A mythology about the relationship between American government and the news business is again making the rounds, and it needs a corrective jolt. The myth is that the commercial press in this country stands wholly independent of governmental sustenance. Here's the jolt: There's never been a time in U.S. history when government dollars weren't propping up the news business. This year, federal, state and local governments will spend well over $1 billion to support commercial news publishers through tax breaks, postal subsidies and the printing of public notices…….
Month: November 2009
Entrepreneurship and the Community Web
In partnership with USC Annenberg’s School of Journalism, Center on Communication Leadership & Policy Senior Fellow and USC Annenberg executive in residence David Westphal convenes a meeting of top producers of web based community news and information to discuss best practices, building audiences, and serving the information needs of local communities. The program also includes presentations by Jarl Mohn, media investor, philanthropist and USC Annenberg board chairman and Jonathan Weber, founder and editor of NewWest.net. This program is part of Dean Ernest Wilson’s Entrepreneurship and Economic Literacy Initiative (ELE). There is no charge to attend, but advance registration is requested…….
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?……
Loper Lecture in Public Service Broadcasting: David Fanning, Frontline & Ernest J. Wilson III, Corporation for Public Broadcasting
USC Annenberg School for Communication and the Center on Communication Leadership & Policy present the annual Loper Lecture in Public Service Broadcasting. This year’s honoree is David Fanning, founder and executive producer of Frontline, the weekly PBS series that remains as the only regularly scheduled investigative documentary series on television. Frontline has won every major award in broadcast journalism, including 39 Emmys and a special Emmy Award for excellence in documentary filmmaking; 23 duPont-Columbia University Awards; 13 Peabody Awards; and 10 Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Awards. This year’s program also honors Dean Ernest J. Wilson III, who has been elected……
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……
An Audience Of One
Most of what you read, see and hear about Afghanistan is not meant for you. The words, optimistic and pessimistic, right and wrong, all the leaks, all the numbers of troop estimates, costs and polls are aimed at an audience of one: the president. It is very hard to get to chat with any president. But any president has to know what is in the big three of American newspapers (or their Web sites): The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal. And those papers right now are filled with shouting and whispering to President Obama. The……
Galbraith recommends no troop surge in Afghanistan at Day Two of Global Communication Leadership Forum
Former U.N. Deputy Special Representative to Afghanistan Peter Galbraith criticized the U.S. government's handling of the war in Afghanistan and said because of the country's recent presidential election, he does not recommend sending more troops. "The core issue is that Obama's strategy relies on having a reliable partner," he said. "A president who is not believed to be legitimate is not a reliable partner. We have to remember that troops are a valuable resource, and if the resource cannot be effectively used, it shouldn't be used. As you can see, I'm not wildly optimistic."……
Communication Leadership CEO Series: Peter Chernin, News Corporation
USC Annenberg’s Center on Communication Leadership & Policy (CCLP), in partnership with USC Spectrum and USC Marshall School of Business presents a conversation with legendary media executive and innovator Peter Chernin. From the mid-1990s through 2009, Chernin served as president of News Corporation, the $30 billion multimedia conglomerate that includes Twentieth Century Fox Film, Fox Broadcasting Company and online media companies like MySpace and Hulu. He is also founder and chairman of the global health organization, Malaria No More. USC University Professor and CCLP director Geoffrey Cowan will lead Chernin in a wide-ranging conversation with students about the transformation of……
Day One of CCLP Forum: Press and policymakers need to probe more deeply on rationale for war in Afghanistan
Policymakers and analysts are calling on the press to dig much deeper into the strife that engulfs Afghanistan, and to provide better analysis on the policy options now before President Obama as he weighs whether to send thousands more American troops. Former Ambassador Morton Abramowitz, who previously headed the State Department's intelligence unit, accused the press of "hit-and-run" coverage that has substituted for serious consideration of policy in Afghanistan. His observations, along with presentations and dialogue among top journalists, scholars and government officials, were presented at the inaugural Global Communication Leadership Forum , held November 6-7 in Los Angeles…….
Do Bloggers Have First Amendment Rights?
Issue 1: The Shield Law (Note: This is the first in a series of posts about this topic by Kelsey Browne & Ariel Fox)What is a blogger? The myriad ways in which blogging takes shape make definition difficult. Ranging from online diaries to overt advertisements to community newssites, blogs send forth a wide range of varied speech into the world. How should this speech be regulated, and how should such regulations be reconciled with the First Amendment? As with non-internet speech, questions of who the speaker is, and what the context and subject of the speech is, remain paramount. But……