The public's right to know is being eroded by the proliferation of spin. IT'S not fashionable to say favourable things about the media. We are the people who sensationalise, quote out of context, live off negativity, criticise everyone but ourselves, beat-up stories, write piffle, lie, cheat, distort, and betray. Or as one writer put it: journalists are people who take in one another's washing and then sell it The dark craft of politics
Blog Rules Troubled waters: Thank god it's Friday?!
You may love it, you may hate it, but it has undoubtedly become an virtual icon, something you can't avoid. Blog and Matt … Will …
Those who possess power will surrender it only when they see that the costs - physical and psychological - of retaining it are higher than the costs of losing it.
• Deadspin founder takes job at New York magazine Going, Going, GONE! Deadspin Editor Quits ; [ON February 28, Matt Drudge, called the most powerful man in journalism, broke the story on his website that since before Christmas, Prince Harry, a junior officer in the Blues and Royal regiment, had been on a secret tour of duty in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Prince Harry and the chamber of secrets; Max Markson Why outsiders get such a hard time in Australia]
• · SOME ACCOUNTANTS MAY BE REQUIRED TO REGISTER AS LOBBYISTS The Federal Government has established a Register of Lobbyists It is a public document that contains information about lobbyists who make representations to Government on behalf of their clients. The Register will be fully operational from 1 July 2008. From that date, any lobbyist who wishes to contact a Government representative for the purpose of lobbying activities must be registered and must agree to comply with the requirements of the Lobbying Code of Conduct ; Facing the future of journalism
• · Is HRT good or bad? Who do we trust? ; Microscopic, high-tech "nanotubes" that are being made for use in a wide variety of consumer products cause the same kind of damage in the body as asbestos does, according to a study in mice that is raising alarms among workplace safety experts and others. Effects of Nanotubes May Lead to Cancer
• · · Housing affordability packages have been promised by both sides of politics for some time. All sorts of ideas have been canvassed: increasing the first home-owners grant, mortgage tax deductions, stamp duty holidays, more land releases. To the extent that most of these plans tend to increase demand for homes, they won't solve the problem. Unleased; I live in Vancouver, B.C. and have just read Wayne Errington's article regarding the effect of immigration on Australian housing prices Homing in on immigration
• · · · Strategic communications consultant Blogger - Trevor Cook writes: 70% of readers believe the garbage in surveys. Really.; SPIN. It's my favourite new word since I started going to the gym and engaging in this world of virtual cycling With the right spin-meister the most rotten of us can smell like a rose
• · · · · IT is every marketer's dream: an ad that makes the TV news, spreading its message to millions without an extra cent spent. Investigative journalist Bob Burton, author of 2007 book Inside Spin: The Dark Underbelly of the PR Industry, believes the use of VNRs by TV networks blurs the line between the two so much they can become indistinguishable. He estimates up to 200 VNRs, costing up to $20,000 each, are pumped out a year. Nevertheless, they remain one of the dirty little secrets of the industry PR handouts make the news; CONCERN over the print media's growing reliance on PR content has spiked again with this year's publication of Nick Davies' Flat Earth News, an examination of the British newspaper industry. Fearing the rise of 'churnalism'
• · · · · · You will remember last week we were talking about the £2,000 Dore "miracle cure" for dyslexia, invented by paint entrepreneur Wynford Dore Determined bloggers who blew whistle ; Uncommon, Commonsense: Twitter, social media, and unmashing the mashable Media Reform Is Finally Getting Some Attention