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Last year, it was revealed that a number of prominent newspapers were exaggerating their circulation numbers to boost advertising revenue. Faced with a crisis, some of those newspapers assigned their own newsrooms to the story unfolding in their boardrooms. Others stayed mum. Bob speaks with media reporter James Madore of Newsday, one of the papers that chose to report on its own dirty laundry.
The Dallas Morning News is caught up in a circulation scandal of its own. But that paper, and its parent company Belo Corporation, have hardly embraced Newsday's model of self-examination. Jim Schutze of the weekly alternative Dallas Observer tells Bob that ignoring the problem doesn't always make it go away.
Last fall, a committee at the New York Times set out to examine how the paper could increase its readers' trust. This week, it released its final recommendations. With just under a week to digest the committee's findings, NYT executive editor Bill Keller joins Brooke to talk about improving accuracy, reducing the use of anonymous sources, interacting with readers, and responding to critics.
When USA Today was created in 1982, anonymous quotes were banned from its pages. Over time that policy changed. But founder Al Neuharth remains true to his belief that quality journalism can exist entirely free of off-the-record sources. He joins Brooke to discuss background briefings, competition for stories, and doing it all on the record, all the time.
Last week, the esteemed American Jesuit magazine America announced that its editor-in-chief, Thomas Reese, was being replaced. It's become clear that Reese was forced out by Vatican officials unimpressed with the magazine's discussion of debates on everything from gay marriage to the ordination of women. Bob talks to National Catholic Reporter editor Tom Roberts about the prognosis for dissent in today's Church.
Brooke describes new developments in last week's story about alleged political meddling in public broadcasting content.
Recently, the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, hired a computer expert to pose as a teenager in an Internet chat-room. His target was Spokane mayor Jim West, who was rumored to be offering favors to sex partners he met online. The sting has since met with sharp criticism from editors around the country. Spokesman-Review editor Steve Smith explains the story's genesis to Bob, and defends its execution.
There's a certain kind of story that calls for a few words from "the man on the street." For over a decade, Greg Packer has been that man. A quick search for his name on the Nexis news database will turn up dozens of appearances by Packer in local and national news stories. Reporter Amy O'Leary went on rounds with the media's favorite vox populi.
Highlights from Past ShowsA year ago last week, the world was confronted for the first time with images of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib. Ever since, the American Civil Liberties Union has worked to keep the spotlight on allegations of torture at American military facilities. Unfortunately for the group, additional photos were never released by the Pentagon. Brooke talks to ACLU media relations director Emily Whitfield about what it takes to keep a story alive.
With computers, wireless connections, and digital cameras, soldiers are armed with everything it takes to publish a blog. Those blogs - and there are dozens and dozens of them - are bringing the war, in all its glory, horror and mundanity, to our home computers, whenever we want to log on. Brooke speaks with Corporal Michael Bautista and Jason Hartley, who have written often poignant and nakedly honest accounts from the front lines. And according to Army Times reporter Joe Chennelly, Pentagon guidelines for bloggers are anything but clear.
On the Media is funded by The Bydale Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Overbrook Foundation.
