The Britney Spears Death Watch?

WORD LEAKED OUT that the Associated Press has a prepared obit of down-on-her-luck pop star, Britney Spears.The practice of preparing obits well in advance is common. Journalists need to be ready to launch the story as soon as it breaks. But prepared obits are usually reserved for celebrities late in their lives. Britney is 26.The AP's entertainment editor justifies the practice this way: "For me, anyway, it’s a pretty simple two factors. How likely...

A New Online Mag Targets A Specific Audience.

THE WASHINGTON POST, in conjunction with famed scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr., has launched a new website called The Root dedicated to serving the interests of African-American readers.The Root will be a 21st-century version of a national black newspaper, Gates told the Washington Post, featuring articles from notable black writers, such as the New Yorker's Malcolm Gladwell. In recent years, the media has become more and more focused on who their...

Hey! That's My Ass!

TUFTS UNIVERSITY near Boston has an annual tradition called the Naked Quad Run. At the end of the semester just before finals, hundreds of naked students do laps around campus, usually on freezing cold nights.It's become such a large and popular event that the local media now cover it.The Somerville Journal, in an ambitious act of multimedia convergence, attached video of the event to their online story. And that ruffled some feathers.First, should...

Did The Media Drop the Ball on the Jena Story?

THE STORY OF what happened in Jena, Louisiana made international news. Eventually.It wasn't until long after the initial events that the national media wrote about the racially-charged incidents in the sleepy little town. It was nearly a full year before the case of the Jena 6 became an actual movement, complete with protests and rallies across the country (including here at Temple).But why did it take so long? Was it too controversial for the mainstream...

Off The Record Or I'm Outta Here.

FORMER DEPUTY National Security Advisor Meghan O’Sullivan dodged a lecture she was supposed to give at Indiana University on Tuesday after student reporters refused to grant her off-the-record status.The newspaper staff argued that the was lecture was open to the public, and therefore open to reporters who might record the session.“(It is) a common practice for people who leave the government,” O’Sullivan said later. “I have spoken widely off-the-record...

Blatant Self-Promotion: Your Teacher is a Journalist.

DO YOU READ the Metro? You are their target audience.Check it out. It is an interesting paper doing interesting things ... writing shorter stories and taking unusual angles. It's a great place to learn about Philly sub-culture: indie bands, obscure theaters, political activists and other random stuff.But there are rumors that the paper is up for sale. And a sale could change everything.Learn more by reading this week's cover story of the Philadelphia...

Journalism Starts Now. Get Involved.

IF YOU HAVE any intention of getting into journalism, you need to get your act together now.Start writing for the Temple News. And check out these upcoming events:On January 30, the Temple Association of Black Journalists will hold an open house. The event starts at 5:30 in SAC 220. Network with students, teachers and professional journalists.The Phillies are having a college media day at Citizens Bank Park on February 1. Registration has officially...

Seriously? Someone Published This?

IT IS SAD BUT TRUE. At Golfweek magazine, where the staff contains no African-Americans, they ran this cover image in regards to a story about another unfortunate racial misstep (the story is about a television host who said that other PGA golfers would have to "lynch Tiger Woods in a back alley" in order to defeat him). The mag's editor was fired over the controversy. He told the New York Times, "Sitting in the editor’s chair in this day and age...