Grumpy Editor

FAKE REVIEWS ON ONLINE SITES DRAW FEDERAL ATTENTION

While fake news has been widely covered in recent weeks, now the focus is on fake online reviews of retailers’ items, notes Grumpy Editor.

The Wall Street Journal points out “pressure is mounting on major retailers to fight back.”

The Journal notes Fakespot Inc., which identifies fraudulent reviews, says more than a third of online reviews on major websites, including Amazon and Walmart, are fake. Those reviews are generated by people paid to write them — or robots.

The Federal Trade Commission is starting to crack down on violators and lawmakers are pressing Amazon to do a better job of policing its website reviews.

Many people searching the web rely on reviews before buying products.

November-December online sales are expected to increase as much as 14 percent, according to the National Retail Federation.

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

 

FIRST MOVIE THEATER DESIGNED FOR TALKIES TO END RUN.  At year’s end the Avalon, a classic 1,184-seat movie theater on California’s Santa Catalina Island will stop showing first-run films, ending a 90-year tradition.  Built in 1929 as part of the iconic Catalina Casino, it is the first cinema in the world designed for talkies.  Daily tours and special events such as Catalina Film Fest and Silent Film Benefit will continue.

BILL TO CURB ROBOCALLS.  The House, by a 417-3 vote, approved a bill to curb robocalls in an effort to halt illegal marketing calls and scams. It is expected to be approved in the Senate and signed by President Trump.

FEMALE MARINE COMPLETES COMBAT TRAINING.  Lance Cpl. Alexa Barth is the first female Marine to complete the Marine Corps’ rigorous reconnaissance training  since the Pentagon lifted a ban on women in combat roles in January, 2013.

NORTH KOREA PLANS 'CHRISTMAS GIFT.'  North Korea says it will send a "Christmas gift" to the United States, but what that means will depend on the outcome of ongoing talks between Washington and Pyongyang.

HEAVY TV VIEWING.  On a day-to-day basis, the average adult watches TV for three-and-a-half hours, amounting to 1,248 hours each year, finds a survey commissioned by LG Electronics.

15 CHAIRS BALANCED ON CHIN.  David Rush from Idaho appeared on TV to balance 15 chairs on his chin and recapture a Guinness World Record.  Rush previously held the record with eight chairs.

CHINA HALTS U.S. NAVY VISITS TO HONG KONG.  China is suspending U.S. Navy visits to Hong Kong in retaliation over President Trump’s decision to sign legislation that supported the city’s pro-democracy protesters. 

EAT COFFEE CUPS WHILE FLYING.  Air New Zealand is testing edible coffee cups in an effort to cut waste on board its airplanes. The cups are made from vanilla-flavoured biscotti. The airline serves more than eight million cups of coffee a year. 

VETERAN MONEY WRITER RETIRES.  Jane Bryant Quinn, writer of a money column in AARP Bulletin since 2010 is retiring.  She and her husband plan to live in Rome for a year.

 

 

Most media silent on U.S. relinquishing Internet control

Amazing to Grumpy Editor is that few media outlets, operations that depend heavily on the Internet, reported or commented on the Obama administration’s plans to relinquish control --- effective next year --- of the body that manages the Web. 

Some individuals and businesses feared the move could lead to loss of free speech if China or Russia oversee Internet content.

Created in 1998, the non-profit Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) contracted with the U.S. to manage the maintenance of Internet-related databases and tasks. 

Wall Street Journal technology reporter Gautham Nagesh suggested in a recent NPR interview that moving control of ICANN out of America’s hands could lead to a different tone when it comes to Internet freedoms, noted writer Cheryl K. Chumley in the Washington Times. 

Chunley said Nagesh added that “if ICANN’s relationship with the U.S. changes, there’s fear that eventually it could move to another country or it would no longer be under the auspices of American law, which it is currently, and that would change the nature of the Internet itself in some people’s view.” 

Also fearing the turnover to other nations, L. Gordon Crovitz, a former Wall Street Journal publisher, pointed out in a WSJ op-ed piece:  “In the past few years, Russia and China have used a U.N. agency called the International Telecommunication Union to challenge the open Internet.  They have lobbied for the ITU to replace Washington as the ICANN overseer.” 

Meanwhile, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich declared, “Every American should worry about Obama giving up control of the Internet to an undefined group. This is very, very dangerous.”

 

In case you missed these… 

MICHELLE OBAMA LEADS SIGHTSEEING IN CHINA.  Now in day four of a week-long visit to communist China, Michelle Obama, accompanied by daughters Malia and Sasha, and her mother, Marian Robinson, are busy taking in the sights, including the Great Wall, the terra cotta warriors in Xian and the pandas in Sichuan province.  The first lady’s theme for the trip is international education, including bolstering Chinese students to attend U.S. universities.  Media are mum, however, on the 70 people in Mrs. Obama’s entourage from the U.S. --- and the cost to taxpayers.

 

BUSY COVER BRINGS FROWNS TO OLD TIMERS.  Bloomberg Businessweek’s cover on the current “The Design” issue probably raises eyebrows of many “old school” layout folks.  Boldface capital letters, in different sizes, were used straight on and on all sides to tout the contents, tempting readers to turn the cover up, down and sideways. Included among the seven teasers:  “GOOD DESIGN IS LESS ABOUT TASTE BUT MORE ABOUT INTEGRITY.  (Take a look at the cover and how it was made here.)

 

L.A. CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS SEEK TO THWART MEDIA.   Reporters covering Los Angeles City Hall are grumbling over proposed changes in security measures that will affect coverage of City Council meetings.  Changes could limit access to the official City Hall “press suite,” where news conferences are held, and corridors behind council chambers.

  

DIFFICULT ECONOMY TRIGGERS MAGAZINE APPEAL TO READERS.  ConsumerReports, citing its commitment to investing more than $25 million in product testing, is asking in a “special notice to members” for contributions “because of the difficult economy” so the adless magazine won’t have to cut back in its critical work.  “Due to tough economic conditions, we’re seeing evidence that some manufacturers are beginning to ‘cut corners’ in ways that will undermine product quality and may even jeopardize product safety,” it warns.

  

N.C. NEWSPAPER SCRUBS TABLOID FORMAT.  The Daily News in Jacksonville, N.C. will revert to broadsheet format on May 1, ending nearly a five-year run as a tabloid.  Going back to the larger size follows complaints by readers and advertisers who were vocal in criticizing the smaller tabloid format.  In resuming the larger format, the newspaper returns to sections along with a new design that incorporates changes in layout and typography.

 

HAD ENOUGH OF WALL-TO-WALL TV COVERAGE OF MISSING MALAYSIAN AIRLINES FLIGHT 370?  Despite the recent focus on debris sighted in the south Indian Ocean, 1,500 miles southwest of Perth, Australia, Grumpy Editor agrees with retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney, a Fox News military analyst, that the Boeing 777 more likely was hijacked and took a difficult-to-observe, over-the-ocean route to Pakistan or eastern Iran.

Newsweek cuts editorial staff as last print issue nears

Some Newsweek editorial staffers will start clearing out desks today following word of eliminated positions as the weekly ceases print publication and moves to an all-digital format in the new year, observes Grumpy Editor. 

The magazine, originally labeled News-Week, first rolled off presses in 1933.  The plan to go all-digital was announced two months ago. 

Final print edition will be dated Dec. 31.

In announcing the staff cuts, Editor Tina Brown yesterday said, “This is a very difficult day, and one that we approach with enormous regret." 

Brown, earlier in the day, announced three promotions: 

Newsweek executive editor Justine Rosenthal will become editorial director of Newsweek Daily Beast Co.; Tunku Varadarajan, executive editor of Newsweek International, will become editor of Newsweek Global, while Newsweek.com editor Deidre Depke also will be editor of companion website The Daily Beast.

Electronic voting machine problems make rounds again

Grumpy Editor finds it interesting that when a female Las Vegas casino host attempted to vote a second time last week --- during an early voting period --- it made the main front-page headline, with art above the fold, in Saturday’s Las Vegas Review-Journal but no such similar space was given two years earlier when Sen. Harry Reid’s name already was checked off for voters on some electronic machines. 

The Senate majority leader in 2010 was in a close battle with Republican Sharron Angle.  She said she lost because of fraud. 

A 2010 post-election Associated Press story noted, “Reid’s win was a surprise in a race where a succession of polls showed a dead heat and he acknowledged he was in trouble.”  

At midyear 2010, AP pointed out, “Reid appeared headed for defeat as Nevada suffered with the nation’s worst unemployment, foreclosure and bankruptcy rates.” 

Electronic voting machines are in the news again this election season. 

The Republican National Committee declares voting machines, again in Nevada, plus Ohio, North Carolina, Colorado, Missouri and Kansas, are flawed and improperly showing votes cast for President Barack Obama when GOP candidate Mitt Romney had been selected. 

That action also brings fresh quotes from Larry Lomax, Clark County (Nev.) voter registrar, in a state where high rates continue in unemployment, foreclosure and bankruptcy. 

His explanation:  “The machines work just fine.  It is possible for a machine to get out of calibration.  That simply means if you touch somewhere, it may read the touch in a slightly different place.” 

Electronic voting machines move around a lot in the Las Vegas area.  Early voters cast ballots in supermarkets, malls, libraries and trailers in parking lots.  Some voting sites are operational for as little as two days before moving to other locations. 

In 2010 when Reid was up for reelection, Lomax pinned complaints at that time on faulty electronic machine action by seniors, noting, "Especially in a community with elderly citizens (they have) difficulty in (casting their) ballot.” 

This year in Marion, Ohio, for example, voters charge that when Romney’s name was selected on electronic voting machines, Obama’s name lights up. 

“Because of the issue,” says Sophia Rogers, board of elections director for Marion County, “we had that machine recalibrated.” 

Frequent recalibration appears to be necessary with electronic voting machines. 

During early voting, says Lomax in Nevada, electronic machines in Clark County are calibrated every morning and sometimes twice a day. 

In an earlier election, pre-marked electronic ballots appeared in New Jersey.  Most troubling were numerous reports of “vote flipping,” in which voters select a candidate only to see the voting machine record votes for the opposing candidate. 

With the 2010 election that saw Reid returned to the Senate, Washington Examiner writer Mark Hemingway said, “It is worth noting, the voting machine technicians in Clark County are members of the Service Employees International Union.” 

The SEIU is a heavy contributor to Democrats.

Pew: Reading print papers ebbs; digital platforms grow

Print editors saw the material, but few ran the findings:  only about one fourth of Americans now read print newspapers, notes Grumpy Editor.

Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, in its 2012 news consumption survey, finds “just 23 percent” read a print newspaper as “many readers are now shifting to digital platforms to read the papers.”

That compares with 38 percent in 2006 and 41 percent a decade ago.

Obviously, print editors are reluctant to run screaming headlines about dwindling print readership.

“Figures for newspaper readership may not include some people who read newspaper content on sites that aggregate news content, such as Google News or Yahoo News," Pew points out.

“Substantial percentages of the regular readers of leading newspapers now read them digitally,” mentions Pew.

“Currently, 55 percent of regular New York Times readers say they read the paper mostly on a computer or mobile device, as do 48 percent of regular USA Today and 44 percent of Wall Street Journal readers, adds Pew.

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Newsweek departs print version with Dec. 31 issue

Print versions are fading on the magazine front, too.

Newsweek, after undergoing internal and external contractions over the past five years, today announced it will abandon its print edition. 

The Dec. 31 issue will be its last print version. 

The weekly news magazine’s first issue hit newsstands on Feb. 17, 1933.

Plans call for it to go to an all-digital format “in early 2013” as Newsweek Global.

 

 

USA TODAY marks 30th year with front-page blue dot

USA TODAY reached its 30^th year on Saturday and marked the occasion by unveiling a big, blue dot logo on Friday’s front page --- that featured only three stories, plus “refers” to inside content  --- along with new designs for its website and mobile apps, notes Grumpy Editor. 

The newspaper’s overhaul is “designed to showcase USA TODAY's prowess in visual storytelling and bring stronger voices to its stories" and "the new logo reflects the pulse of the nation," points out the company. 

Gannett Co., Inc., parent of USA TODAY, launched the newspaper on Sept. 15, 1982, with the mission of providing news and information that was clear, concise and presented largely without opinion or unsubstantiated analysis.  Gannett owns more than 90 daily newspapers, nearly 1,000 weeklies and 23 television stations. 

In its debut and onward, few USA TODAY stories jumped to other pages.  Entertainment and sports grabbed many readers.  Stories were short.  Pages were splashed with color. 

Original core readers were baby boomers, sports fans, singles and travelers, reminds John K. Hartman, journalism professor at Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, in an Editor & Publisher article.  But “all four groups largely have gone elsewhere for their news,” he adds, as “smartphones and tablets are the reading platform of choice.” 

Hartman sees USA TODAY running into choppy waters.  “More likely,” he envisions, it “will be shuttered in the next three years, a product of the collective turning away from print and from the concept of being fully informed about national issues (even sports and entertainment) that has swept the country.” 

However, Larry Kramer, USA TODAY president and publisher, declares:  “We are making a real investment in USA TODAY, and putting a major focus on reinvigorating the value of print media while introducing new digital products.  We want to provide our readers with a unique perspective and relevant context on a full range of issues, across all mediums. We are revolutionizing the way we cover and distribute the news in relevant ways that inform and entertain our readers."

NBC bags $1 billion in Olympic Games TV/digital ad sales

With the Olympic Games from London officially getting under way tomorrow, NBC will be live-streaming every competition --- 3,500 hours, 302 events in 32 sports --- on NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Olympics app for mobile devices and tablets, notes Grumpy Editor. 

That’s a major tech change from the 2008 Olympics. 

It’ll be difficult not to spot an Olympics event on television. 

NBC is calling in all the troops for full coverage. 

The NBC Network, MSNBC, CNBC, NBC Sports Network, Bravo and Telemundo plus two specialty channels will be on scene. 

Along with that giant effort, NBCUniversal, now controlled by Comcast Corp., has sold more than $1 billion in national television and digital advertising linked to the Olympics. 

That’s $150 million more than the 2008 Olympics coverage from Beijing. 

Yet, the event is expected to be a money loser for NBCUniversal.

The Los Angeles Times today points out NBCUniversal nearly a decade ago agreed to pay $1.18 billion for television rights to the London games.

 NBCUniversal, it adds, is spending at least $100 million for staffing (with nearly 3,400 people working on Olympics coverage) and equipment to televise the events. 

 

SmartMoney magazine to retire print issue, go all-digital

SmartMoney, the Dow Jones & Co. personal finance magazine, will end its print edition and go all-digital following the September issue, notes Grumpy Editor.

The publication, a unit of News Corp., has been struggling in recent months. 

In this year’s first quarter, SmartMoney saw a 19.3 percent drop in advertising revenue and a 23.4 percent decline in ad pages. 

Word of the shuttering was bad news for print staffers. 

The company said about 25 employees “are being impacted as part of the print magazine's closing, with those affected eligible to re-apply for open positions with SmartMoney.com and other openings within the company."

SmartMoney was launched as a joint Dow Jones and Hearst Corp. operation in 1992. Dow Jones acquired Hearst's 50 percent interest two years ago. 

"SmartMoney has led the way in personal finance coverage for 20 years," said Robert Thomson, editor-in-chief of Dow Jones and managing editor of The Wall Street Journal.

"It has been honored with many awards and provided intelligent, objective analysis and guidance for readers in print and online."

 

Internet, cell phones attract more usage by seniors

Older Americans are taking to the Internet and cell phones more, after several years of little growth, notes Grumpy Editor. 

Information from the Pew Internet & American Life Project finds 53 percent of adults 65 and older now use the Internet or email. 

It marks the first time that more than half of the gray-hair crowd is going online.

This means more time online takes away from reading daily newspapers. 

On a typical day, 86 percent of Internet users in the 65-plus bracket use email for communications, according to the survey. 

Findings are based on March-April telephone interviews by Princeton Survey Research Associates International. 

While online, seniors are busy in other areas, too. 

About one third (34 percent) focus on social networking sites such as Facebook, with 18 percent doing so on a typical day. 

Seniors also are taking to cell phones more. 

The survey uncovers 69 percent of the 65-plus group say they have a mobile phone.  That’s up from 57 percent two years ago.

 

Writers quickly label Breitbart died of ‘natural causes’

A few hours after conservative blogger and Tea Party favorite Andrew Breitbart collapsed on the sidewalk shortly after midnight near his home in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles last Thursday, news stories attributed the 43-year-old’s death to “natural causes” --- indicating the writers never worked on police beats, notes Grumpy Editor.

Long before official findings from an autopsy, reporters --- without raising an eyebrow --- almost immediately pinpointed the cause of death. 

Results of a Friday autopsy by the Los Angeles County coroner’s office will not be known until early to mid-April, when toxicology and other lab tests are finalized.

"It's standard procedure," said Craig Harvey, coroner’s office spokesman.

"We have a very young man who died suddenly and unexpectedly, so we want to make sure we cover all the bases,” he added.

Highly-active Breitbart collapsed while walking home from a bar-restaurant where he sipped red wine and spent almost two hours in what has been termed “a friendly debate” with a marketing executive.

Breitbart entered journalism editing the Drudge Report in 1994.  Eleven years later Breitbart and Arianna Huffington founded the Huffington Post. 

On his own, he later started several news websites including breitbart.com, bighollywood.com and biggovernment.com. 

Along with that, in recent years he became a favorite target of liberals in the media.