Author: Joe Wilcox

Journalism by Joe WilcoxMay 8, 201411:58 pm

Ding, Dong, the Witch is Dead

I must express my surprise at all the journalist tributes today for Katie Cotton, who suddenly left Apple. One post offers little praise. Over at Valleywag, Sam Biddle calls her the “queen of evil PR“. To me, she is Apple’s wicked witch of public relations. Did someone drop a house on Cotton, because the departure seems so sudden?

Putting context around the praise, “what no one will admit is that we were all afraid of her”, Sam writes. “Even at the end of Cotton’s reign, journalists are still in such a state of terror and awe they don’t dare speak openly about her reign of silence and smokescreen”.

News Media by Joe WilcoxMay 5, 20145:07 pm

Now THIS is Journalism!

No words can describe how much I like VICE News. The videos are immersive and in your face. The stories are punchy, and in your face. Whether text or film, the reporting style provokes. How often do you read “shit” in news copy, for example?

In story “Tea Partiers Are Now Harassing High School Kids on Cinco de Mayo” Alice Speri writes: “That predictably led to a bunch of local conservatives losing their shit, with some parents suing the school for First Amendment infringement”. I love it!

Apple by Joe WilcoxApr 29, 20144:07 pm

Apple’s New Ad Campaign is ‘More Powerful Than You Think’

[vimeo https://vimeo.com/93048304]

I can’t seem to escape Apple’s “Powerful” commercial, which during some primetime programs airs two, or even three, times. The TV spot is aspirational marketing done right, with booming tagline: “You’re more powerful than you think”.

News Media by Joe WilcoxApr 27, 20148:46 pm

Report! Don’t Repeat Rumors!

I don’t know if Google is strategically realigning its social network, nor if that is reason for Vic Gundotra’s sudden departure from the company. Google+ is, or was, his baby. But I do know what is irresponsible reporting, and there is plenty of it among tech bloggers and journalists. TechCrunch leads the pack, but the real offenders are those who follow along—news gatherers who repeat rather than report.

Following Gundotra’s April 24 departure announcement, Alexia Tsotsis and Matthew Panzarino posted at TechCrunch: “Google+ is Walking Dead”. The headline is compelling and clickable and would be worthy of praise if not for the anonymous sourcing. The story claims major reorganization that reduces the service’s role: “Google+ will no longer be considered a product, but a platform…Google+ is not ‘officially’ dead, more like walking dead”.

News Media by Joe WilcoxApr 7, 201412:54 pm

Go Google, or Go to Hell

If there is a villain in my book Responsible Reporting: Field Guide for Bloggers, Journalists, and Other Online News Gatherers, Google is it. I fiercely criticize bad reporting practices perpetrated on behalf of the Google free economy, where a mighty monopoly extends incredible influence over advertising dollars and content distribution. Flip around to one of my other tomes, The Principles of Disruptive Design, and the search and information giant is praised for innovation that promises to usher in the “Star Trek”-era of touchless computing. So what? Is Google devil or savior?

Journalism by Joe WilcoxMar 31, 20141:53 pm

There's a Journalist Suckered Every Minute

Add this little ditty to the long list of snickering snots snarking “Suckers!” They would be right, after reading Nick Miede‘s answer to question: “Did That Tesla Ad Really Cost $1,500?” I saw the figure roar across blogs and social networks earlier this month and marveled at the amount.

Living by Joe WilcoxMar 31, 201411:26 am

Maidentrip is Marvelous

Yesterday I rented, and, with my wife and father-in-law, watched “Maidentrip“, an amazing and immersive documentary. I look in dismay at the film’s domestic showing, just $63,151 proceeds in theaters according to BoxOffice. The film […]

Journalism by Joe WilcoxMar 28, 20147:15 pm

Aggregation is Plagiarism

On March 15, 2011, I started the post you now read with a headline left unanswered: “Is Aggregation Really Just Plagiarism?” Clearly, my answer—too long coming—is “Yes”. Unequivocally, news aggregation is plain, pure plagiarism.

Google enables, no encourages, content thieves, despite recent search engine penalizing strategies. Too often, the big G raps sites because of links to black-listed blogs. The problem is bigger: Mainstream blogs writing synopsis stories that include absolutely no original reporting but take away pageviews from the news site doing the real work.

ebooks by Joe WilcoxMar 28, 201412:23 pm

'Responsible Reporting' Refreshes

Earlier this month, I chose to publish Responsible Reporting: Field Guide for Bloggers, Journalists, and Other News Gatherers rather than wait for new data. The book’s first section cites valuable social media stats provided by the […]

Journalism by Joe WilcoxMar 28, 201410:15 am

One Word Describes Billboard Twitter Real-Time Charts

Brilliant. Brilliant. Brilliant. Billboard and Twitter are partners in a new project delivering real-time music charts anytime, anywhere, on anything. The mechanism measures conversations around music on Twitter and presents them on Billboard’s website. Now this is contextual journalism in practice.

Billboard’s traditional approach to charting is in too many ways antiquated. The music consuming community lives in the moment—able to sample, stream, or purchase songs whenever, wherever, and on whatever device they may be. Weekly charts are stale before they publish.

News Media by Joe WilcoxMar 25, 201411:50 am

When Media Values Collide

Overnight, I came out against my colleague’s story “New Mozilla CEO is allegedly anti-gay marriage—Firefox developers boycott” . Had I been editor on duty, the story wouldn’t have run, not because of the topic but the sourcing. However, response to the post—820 comments as I write—raises an interesting quandary about the cultural clash between old and new media.

Reader response is explosive, and comments are much more interesting reading than the story (no offense to buddy Brian Fagioli). Commenters largely fall into two opposing camps—those complaining about societal constraints on free speech and others disgusted by Mozilla’s CEO being allegedly anti-gay marriage. The polarized ends, and even some discussion between them, is fascinating snapshot about freedom, community, and human rights—one person’s personal versus those of the larger group.

News Media by Joe WilcoxMar 25, 20141:23 am

News Gatherers, don’t violate ‘The Prime Directive’

There is a very good reason why in my book Responsible Reporting: Field Guide for Bloggers, Journalists, and Other Online News Gatherers that I identify The Prime Directive (yeah, like “Star Trek”): “Write what you know to be true in the moment”. Last night, one of my BetaNews colleagues violated this sacrosanct rule. I berated him privately, now publicly.

The story: “New Mozilla CEO is allegedly anti-gay marriage—Firefox developers boycott“. Had someone consulted me, the story wouldn’t have run (and the reporter did try to reach me). The problem is fundamentally one of sourcing. Four years ago, in post “The Difference between Blogging and Journalism“, I laid out the fundamental sourcing philosophy behind The Prime Directive. Excerpt: