Some lessons from the MIT Media Lab controversy

When the news first broke that the MIT Media Lab had a close relationship with deceased billionaire and convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, some saw it as a momentary lapse in judgment, and there was widespread support for Media Lab director Joi Ito. But then New Yorker writer Ronan Farrow reported that the Epstein relationship was much deeper than it first appeared — including the fact that Ito got a significant amount of money from Epstein for his own personal investments. Much of the earlier support evaporated, and Ito agreed to resign. And there were other spinoff effects as well: Richard Stallman, a free-software pioneer and veteran MIT professor, also resigned, after being criticized for comments he made on an internal email list that downplayed the impact of Epstein’s sexual abuse. To explore these and other issues, CJR had a series of one-on-one and roundtable interviews — using its Galley discussion platform — with a number of journalists and other interested observers, including WBUR reporter Max Larkin, Slate writer Justin Peters, Gizmodo editor Adam Clark Estes and Stanford researcher Becca Lewis. We talked about why places like the Media Lab often get a free pass from reporters, and why there’s so much technology writing that focuses on the “hero/genius” trope, where the all-knowing founder gets credit for inventing something amazing, even if the thing they invented either doesn’t work (Theranos) and/or they are terrible people in a variety of ways (Steve... Continue reading at 'Columbia Journalism Review'

[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2019-10-03 10:50:57 UTC ]
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[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-01-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pearson to Invest $89.5 Million in Barnes & Noble's Nook Media

Publishing and education company Pearson PLC agreed to invest $89.5 million for a 5 percent stake in Barnes & Noble Inc.'s digital-business unit, Nook Media LLC. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2012-12-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pearson buys a small stake in Nook Media, wants a fast track for digital education

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[ Engadget | 2012-12-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Should Book Editors Be Involved in Social Media Engagement?

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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2012-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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‘The Hobbit’ Tops in Social Media

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-12-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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American City Business Journals Acquires Streetwise Media

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[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-11-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Federated Media Shutters Its Direct Sales Business

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[ AdWeek | 2012-11-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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VHS and Vinyl: Why People Love Retro Media

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[ The Atlantic | 2012-11-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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European Commission : 10 Facts About Media and Content Industries

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[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-10-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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MIT Technology Review Relaunches 'Digital-First'

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[ AdWeek | 2012-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google Threatens French Media With Search Engine Ban

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[ Fast Company | 2012-10-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon brings controversial e-lending scheme to UK

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[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Folio Magazine | 2012-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2012-09-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-09-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Crains New York | 2012-09-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Sydney Morning Herald | 2012-09-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Growth of a Regional Magazine Company: Open Sky Media

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[ Folio Magazine | 2012-09-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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