Category: Media

News Media by Joe Wilcox
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Kurt Sutter correctly calls Google a ‘Parasite’

As a content creator my feelings about Google are mixed. Philosophically, I believe in the openness of information and non-restrictive copyrights that let the producer profit from his or her good work in the present but benefit everyone later on. Last-Century revisions ruin the latter ethic. Life plus 70 years is a ridiculously long copyright that rapes the very concept of public domain.

Google’s business model enables free spread of information, which supports my other ethic. But there’s rot at the core—the free-content economy that search demands. As I explain in my new ebook Responsible Reporting: Field Guide for Bloggers, Journalists, and Other Online News Gatherers, “the search giant profits from your good work, reducing its value in the process”. Google produces no content, while its whole business model is about profiting from others’ content.

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News Media by Joe Wilcox
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Pop Trial Balloons, Don’t Float Them

During Amazon’s fourth quarter 2013 earnings conference call, on Jan. 30, 2014, CFO Tom Szkutak said something surprising: “With the increased cost of fuel and transportation as well as the increased usage among Prime members we’re considering increasing the price of Prime between $20 to $40 in the U.S”. The retailer revealed the actual price increase three days ago, effective March 20.

That tip-off is excellent example about the ways companies float trial balloons and how the news media distributes them. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines trial balloon as “a project or scheme tentatively announced in order to test public opinion”. The Wikipedia definition, which “needs additional citations” fits with my own: “A trial balloon is information sent out to the media in order to observe the reaction of an audience”.

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News Media by Joe Wilcox
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Remember, Everybody Lies

Posting today, JR Raphael review “In depth: What Asus’s $179 Chromebox is actually like to use” is excellent cautionary tale in responsible reporting. Companies exert as much influence as they can get away with when interacting with product reviewers, who should always expect trickery.

The Chromebox supposedly ships with 2GB of RAM, which in my testing is really insufficient for Chrome OS. Users can make-do with so little, but many will want more. Asus gives where it shouldn’t.

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Journalism by Joe Wilcox
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Write Affirmatively!

Your writing should have voice and authority, something present-tense helps achieve. Some sense of you should slip through, too.

Journalism schools perpetrate a great urban legend—that news reporting is unbiased, objective. There is no such thing. All reporting is biased by factors immeasurable. Consider culture as one filter. Political preference is another. Education. Economic class. Heck, whether someone uses Android or iPhone influences perspective.

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News Media by Joe Wilcox
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Hello, Responsible Reporting

Today, the ebook formally known as Be a Better Blogger published to Amazon, Google, and Smashwords ebook stores. Title—drum roll, please—Responsible Reporting: Field Guide for Bloggers, Journalists, and Other Online News Gatherers.

As explained in post “Bye, Bye, Be a Better Blogger“, I launched a 28-day crowdfunding campaign to raise enough money to spend two months researching and writing the book. But the campaign lost money and wasted valuable time. You can always get more money, but time is a commodity never regained.

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News Media by Joe Wilcox
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What's Behind the 'Wall Street Journal' Paywall?

The other day, I investigated current Wall Street Journal subscription pricing, as part of broader research about paywalls. The Journal still charges more than I want to pay but I am relieved to find one price for online, smartphone, and tablet.

People consume information contextually, so paid content should be available wherever they want to get it. What follows is my chat with a Journal sales rep, with full pricing.

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News Media by Joe Wilcox
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Bye, Bye, Be a Better Blogger

I would like to thank everyone who contributed to my Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign, which ended at 11:59:59 p.m. PT on February 28. I set a $7,500 goal and raised $135—disastrous, disappointing end to the 28-day effort.

Be a Better Blogger is my fifth non-fiction title, none exceptionally long, published since August 2013. Sales disappoint; being an independent publisher is much more difficult than expected. By crowdfunding, I set two goals: To receive the equivalent of a publisher’s advance and to earn something from my writing efforts. I failed. The only contributors are people I know, while the campaign lost money and wasted valuable time. You can always get more money, but time is a commodity never recovered.

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