Grumpy Editor

White House media growl over blocking photos of events

White House correspondents and news organizations are grumbling over the barring of photojournalists from many presidential events, observes Grumpy Editor. 

Among those calling for better access to President Barack Obama and the White House:  The White House Correspondents Association, the Associated Press, Reuters, The Washington Post plus broadcast and cable networks.  They'd rather not rely on events’ handouts provided by the White House.

"Journalists are routinely being denied the right to photograph or videotape the President while he is performing his official duties,” the journalists mention in a letter to White House Press Secretary Jay Carney.

“As surely as if they were placing a hand over a journalist’s camera lens, officials in this administration are blocking the public from having an independent view of important functions of the executive branch of government.” 

The journalists also point out, “The apparent reason for closing certain events to photographers is that these events have been deemed 'private.'  That rationale, however, is undermined when the White House contemporaneously releases its own photograph of a so-called private event through social media."

They add restrictions on access to such events interfere with legitimate newsgathering, raise constitutional freedom-of-the-press questions and set a dangerous precedent.

“Freezing out reporters from events is not healthy,” sums up Ron Fournier --- National Journal editorial director and national correspondent who earlier worked at AP for 20 years --- in a CNN interview on Friday.

 

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TRIBUNE CO. PLANS ANOTHER ROUND OF STAFF CUTS.  Chicago-based Tribune Co., second largest U.S. newspaper publisher, plans to cut nearly 700 jobs or about 6 percent of its total workforce over the next year, mainly at its newspaper division that includes the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and six other newspapers.  The company, which exited bankruptcy in January, cut 360 jobs companywide in the first nine months of the fiscal year.  That followed eliminating 800 publishing positions last year.

 

BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK FOCUSES ON GLOBAL WARMING.  Rather than devoting more editorial space to top business developments as year-end nears, the weekly spreads its Nov. 25 cover story over a vast 17 full adless pages of text and photos (out of 80 pages in the issue) relating to what it sees as future higher sea levels affecting Kiribati, north of Fiji.  The central Pacific nation spans 33 small islands with a population of 103,000.  Cover headline for the story:  This entire country is about to be wiped out by climate change.

PRESIDENT TARDY FOR LIVE WALL STREET JOURNAL INTERVIEW ON THE WEB.  President Obama kept Web viewers around the country waiting 30 minutes beyond the 3 p.m. (Eastern) scheduled time Tuesday for the start of a live stream interview, via the WSJ’s website, led by Gerald Seib, the newspaper’s Washington Bureau chief.

FEDS BYPASS LAS VEGAS THIS TIME, GATHER IN CARIBBEAN.  Phillip Swarts reports in The Washington Times that “a group of federal officials skipped chilly Washington this month for a taxpayer-funded trip to the Virgin Islands in the name of protecting the world’s coral reef.”  The organizer, Swarts adds, is the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force which “isn’t saying much about the total cost or reasons for the trip or why officials chose the St. Croix beachfront resort Buccaneer Hotel (made famous by an episode of TV’s 'The Bachelor') as their destination.”

Media bits:  Look for Maria Bartiromo, who departed CNBC (after 20 years at the cable network) on Friday, to host a live Sunday show early next year on Fox News Channel in addition to activities on the Fox Business Network…CNN's Jake Tapper will fill in for three weeks on the network's primetime lineup next month as Erin Burnett takes maternity leave.  Along with that added duty, Tapper will continue to host his 4 p.m. (Eastern) “The Lead”…Recently launched Al Jazeera America cable news channel’s ratings averaged around 13,000 viewers in its first few months, reports the New York Post…The Minneapolis Star Tribune in February will take over printing of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

The saga of confusing magazine subscriptions continues.

Fast Company, via an insert in its December issue, pitches readers a “3-for-1 holiday gift giveaway” for “only $12.99” as the one-year rate.

At the same time, subscribers, in a magazine wraparound, are offered a “2-for-1 holiday offer” for $10.

Meanwhile, a mailed pitch to subscribers also dangles a 2-for-1 holiday offer, citing “regular cost of 2 subscriptions: $99.80” and “you pay only $10 for “10 more issues (one year)" plus a gift card to send “to announce your valuable gift.”

Non-stop coverage of Toronto mayor Rob Ford continues

Extensive U.S. broadcast and print coverage focusing on embattled Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, who admitted smoking crack cocaine, public drinking and foul language, goes into the third week today, notes Grumpy Editor.

Media became excited when his rambling rage was captured in a video.

CNN and Fox News dropped everything earlier this month to cover “live” one of his press conferences from the Canadian city. 

Yet, his woes started six months ago when a video caught him smoking crack. 

Ford’s actions until this month were overlooked by U.S. media which suddenly went overboard detailing the escapades of a foreign country’s mayor like he was head of a major American city. 

"In terms of America's coverage of Canada, (the) story has gotten more coverage than anything I think since the War of 1812," summed up Howard Kurtz, host of Media Buzz on Fox News yesterday. 

As Wall Street Journal writer Ben Dummett pointed out Saturday, “The mayor of Toronto is in many ways a figurehead, with much less power than in comparable U.S. cities.”

Ford’s mayoral grip was clipped somewhat on Friday when Toronto’s City Council voted to strip some of his powers. 

Despite the negative coverage and cries for him to resign, Ford, according to the Associated Press, said he intends to seek re-election next year.

 

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PROBLEMS PERSIST WITH THE OBAMACARE WEBSITE.   Opening page of HealthCare.gov shows the advisory:  "The Health Insurance Marketplace online application isn't available from approximately 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. EST daily while we make improvements.  Additional downtime may be possible as we work to make things better." 

Not widely mentioned by media is that the price tag in developing the website cost more than $400 million.  And costs in fixing it will add to that figure.

 

POLL: SOME VIEW PRESIDENT OBAMA AS CONSERVATIVE.  Three percent of likely U.S. voters consider President Barack Obama conservative, is a finding from a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. 

The tally also notes 68 percent consider the president at least somewhat liberal, including 43 percent who believe he is very liberal, while 24 percent rate the president politically moderate. 

 

Bloomberg Businessweek issue, now on newsstands, is the largest --- at 212 pages --- since 1999…CNN named Brian Stelter host of Sunday’s “Reliable Sources” and the cable network’s senior media correspondent.  He was the New York Times media industry reporter...Griffin Communications, owned by David and Kirsten Griffin of Oklahoma City and John Griffin of Muskogee, citing “business is very good,” gave each employee of its media outlets $500.  The privately-held media firm includes TV stations KWTV, Oklahoma City, and KOTV and KQCW, Tulsa…Forbes Media, which includes Forbes magazine and Web properties, is considering selling the operation.

 

Writer’s Digest is pitching a one-year subscription for “only” $11.96.

But wait.

Potential subscribers have to add $3 for shipping and handling.

So why not make the offer simply $14.96 without the fine print?

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Greenhouse gas ‘highest in 800,000 years’ stirs CBS News

Media continue to intensify global warming reports while overlooking unseasonal cold, finds Grumpy Editor.  Latest example was the excitement at CBS News. 

Matthew Balan at NewsBusters points out, “Scott Pelley hyped the latest global warming report on Wednesday's CBS Evening News, proclaiming that "climate scientists have never seen greenhouse gas readings like what they announced today...scientists with the United Nations said that greenhouse gases, which influence climate change, have hit their highest level in 800,000 years,” pinning the blame on industry ramping up in the developing world. 

Were any eyebrows raised at CBS on the 800,000 years reference?  At around 797,987 B.C., Grumpy Editor wonders what kind of weather instruments and tree rings were used to calculate "warming." 

Nothing is mentioned about meteorological specialists in United Nations’ purposes and principles that include maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and “to achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character.” 

Meanwhile, most media are quiet about unusual cold smacking parts of the U.S.  The Climate Depot website reveals Spokane International Airport received 1.9 inches of snow Tuesday, snapping a 66-year-old daily record.  It edged the 1.8 inches recorded on Nov. 5, 1947.  Also on Nov. 5, a record snowfall of 5.7 inches was measured in Sioux Falls, S.D., breaking the old record of 1.5 inches set in 1959. 

Into the mix, NewsBusters last Thursday reports:  “Far from disappearing, Antarctic ice levels reached a record high on Sept. 22.”

 

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Is the Teleprompter responsible?  With President Barack Obama last week altering what he said (at least 36 times) about OmabaCare with:  “What we said was you could keep (that plan) if it hasn’t changed since the law was passed.”  This differs from earlier statements that repeated, “If you like your health plan, you can keep it.” 

Strange selection.  The Wall Street Journal’s sole front-page photo last Monday was an above-the-fold, one-liner caption-only showing four women in Jordan watching a “hybrid” eclipse.  Captions on other photos that day brought confusion.  An Associated Press-supplied photo linked to a story on India’s plan to launch a spacecraft was incorrectly attributed to Agence France-Presse/Getty Images in some editions.  Also, in connection with an article on voting in Kosovo, some editions credited a Reuters photo to Zuma Press.

Had enough of the Toronto mayor coverage?  A whole week of focusing on a mayor based in another country filled U.S. broadcast and print news.  That included coverage of a press conference, live on Fox News and CNN, in which Rob Ford, Toronto mayor, admitted smoking crack cocaine plus additional extensive airtime and print space --- all the way through the weekend --- devoted to Ford’s rambling rage captured in a video.

Another mayor story few know about.  Ed Engler, editor and president of the Laconia Daily Sun is the new mayor of the New Hampshire city.  He will be sworn in tomorrow and begins his term in January. So who will cover City Hall for the Sun?

Good comparison.  A print ad by State Street Global Advisors for SPDR, an exchange traded fund, grabbed readers’ eyes with:  TRADED MORE OFTEN THAN A VETERAN BASEBALL PLAYER.

More print jobs lost.  The move to print the Fort Worth Star-Telegram at the Dallas Morning News next year means 275 people, including 75 full timers, will be dropped from the payroll.

 

Zombies in Washington?  The latest Rasmussen Reports finds 37 percent of adults surveyed feel zombies would do a better job running the U.S. today.  On the other hand, the survey notes just as many (37 percent) believe the federal government would do a better job than zombies in running the country while 26 percent can’t decide between the two.

Obama executive order: gear for global warming impact

While Washington media were focusing on President Barack Obama meeting in the White House for two hours Friday with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to discuss ways to work together in efforts to stop the al-Qaida threat, the president issued an executive order --- missed by many editors --- directing a government-wide effort to boost regional preparation for global warming’s impact, noted Grumpy Editor. 

The action came just before an unusual meteorological weekend in the U.S. that brought a mix of snow and rain across the Great Lakes to northern New England along with a series of winter storms moving through the Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies accompanied by strong winds and heavy snow at higher elevations. 

With this, and snubbed by (usually weather-conscious) media, was that daily high temperatures late last week in places like Chicago and Detroit were running up to a cool 15 degrees below average. 

Obama’s action, as reported by Dave Boyer in The Washington Times, orders federal agencies to work with states to build “resilience” against major storms and other weather extremes. 

Boyer said the order declared:  “The impacts of climate change --- including an increase in prolonged periods of excessively high temperatures, more heavy downpours, an increase in wildfires, more severe droughts, permafrost thawing, ocean acidification and sea-level rise --- are already affecting communities, natural resources, ecosystems, economies and public health across the nation. The federal government must build on recent progress and pursue new strategies to improve the nation’s preparedness and resilience.” 

Meanwhile, some newspapers yesterday carried an Associated Press story previewing the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s report next March that will indicate “how global warming already is affecting the way people live and what will happen in the future, including a worldwide drop in income.” 

While the spotlight was on “warming,” the word cold was absent in the story. 

 

In case you missed these… 

Social Security benefits for nearly 58 million people will rise in 2014 by 1.5 percent, one of the smallest increases since automatic adjustments were adopted in 1975.

Official reason for the skimpy raise: Consumer prices haven’t gone up much in the past year.

As media have been reporting for months --- inflation is “tame.”

That leaves many budget-squeezed seniors, facing higher costs on multiple fronts, shaking their heads.

 

USA Today claimed top spot in U.S. newspaper circulation, sending The Wall Street Journal to No. 2.  The Gannett Co. publication accomplished the position with 2.9 million daily average circulation for the six months ended Sept. 30 by including print and various digital editions. 

The San Francisco Chronicle was the latest publication to ban use of “Redskins” in  referring to Washington, D.C.’s professional football team --- which has been using the name since 1933.

Readers’choice:  November issue of Sunset magazine, in the Time Inc. family, included two different subscription cards.  A two-for-one deal put the one-year term at $24.  Another card promised 12 months for $29.

Will Washington watch?  Sen. Ted Cruz, (R-Texas) guests on NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” on Friday.

U-T, the San Diego daily, in a deal expected to close today, purchased from Mainstreet Communications eight San Diego County community newspapers including the Del Mar Times, La Jolla Light, Rancho Santa Fe Review and Poway News Chieftain.

Broadcast media became excited last week when what was initially termed a large explosion followed by gunfire was heard near the U.S. embassy in Sana’a, Yemen's capital, with a population of 1.7 million.

It turned out to be fireworks from a wedding…which media decided not to cover.