Glickman on Fox DC – “Changes in Congress”

Senior Fellow Dan Glickman appeared on the Fox affiliate in Washington, D.C. and discussed the challenges that are likely to face Congress in 2011, especially with the dramatic changes brought about by the midterm elections. Video of Glickman can be found here…….

NPR chief Vivian Schiller: Don’t take the work of news gatherers for granted

At this time of tremendous upheaval in American news media, its leaders should not focus on transformation at the expense of fortifying and expanding concrete, on-the-ground reporting. That was the message offered Thursday by NPR President and CEO Vivian Schiller as she delivered the James L. Loper Lecture in Public Service Broadcasting at USC Annenberg. "For well over a decade, at gatherings like this, news people have obsessed about transformational technologies, vanishing business models and new paradigms of mass communication," Schiller told an audience of students, faculty members and leaders of influential Los Angeles-area media who gathered at USC Town……

NPR, Juan Williams and the Clash of News and Talk

"Would you have fired Juan if you were still Vice President of News at NPR?" asked a longtime friend. He was referring of course to NPR News analyst Juan Williams' expression of concern about fellow airplane passengers in "Muslim garb." (Rhetoric note: He was trying to make the exact reverse point than his subordinate preamble suggested, so he's due demerits for poor phrasing.) My answer: It's not a hypothetical. We actually faced these same issues in the late 1980's, when I was head of NPR News: Cokie Roberts, who was covering Capitol Hill for NPR, received an offer from ABC……

Reinventing Local News: 2010 details how technology and innovation may save local news

While revenues decline for traditional media organizations despite high demand for news and information, technology and innovation may be saving local news, according to Reinventing Local News: 2010, a report released by the University of Southern California's Center on Communication Leadership & Policy at the Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism. In Reinventing Local News: 2010, Adam Clayton Powell III updates his landmark 2006 book Reinventing Local News: Connecting Communities Through New Technologies…….

Annual Fellows Luncheon highlights CCLP impact in a variety of fields

Geoffrey Cowan (left) and Warren Bennis at the Annual Fellows Luncheon held at the University of Southern California. Faculty, staff and friends of the Center on Communication Leadership and Policy (CCLP) gathered for the second Annual Fellows Luncheon to honor senior, faculty, research, law, graduate and junior fellows. Following welcoming remarks from managing director Geoffrey Baum and director Geoffrey Cowan, guests and honorees listened as select fellows described projects and accomplishments during the 2009-2010 academic year. Distinguished fellow, noted author and leadership scholar Warren Bennis was the featured guest, offering observations about the rising importance of the communication field…….

Why does anyone really want to buy NBC?

WASHINGTON – Any day now, if published reports are accurate, cable giant Comcast will celebrate Thanksgiving not by dining on turkey but by feasting on peacock: Comcast is set to acquire NBC from General Electric. However, reports in the past few weeks touching on the financial performance and prospects of NBC Television raise an interesting question: Why does anyone really want to buy NBC? And why does Comcast, in particular, really want to buy NBC?……

Chernin shares details of Comcast plans to acquire NBC Universal

It would be better for NBC Universal to be owned by a media and entertainment company like Comcast than by a conglomerate like General Electric, says media executive Peter Chernin. He was the featured guest Monday, Nov. 16, 2009 at the annual Communication Leadership CEO Series, presented by CCLP in partnership with USC's Marshall School of Business and USC Spectrum. Chernin has been advising Comcast in its planned acquisition of NBC Universal. He did not receive compensation for his role in the talks other than a charitable donation made by Comcast to Malaria No More, a global health organization that……

Targeted advertisements and online privacy

As Congress and the Federal Trade Commission seek enhanced online privacy protection, the news industry is exploring ways to use online information to turn a profit. Looking for ways to stay afloat in the face of lagging paper sales and ad revenue, some newspapers are seeking revenue lifelines from their online sites. The Newspaper Association of America (NAA) recently asked companies to present proposals on "paid content" solutions. The NAA's request itself indicates an interest in gaining reader information. One question asks whether proposed platforms can "provide an information barter environment with appropriate privacy and other protections (i.e. access to……