in the middle of an intense battle when the sound suddenly cuts off.

Towards a Better Journalism Career Path

Hamilton Nolan · 03/08/11 12:14PM

Journalism legend Charles Pierce makes a great god damn point in a new interview: the idea that a good writer will automatically make a good editor is a farce. The journalism job ladder is broken. What is to be done?

Kill The Honorifics

Hamilton Nolan · 02/22/11 02:44PM

The Wall Street Journal is ending the use of honorifics in its sports pages. Meaning that they will no longer say things like "Mr. Griffin then dunked on Mr. Mozgov, balls dangling harshly on Mr. Mozgov's chin." No more "Mr." or "Mrs." in the sports pages! In other words, they will write like human beings talk.

AOL Buys Huffington Post for $315 Million

Max Read · 02/07/11 01:14AM

AOL just bought news site Huffington Post for $315 million—$300 million in cash. HuffPo founder Arianna Huffington will become editor of all AOL "content properties." That sound you just heard was the whole internet going "Whaaaaat?"

'Hooker Overcomes Illness, Slaps Beaver'

Richard Lawson · 01/28/11 04:38PM

Today in inadvertently funny headlines, there's this high school basketball piece from Kansas's Leader & Times. Sadly, the article does not tell the tale of a hard-luck working girl overcoming the odds to issue her traditional mating sound. (via)

Tunisia's Interim Government Acts Like Old Government

Jeff Neumann · 01/23/11 05:08PM

Tunisia's interim government—basically the old regime without ex-President Ben Ali—today shut down a popular television station, Hannibal TV, for "grand treason" and arrested its owner. Hannibal was set to air an interview with a Communist party official. [NYT]

The Testicle Pictures That Got an Editor Fired

Maureen O'Connor · 01/13/11 05:55PM

Philadelphia magazine fired editor Larry Platt for giving a framed photo of his testicle to a female employee. Now he's been named editor of the Philadelphia Daily News—but staff emails about his testicle are still circulating. Here's one!