Mediagazer: President Obama credits power of conservative media (Erik Wemple)

3:40 AM ET, January 16, 2013

Top News:

When advertorial bites back — At about noon today, the Atlantic put on a very snug hair shirt, issuing a statement of apology and regret for having posted on its website Church of Scientology “Sponsor Content” yesterday. — The Scientology advertisement, composed by tone-deaf propagandists unable …

Discussion: CJR, Adweek, 10,000 Words, JIMROMENESKO.COM, New York Magazine, TechCrunch and International Business Times

Jeff Bercovici / Forbes:

The Atlantic On That Scientology Advertorial: ‘We Screwed Up’ — Advertising's easy when the world loves you. When the pitchforks are out — when you're BP after the Deepwater Horizon spill, say, or Coca-Cola amid the sugary drinks backlash - that's where it gets tricky.

Discussion: The Onion, eMedia Vitals, Media Decoder, @jackmirkinson, Guardian and The Next Web

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:

N.Y.'s tough new gun law also prohibits disclosure of gun owners' names — The New York state Assembly will vote Tuesday on gun legislation that would broaden the definition of assault weapons and require mental health professionals to report anyone they thought may become dangerous.

Discussion: Associated Press, Hit & Run, The New Republic and New York Magazine

Erik Wemple / Washington Post: How the New York Times scored its Journal News interviews

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter: James O'Keefe tries to get reporters to advertise their gun-free homes

Erik Wemple:
Journal News deploys Fifth Avenue firm to reject interview requests

Discussion: Washington Post

Dylan Byers / Politico:

CNN President Jeff Zucker backs Piers Morgan's gun control campaign — CNN president Jeff Zucker told CNN New York staff today that he supported Piers Morgan's decision to speak in favor of gun control, sources at the network tell POLITICO. — During a town-hall meeting with staff …

Discussion: Inside Cable News, Mediaite and Deadline.com

Chicago Tribune:

Tribune Buyout and Bankruptcy: Culture Shock — With the takeover complete, Sam Zell and his team of outsiders brought a new approach, but their ideas never took off and their style alienated employees — Tribune Tower was in crisis, and the illustrations of penguins installed …

Chicago Tribune:
Tribune Co. bankruptcy: Warning signs before the buyout

Discussion: Chicago Tribune

Erin Geiger Smith / Reuters:

News outlets improperly used photos posted to Twitter: judge — (Reuters) - A judge has found that two news organizations improperly used images that a photojournalist had posted to Twitter in one of the first big tests of intellectual property law involving social media.

Discussion: Mashable!, CNET, Poynter and Boing Boing

Michael Cieply / Media Decoder:

Picturehouse, Small Film Distributor, Is Returning — LOS ANGELES — Picturehouse is back. — The small, feisty distributor of some daring indie films, including “Pan's Labyrinth” and “Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus,” is being rebuilt — independently of its former owner …

Discussion: Home Media Magazine and /Film

Peter Kafka / AllThingsD:

Former Yahoo Boss Ross Levinsohn Has a New Gig, and a Digital M&A War Chest — Ross Levinsohn, who wanted to run Yahoo but didn't get the gig, has a new perch. He's heading up a new digital media company backed by Guggenheim Partners. — Guggenheim already controlled several media trade titles …

Discussion: Folio, The Wrap, AdExchanger, Media & Entertainment, bizjournals and AdAge

Mark Sweney / Guardian:

Guardian News & Media to launch digital Australia edition — Katharine Viner, the Guardian's deputy editor, to lead digital venture which is backed by internet entrepreneur Graeme Wood — The Guardian is to launch a digital edition in Australia, backed by internet entrepreneur and philanthropist Graeme Wood.

Discussion: Media Week, Journalism.co.uk, Radio New Zealand, Sydney Morning Herald, The Drum, @revdancatt, mUmBRELLA and @iburrell

Andrew Miller / Lean Back 2.0:
Why the Guardian is launching a digital edition in Australia

Discussion: pressgazette.co.uk

Erik Wemple:

President Obama credits power of conservative media — At a time when the media are being blamed for mass shootings; burglaries against gun owners; burglaries against non-gun owners; failing to properly cast the debate over debt and taxes; and any number of other ills, President Obama …

Kira Goldenberg / CJR:

In hyperlocal, ‘success’ is subjective — A Street Fight Summit panel of digital journalists dished about their triumphs and concerns — The panel just before lunch at Tuesday's Street Fight Summit, a two-day conference dedicated to all things hyperlocal, was on hyperlocal “publishing models that work.”

Discussion: Street Fight

Chris Roush / Talking Biz News:

Layoffs occurring at Reuters — An undetermined number of Reuters employees are currently being laid off, a company representative confirmed to Talking Biz News. — Those layoffs include editorial staffers. — “Yes, I can confirm there have been layoffs across Thomson Reuters today …

Discussion: FishbowlNY and Big News Network.com

John Plunkett / Guardian:

BBC boosts Britain's economy by £8bn, new report claims — Study commissioned by the corporation shows that broadcaster gave back nearly twice its licence fee spend — The BBC boosted the UK economy by more than £8bn - nearly twice its licence fee spend …

Discussion: About the BBC and The Drum

Abdi Guled / Associated Press:

Journalist Arrested After Reporting On Rape — MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Police in Somalia have arrested a journalist who wrote a story about a woman who said she was raped by government security forces, prompting an outcry from human and media rights groups.

Deadspin:

Hot Stove: Deadspin, Gawker Swap Managing Editors — Deadspin has traded managing editor Tom Scocca to Gawker for managing editor Emma Carmichael. The sign-and-trade deal makes Scocca the deputy editor at Gawker, second in command to new editor John Cook, and it returns Carmichael …

Jessica Roy / Betabeat:

IBM Exec Husband of Aaron Swartz Prosecutor Takes to Twitter to Defend His Wife — In the wake of the suicide of hacker hero Aaron Swartz, his friends and family released a statement placing the onus for his death on “a criminal justice system rife with intimidation and prosecutorial overreach.”

Discussion: MediaShift, Hillicon Valley, CNET, nbcnews.com, SocialTimes, Wired and Daily Dot

The Huffington Post:
Aaron Swartz's Lawyer: Prosecutor Stephen Heymann Wanted ‘Juicy’ Case For Publicity

Discussion: The Daily Beast, New Yorker, The Verge and Fast Company

Mackenzie Weinger / Politico:

Bill Press on future of Current TV hosts — As Current TV vanishes, the progressive media talking heads that called the network home are left with one major question: What's next? — What's next for each host professionally once Al Jazeera America takes the place of Current in millions of homes across the country?

Discussion: The Huffington Post