Brian Williams has gone, but false news is bigger business than ever | Emily Bell

The web has simultaneously enabled an accelerated cycle of untrue stories and rumour, and the ability to debunk themEvery journalist is familiar with the type of story that is “too good to check”. It is a warning label on tales that beg to be true but probably aren’t. In the pre-social-media era, an incorrect story, and sometimes an outright lie, might have sat hidden in plain sight for months or even years. Spectacular fabrications such as those of the New York Times reporter Jayson Blair, who was discovered in 2003 to have fabricated or plagiarised elements of dozens of stories, rocked venerable institutions to their core. Last week the US news establishment took another torpedo to its hull.Brian Williams, the host of NBC’s Nightly News, was suspended last week for six months with no pay, after a military newspaper, Stars and Stripes, published a story where Williams admitted he had exaggerated a story about flying in a helicopter that came under fire in Iraq. The incident in 2003 happened when Williams was, in fact, following a helicopter that was struck by missile fire, but in retellings he shifted to a position where not only had his helicopter had been hit, but the US crew “figured out how to land safely”. It just wasn’t true. To make matters worse for NBC news executives, Williams posted a rather mealy-mouthed apology on Facebook without any of them knowing. Related: Is NBC firing Brian Williams, or just humiliating him? The conflation of information and... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-02-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Should Brands Even Be in the Content Business?

The editorial director of the Online Publishers Association weighs in on whether brands should be in the business of creating copy -- or whether that should be left to a partnership with the pros. The post Should Brands Even Be in the Content Business? appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2014-02-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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News Briefs: Week of February 3, 2014

Investment group buys Recorded Books and more in this week's publishing news briefs. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Express-News to Consolidate Some Operations with Houston Chronicle

The San Antonio Express-News will consolidate its packaging operations with the Houston Chronicle, Express-News publisher John C. McKeon announced Wednesday. Both newspapers are owned by New York-based Hearst Corp.  Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2014-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Fairfax to pay Kim Williams $95,000 plus legal costs after inaccurate article

Story published in three papers wrongly claimed former News Corp chief stormed out of Sydney Opera House Trust meetingAmanda Meade Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ALA Midwinter 2014: On E-books, Librarians Urged to Think Bigger (and Smaller)

At ALA Midwinter 2014, librarians were urged not to be satisfied by recent ebook developments, and to look more deeply at their digital future. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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News Briefs: Week of January 27, 2014

Amazon launches Christian imprint and more in this week's publishing news briefs. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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News Briefs: Week of January 20, 2014

Coe named president, CEO of B&T and more in this week's publishing news briefs. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Brian Gennett's book designs

Designer Brian Gennett has constructed giant numbers out of book covers for each floor in Barker Block, a loft building downtown.     Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2014-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Rizzoli Open for Business, But Seeking New Space

The company responded to reports about the demolition of the Manhattan building housing its flagship store. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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DBW 2014: Amazon, Subscription and the Book Business

In a morning session entirely devoted to Amazon.com, author Brad Stone and consultant Joe Esposito looked back over the history of Amazon's growth (and remorseless tactics) before looking ahead to its next round of competitive targets. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Helen Mackenzie Smith joins Bell Lomax Moreton

The Bell Lomax Moreton Agency has appointed Helen Mackenzie Smith as a literary agent to find new... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-01-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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News Briefs: Week of January 13, 2014

Holiday retail sales dip at B&N, Nook sales plunge and more in this week's publishing news briefs. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Dow Jones sues Ransquawk for 'hot news' misappropriation

Dow Jones has sued a London-based aggregation service, Ransquawk, for allegedly accessing its news feed and publishing its content within seconds of its original publication.The legal action - as reported by Reuters - accuses Ransquawk (Real-Time Analysis & News) of "hot news"... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Facebook Is Testing A News Feed That Looks More Like A Newspaper

The change is subtle, but its message is clear: Facebook has entered the news business.It's no secret that Facebook is changing what appears in your feed dramatically. Whereas memes used to rule supreme--making basically anything shared by George Takei go viral--Facebook has reweighted its... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2014-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Digital Publishing: All the News That's Fit to Pin

It’s not news that hard-pressed editors are being stretched in many different directions these days, but no challenges seem as complex and vexing at times as how to divvy up the resources to devout to social media. Facebook, Twitter, Instag ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2014-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ipso, the new press regulator, is just the PCC with extra bells and whistles

Ipso is a creature of the publishers in which they will continue to hold the strings – including the purse-stringsAt last, the new press regulator is emerging from the shadows. The Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso), the great invention of the majority of Britain's newspaper and... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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IBM's Watson For Business: The $1 Billion Siri Slayer

IBM is unveiling their new Watson for Business on Thursday, a $1 billion project devoted to bringing big data to every educational institution, pharmaceutical firm, and publishing house in America--and they're offering more than $100 million in venture capital to developers.IBM is announcing the... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2014-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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For Sale or in Flux, a Big Year Looms for Business Magazines

With Forbes for sale, Fortune's website divorcing from CNNMoney.com and Bloomberg Businessweek getting assessed as part of a companywide strategic review at Bloomberg, the year ahead could see a dramatic shift for top business magazines.The category offers a glimpse into the publishing world at... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2014-01-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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