Media Content

A television program or film puts a face on an issue. A radio news feature or documentary brings a tangible reality to recited facts. Video streamed on a website underscores issues presented in plain text and can move people to action. Whether the content is targeted to public or commercial media outlets, funders need a working understanding of the entire media landscape in order to be most effective in their grantmaking.

Defining Journalism Is a Lot Easier Said Than Done

[Source: GigaOm, by Mathew Ingram, December 15, 2011]
The ripples continue to spread from a recent Oregon court ruling involving a blogger who was sued for defamation, and argued she should be covered by the state’s “media shield” law.

The Case for Open Journalism Now

[Source: Annenberg Innovation Lab, by Melanie Sill, December 1, 2011]
A discussion paper by Melanie Sill, Executive in Residence, USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism, December 2011.

When Candidates Lie, What's a Political Reporter to Do?

[Source: Nieman Watchdog, by Dan Froomkin, November 30, 2011]
How journalists respond to intentional deception will be a defining feature of 2012 political coverage. Will they allow themselves to become accessories to deceptive politicians? Or will they ...

Spot.Us Has Been Acquired By Public Insight Network

[Source: DigiDave, November 29, 2011]
Spot.Us + PIN = Rocking

Chart: States Squeeze Funding for Public Media

[Source: The Atlantic, by Brian Resnick, November 16, 2011]
In the age of tight budgets and rallying cries for fiscal conservatism, public media has not fared well. During the spring and summer budget debates, one program facing the chopping block was ...

Intelligent Television's Announces New "Intelligent Channel"

Intelligent Television, along with other content producers, has announced a partnership with YouTube to create original programming (see this article for more on YouTube's big programming push). ...

Media Is Growing More White. What’s the FCC Doing About It?

[Source: ColorLines, by Jason Smith, August 11, 2011]
The increasing lack of racial diversity in the U.S. media landscape is becoming a hot topic and putting pressure on policy makers to (finally) pay attention.

ProPublica's outreach a welcome step toward "open-source" journalism

[Source: OJR: The Online Journalism Review, by Melanie Sill , August 4, 2011]
A couple of outreach efforts by ProPublica this week caught my eye as examples of how the Web can make journalism more open and effective — and reminders that both journalists and the public need ...

The Future of News? Four Different Sources Weigh In

[Source: The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation Blog, by Eric Newton, August 5, 2011]
It is no secret that the news industry is struggling in the midst of our digital revolution. But what exactly is happening? How are these changes affecting our communities? And what should ...

Shock, Awe: British Government Agrees That Copyright Has Gone Too Far

[Source: ars technica, by Timothy B. Lee, August 3, 2011]
The British government today pledged (PDF) to enact significant changes to copyright law, including orphan works reforms and the introduction of new copyright exceptions.