Mediagazer: Afghan Media Faces Uncertain Future As U.S. Withdraws (Michael Calderone/The Huffington Post)

3:45 AM ET, January 31, 2013

Top News:

Nicole Perlroth / New York Times:

Hackers in China Attacked The Times for Last 4 Months — SAN FRANCISCO — For the last four months, Chinese hackers have persistently attacked The New York Times, infiltrating its computer systems and getting passwords for its reporters and other employees.

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Adam Martin / New York Magazine:

Chinese Hackers Stole Every New York Times Employee's Password — On Wednesday night, after enduring four months of hacking, the New York Times finally reported its computer network had been infiltrated and that it had ousted its attackers, who it linked to the Chinese military.

Kara Bloomgarden-Smoke / The New York Observer:

Matt Buchanan Leaving BuzzFeed For The New Yorker — In a move that is a reverse of the hordes of journalists leaving old school jobs for BuzzFeed, Matt Buchanan, the editor of FWD, the site's tech vertical, is leaving for the more august shores of The New Yorker.

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BuzzFeed:

Al Jazeera America Has Received More Than 8,000 Applications — Lots of competition for just 160 positions. — Within 24 hours of posting openings for the majority of their new positions, Al Jazeera America received 5000 applications for open positions, a number that has grown to 8,063 …

Nikolas Kozloff / The Huffington Post:

Al Jazeera America: Time for a New Cable Model? — In a witheringly condescending article, Guardian columnist Michael Wolff recently mocked the launching of Al Jazeera America, a new cable network that will compete with the likes of Fox, CNN and MSNBC. Hardly mincing words …

Nat Ives / AdAge:

Time Inc. Cuts Some 500 Jobs, Biggest Layoffs in Years — Storied Publisher Resumes Reductions to Employee Rolls — Time Inc., the publisher of magazines including Time and Sports Illustrated, has begun eliminating about 6% of its head count — nearly 500 jobs — in the biggest round of cuts at the company since 2008.

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Wall Street Journal:
Time Inc. Begins Staff Cuts

Discussion: Poynter, paidContent, Media Decoder, AllThingsD, @keachhagey and Politico

Susan Currie Sivek / MediaShift:

Just Read It: Magazine Publishers Push Minimalist Apps Without Fluff — “Internet Users Demand Less Interactivity,” read the headline of a recent article at The Onion. A (fictional) Internet user commented: “Every time I type a web address into my browser, I don't need to be taken to a fully immersive …

Jim Romenesko: Jessica Lustig named Village Voice deputy editor

Hamish McKenzie / PandoDaily:
Kill the pageview: 29th Street Publishing looks to profit off small and good

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Michael Calderone / The Huffington Post:

Afghan Media Faces Uncertain Future As U.S. Withdraws — Danish Karokhel, like all Afghan journalists, couldn't report freely during Taliban rule in the 1990s. The Islamic fundamentalist regime allowed only a single, state-run outlet, Radio Sharia, on the air.

Jim Romenesko:

SPJ kills print edition of conference newspaper — Buried in the Society of Professional Journalists president's winter meeting notes is news that SPJ will no longer produce a print version of its Working Press newspaper at SPJ's annual conference. … SPJ will still offer …

Discussion: Freedom of the Prez

Laura Hazard Owen / paidContent:

Why Apple is the stumbling block in Amazon's ebook transition — Nobody can predict the future, but Amazon thinks that when it comes to ebooks the writing is on the wall. — “We're now seeing the transition we've been expecting,” CEO Jeff Bezos said in the company's fourth-quarter earnings report, released Tuesday.

Discussion: Softpedia News

Lucia Moses / Adweek:

After Scientology Debacle, The Atlantic Tightens Native Ad Guidelines — A little over two weeks after The Atlantic got egg on its face over a sponsored Web post by the Church of Scientology, the media brand has issued new guidelines for so-called native advertising. They're live on the brand's site now.

Discussion: Poynter and The Huffington Post

Emil Protalinski / The Next Web:

Vimeo announces content ratings: Videos will now be marked for All Audiences, Mature, or Not Yet Rated — On Wednesday, Vimeo announced it is bringing content ratings to its videos. As of today, videos on Vimeo will have a little badge next to their title, labeled as one of three types: All Audiences, Mature, or Not Yet Rated.

Discussion: Vimeo Staff Blog, Engadget and The Verge