Media
TODAY’S BLOG ROUNDUP: The Richardson-is-off-to-D.C. edition
You may have heard that Bill Richardson is Barack Obama’s choice for Secretary of Commerce. Some bloggers have also heard and discussed it — but most on the left side of the virtual aisle. Those on the right side of the aisle, at least nationally, seem more concerned about the Saxby Chambliss victory in Georgia [...]
New Mexico reporter/blogger jailed… but for good cause
A local reporter radio reporter and blogger has been sent to jail.
Peter St. Cyr wrote about the situation on his blog, What’s the Word with Peter St. Cyr. “Just before Thanksgiving, and just in time for the holidays,” St. Cyr wrote, “a warrant was issued for my arrest.”
Albuquerque Journal’s opinion pages need a dose of balance
“Wagner’s music,” said Mark Twain, ”is better than it sounds.” And the Albuquerque Journal is better than a perusal of its Op-Ed pages suggests. Unfairly, the Journal’s loud right-wing voice obscures the paper’s many virtues, of which I will write another time. Today, though, the focus is on those Op Ed pages. If they’re intended as a marketplace of ideas, the Journal has stocked them poorly — more like a neighborhood grocery than a supermarket.
Navajo casino exceeds expectations
The Navajo Nation opened its first casino last week and, according to The Associated Press, did very well on its first day of operation. Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley told the AP people pumped $1.2 million in cash into the slot machines on the first day alone.
NEWS ANALYSIS: Shifting N.M. news landscape could spell trouble for political coverage
Given recent cutbacks over the past year, there are fewer resources to focus on investigative and in-depth reporting that places the daily news in context. Put simply, fewer journalists watching the happenings at the Roundhouse means a greater potential for shenanigans to go unnoticed.
To revive or not to revive the Fairness Doctrine
The Fairness Doctrine, as you may know, is a now-defunct Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rule that required broadcasters to provide equal time to opposing viewpoints. The rule was scrapped in 1987, leading to a proliferation of right-wing talkers who currently rule the radio airwaves largely unchallenged. And Jeff Bingaman recently said he thought the public airwaves were put to greater use back when a full airing of the issues was required. I’m wondering if he’s right.
Watching fast food ads makes kids fat, study says (Duh! says everyone else)
Banning fast-food commercials on kids’ TV shows would reduce childhood obesity by 18 percent says a study published this month in the University of Chicago’s Journal of Law & Economics. According to the study, 23 percent of the food-related ads kids see are for fast food.
ABQ Journal bonuses a no-show this year, publisher announces
In another sign of the bad economic times for media, Albuquerque Journal employees won’t get year-end bonuses for the first time in more than a decade.
Publisher T.H. Lang notified folks earlier this week.
TODAY’S TOP STORIES: A $500 million hole at the Roundhouse
The state’s economic picture is coming into focus and it’s a mix of good and bad. State Senate President Pro Tem Tim Jennings tells The Associate Press today that lower oil and gas revenue could create a $500 million hole for Gov. Bill Richardson and legislators to fill — that’s twice the shortfall predicted earlier.
The [...]
Journal’s making a buck on Obama election, but Domenici too?
The Albuquerque Journal isn’t the only newspaper selling commemorative issues of the front page from Nov. 5 — the day after the history-making election of Barack Obama as president. As one person said, “You can’t keep a Web page in a scrapbook.”
Well, if you hit your print button, you can, but we won’t argue. It’s [...]