Mediagazer: Journalists running start-ups face tall odds (Newsosaur/Reflections of a Newsosaur)

4:25 PM ET, June 7, 2010

Top News:

Steve Krakauer / Mediaite:

Breaking: Helen Thomas Retires, Effective Immediately (Video) — While it may not be totally unexpected, the story appears to have developed extremely quickly. — Hearst Corporation has announced Helen Thomas will be retiring, effective immediately. — Here's the full announcement from Hearst:

Discussion: rbr.com, The Caucus, On Media's Blog, Bloomberg, The Hill, Gawker, The Wrap, Media Matters for America, LA Observed, Big Journalism, msnbc.com, USA Today, The Wire, TPM LiveWire, Gothamist, Media Decoder, Michelle Malkin and Top Digital Journal News

Sam Stein / The Huffington Post:

Helen Thomas Dropped By Speaking Agency, Under Fire For Remarks On Middle East — Under fire for controversial remarks she made (and apologized for) about the status of Jews in Israel, longtime White House scribe Helen Thomas was dropped on Sunday by her speaking agency.

Discussion: Fox News, Media Decoder, Hit & Run, The Daily Dish, Romenesko, Washington Post, Right Now, ABCNEWS, Yahoo! News, Poynter Online, Guardian, Haaretz, Salon and The Politico

Jeremy W. Peters / Media Decoder:
An End for Helen Thomas and the Helen Thomas Rules

Discussion: On Media's Blog, Mediaite, The Wrap, blogs.tampabay.com and International Media

Joshua Benton / Nieman Journalism Lab:

Apple's impact: What Steve Jobs' WWDC announcements mean for the news industry's mobile strategy — Apple CEO Steve Jobs just stepped off the stage in San Francisco at this year's Worldwide Developer Conference. His announcements focused squarely on the new iPhone 4, about which you'll find …

Discussion: The Money Game, The Next Web, Silicon Alley Insider, PopWatch and Lifehacker

Tom Neumayr / Apple: Apple to Debut iAds on July 1

Vladislav Savov / Engadget:
iPad corners 22 percent of ebook market, iBooks gets iPhone version and PDF reader

Discussion: Mashable!, The Wrap, Bits, Ars Technica, gdgt live, The Next Web, Gadget Lab and Fast Company

Matthew Flamm / Crain's New York Business:

Wired's iPad liftoff — Tech title sells 73,000 copies in nine days on Apple tablet; wave of future? — Two months after the iPad's much anticipated April 3 debut, one thing is clear about the impact of Apple's tablet computer on the magazine industry: It has been very good for Wired.

Discussion: eMedia Vitals, Mobile Media and Mediaweek

David Carr / New York Times:

The Media Equation: How to Save Newsweek — Sometime this summer, someone other than The Washington Post will probably own the renowned brand of Newsweek. When I wrote about the pending sale in this column last week, I waxed philosophical about the meaning of a newsweekly magazine in 2010 …

Discussion: Gawker, Washington Post, Media Decoder, Media Gaggle, The Wire, Romenesko and CJR

Brian Stelter / Media Decoder:

NBC News Hires Newsweek's Michael Isikoff — NBC News has hired Michael Isikoff away from Newsweek at a time when the newsweekly magazine is up for sale. — Mr. Isikoff will become the national investigative correspondent for NBC, a position similar to the one he has held at Newsweek since 1994, the network said.

Discussion: Romenesko and The Huffington Post

Jack Marshall / ClickZ:

Facebook Grows Video Presence — As traffic to Facebook continues to grow, the social network is beginning to emerge as an important stakeholder in the online video space. According to online measurement firm comScore, the number of users viewing video on the site has been growing consistently …

Discussion: TechCrunch

Alex Weprin / TVNewser:

CNN Close to Dropping AP — CNN is close to dropping its subscription to the Associated Press, people familiar with the decision tell TVNewser. — A CNN spokesperson said that no decision has been made. — The move, if it happens, will mean that CNN no longer subscribes to either of the major wire services.

AdAge:

Does Who Creates Content Matter to Marketers in a ‘Pro-Am’ Media World? — Examiner Has 7.4 Million Readers, Local Ads and News — but Few Traditional Journalists — NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — If you're trolling the web and hit upon an Examiner.com story, you might think you're reading the San Francisco Examiner.

Discussion: Romenesko, The New York Observer and eMedia Vitals

Joseph Plambeck / New York Times:

SB Nation Expands for Fans, by Fans Sports Sites — Last Thursday, Kobe Bryant tallied 30 points in Game 1 of the N.B.A. Finals. That night, Silver Screen and Roll, a blog dedicated to the Los Angeles Lakers, racked up more than 3,500 comments. — The popular site is just one of more …

Discussion: paidContent, SB Nation Detroit, SB Nation Chicago, Lost Remote, SB Nation DC, SB Nation Boston, NetNewsCheck Latest, SBNation.com, New York Observer and eMedia Vitals

Threat Level:

U.S. Intelligence Analyst Arrested in Wikileaks Video Probe — Federal officials have arrested an Army intelligence analyst who boasted of giving classified U.S. combat video and hundreds of thousands of classified State Department records to whistleblower site Wikileaks, Wired.com has learned.

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, CJR, The New Yorker Blog, Washington Post, The Daily Dish, Hillicon Valley, NY Daily News, The First Post, Mediaite, msnbc.com, The Lede and Gawker

Frédéric Filloux / Monday Note:

Mediocrity is king — Last week, the Huffington Post reached a new apex. Viewed from France, where ads are localized, its home page carried a remarkably tasteful ad: a farting application for the iPhone (see below). As prudery still rules in American media, you'll notice that the farter's exhaust aperture has been blurred.

Newsosaur / Reflections of a Newsosaur:

Journalists running start-ups face tall odds — Fed up with furloughs and down-sizing - or forced involuntarily out of their jobs - journalists across the land are taking matters into their own hands by starting their own news sites. — While I applaud these brave and commendable efforts …

Discussion: Romenesko