Pittsburgh’s Trib Inadvertently Advises Readers to Shit Themselves.

The copy I picked up has been fixed.

The German surrender happened at 2:41 a.m. on May 7, 1945.

Kennedy was one of 17 reporters taken to witness the ceremony. He and the others were hastily assembled by military commanders, then pledged to secrecy by a U.S. general while the [...]]]> Great little story that I’m saving for a future “history of journalism” module.

The German surrender happened at 2:41 a.m. on May 7, 1945.

Kennedy was one of 17 reporters taken to witness the ceremony. He and the others were hastily assembled by military commanders, then pledged to secrecy by a U.S. general while the group flew over France. As a condition of being allowed to see the surrender in person, the correspondents were barred from reporting what they had witnessed until authorized by Allied headquarters.

Initially, the journalists were told the news would be held up for only a few hours. But after the surrender was complete, the embargo was extended for 36 hours — until 3 p.m. the following day.

Kennedy was astounded.

via AP apologizes for firing reporter over WWII scoop – Yahoo! News.

A Washington-based human rights organization says that, overall, press freedom around the world stopped declining in 2011. But while there are positive changes in some countries, the overall picture is not too bright. Last year, less than [...]]]> I already knew that a free press is precious, but I had no idea it was so rare..

A Washington-based human rights organization says that, overall, press freedom around the world stopped declining in 2011.  But while there are positive changes in some countries, the overall picture is not too bright.  Last year, less than 15 percent of the world’s population had access to a free press.

via Report: Only 14.5 Percent of People Have Access to Free Press | News | English.

A CBS-commissioned investigation of the disaster—headed by Richard Thornburgh, U.S. attorney general when Bush’s father was president, and Associated Press chief executive Louis D. Boccardi—faulted Rather and his top producer, Mary Mapes, among [...]]]> I knew Rather was still fighting, but I didn’t know what he’s saying now about the Killian memos that ended his career:

A CBS-commissioned investigation of the disaster—headed by Richard Thornburgh, U.S. attorney general when Bush’s father was president, and Associated Press chief executive Louis D. Boccardi—faulted Rather and his top producer, Mary Mapes, among others, for their misplaced reliance on a dubious source and their sloppy vetting of the questionable documents, which should never have aired. They made the situation far worse, the investigation concluded, by defending the documents for nearly two weeks after the initial report—never mind the mounting evidence against them from the blogosphere, competitors in the mainstream media, and CBS’s own hired document experts. Five news executives and producers, including Mapes, lost their jobs in the aftermath, and 60 Minutes Wednesday was canceled.

But these days Rather insists the Killian memos were real.

via Dan Rather Outspoken: Still Battling CBS News

An alum from the class of nineteen twenty-five, They say he gave more than any alive. And for that they’ll remember him and his wife (the woman with whom he spent most of his life).

The medical school will carry [...]]]>

His real name was Geisel,
Theodor (with no “e”).
An incredibly generous
Author was he.

An alum from the class of nineteen twenty-five,
They say he gave more than any alive.
And for that they’ll remember him and his wife
(the woman with whom he spent most of his life).

The medical school will carry a plaque
(one you might see if you swallowed a tack
or got mauled by a bear
or a cat in a hat).

–Oh, the Lives That You'll Save – Tweed – The Chronicle of Higher Education.

“This is Yale,” Bernstein said gravely.

“That somehow the Internet was a magic lantern that lit up all events,” Woodward said. “And they went on to say the political environment would be so different that Nixon wouldn’t [...]]]> Yale journalism students say they could have easily broken the Watergate scandal themselves, simply by Googling for keywords.

“This is Yale,” Bernstein said gravely.

“That somehow the Internet was a magic lantern that lit up all events,” Woodward said. “And they went on to say the political environment would be so different that Nixon wouldn’t be believed, and bloggers and tweeters would be in a lather and Nixon would resign in a week or two weeks after Watergate.”

A small ballroom of journalists — which included The Washington Post’s top brass, past and present — chuckled or scoffed at the scenario.

“I have attempted to apply some corrective information to them,” Woodward continued, “but the basic point is: The truth of what goes on is not on the Internet. [The Internet] can supplement. It can help advance. But the truth resides with people. Human sources.”

Just as the U.S. government has been haunted by the specter of Watergate for the past four decades, the profession of journalism has never quite shaken the golden archetype of Woodward and Bernstein, the enterprising young Washington Post reporters who first got word of a break-in at the Democratic National Committee 40 years ago in June. –
Woodward and Bernstein: Could the Web generation uncover a Watergate-type scandal? – The Washington Post.

Pancho McFarland, an associate professor of sociology at Chicago State, fears the policy could restrict all types of communications by professors, including speaking engagements.

“It will put a chilling effect on our ability to speak in a number of venues,” he said. “It is part [...]]]> According to my 9yo daughter, “It’s completely and utterly stupidulous.”

Pancho McFarland, an associate professor of sociology at Chicago State, fears the policy could restrict all types of communications by professors, including speaking engagements.

“It will put a chilling effect on our ability to speak in a number of venues,” he said. “It is part of this bigger history to quiet criticism of the administration.”

[..]

Nelson, an English professor at the University of Illinois, said that the Chicago State communications policy violates free-speech rights and is an affront to higher education, where the ability to share ideas without retribution “is so central to everything we do.”

“I’m sure this will be roundly denounced and I guarantee you the administration will have to back down,” Nelson said.

via Chicago State University tries to limit speech – chicagotribune.com.

According to the Today show, here’s what George Zimmerman said to a 911 dispatcher as he was trailing Trayvon Martin last February:

What follows is an excerpt from NBC Jumps the Shark on George Zimmerman | Mother Jones:

According to the Today show, here’s what George Zimmerman said to a 911 dispatcher as he was trailing Trayvon Martin last February:

Zimmerman: This guy looks like he’s up to no good. He looks black.

What a racist! Obviously Zimmerman had a real hang-up about black kids. But no. It turns out some bright spark at NBC decided to edit the conversation just a wee bit. Here’s the whole exchange:

Zimmerman: This guy looks like he’s up to no good. Or he’s on drugs or something. It’s raining and he’s just walking around, looking about.

Dispatcher: OK, and this guy — is he black, white or Hispanic?

Zimmerman: He looks black.

This is now fated to be Exhibit A in conservative charges of mainstream media bias for about the next century or so. And who can blame them? What a cockup.