Mediagazer: Al-Jazeera banned by Iraq over ‘sectarian bias’ in coverage (Guardian)

2:10 PM ET, April 28, 2013

Top News:

The newsonomics of the Koch Brothers and the sales of U.S.' top metros — It almost makes wary Tribune watchers pine for Rupert Murdoch. — In what is shaping up to be the biggest sale of metro U.S. newspapers in history, with six of the top 50 newspapers about to change hands …

Discussion: LA Biz Observed

Michael Calderone / The Huffington Post:

Koch Brothers Media Strategy, Political Agenda Raise Concerns Over Tribune Ownership — NEW YORK — In a July 2010 profile, David Koch told New York magazine that the “radical press is coming after me and Charles,” a reference to his older brother and other half of the billionaire duo that's given tens …

Discussion: msnbc.com and Poynter

David Folkenflik / NPR:
Koch Brothers Could Buy Tribune Papers To Add Media Division

Discussion: JIMROMENESKO.COM and FishbowlNY

Patrick Gavin / Politico:

Obama slings arrows, jokes at White House Correspondents' Dinner 2013 — The White House Correspondents' Association dinner on Saturday night provided President Barack Obama with a chance to take some shots at those things in Washington that rub him the wrong way - all under the guise of “humor.”

Discussion: TechCrunch, Mediaite, TVNewser, The Wrap, The Huffington Post, @howardkurtz, @politico, @howardkurtz, @politico and Washington Post

Philip Bump / The Atlantic Wire:

Don't Call It ‘Nerd Prom’: A White House Correspondents' Dinner Guest Analysis — On Saturday night, Washington's media elite and the government they cover will sit down together for a meal, lots of drinks, and a few tame jokes. The annual event is formally known as the White House Correspondents' Dinner …

Discussion: Gawker, Mediaite, LAist and Chickaboomer

Erik Wemple / Washington Post:

Can Politico spot gender issues? — Politico on Tuesday night told of a dire situation at the New York Times. Executive Editor Jill Abramson, says the story by Dylan Byers, is “on the verge of losing the support of the newsroom” on account of her “brusque” manner. She goes to meetings and makes people miserable.

Discussion: @jayrosen_nyu, @stevebuttry and The Buttry Diary

Guardian:

Al-Jazeera banned by Iraq over ‘sectarian bias’ in coverage — Qatar-based channel and nine other stations have licences revoked as government claims they fuel bloodshed — The Iraqi authorities announced on Sunday that they had revoked the operating licences of the broadcaster al-Jazeera …

Discussion: BBC, Reuters, GlobalPost, Al Jazeera English and RT

Associated Press:

Mary Thom Dead: Former Ms. Magazine Editor Dies In NY Crash — YONKERS, N.Y. (AP) — Prominent feminist Mary Thom, a writer and former editor of Ms. magazine who also was an avid motorcyclist, crashed while riding on a highway and was killed, her nephew said Saturday. She was 68.

Discussion: New York Times, CNN, FishbowlNY, Gawker, Reuters, Women's Media Center and lohud.com

Allie Grasgreen / Inside Higher Ed:

College newspapers turn to student fees for funding — While declining print readership and advertising revenue started prompting layoffs and paper shrinkage at professional newspapers decades ago, campus publications managed to stave off those financial woes for a while.

Discussion: College Media Matters

Michael McLaughlin / The Huffington Post:

Cambridge Police Department's Twitter Strategy Tested By Boston Bombing Manhunt — Anyone in Cambridge, Mass., who sees flashing lights or hears sirens need only log onto the police department's Twitter account to find out what's going on. — Bank robberies, fights, downed trees …

Discussion: The Huffington Post

Alexander C. Kaufman / FishbowlNY:

AOL Music Shuttered, Staff Laid Off [Updated] — AOL has shuttered its AOL Music division and laid off its staff, according to pink-slipped employees on Twitter. — Spinner.com, a rock-music news site under the AOL Music banner, announced suddenly on Thursday afternoon that it was shutting down.

Discussion: Variety, AllThingsD, Mashable, Softpedia News, The Verge, RapFix, AllAccess.com, Fast Company, Radio & Television … and CNET

Jim Romenesko:

Meet Michelle Boatley, fake Thomson Reuters legal publication reporter — A few years ago, Boatley was cranking out stories left and right — short pieces about law firm layoffs, merger deals, and firm expansions. — Then she vanished. — People who knew the secret about Boatley thought she had been killed — by her editors.

Discussion: Gawker

Jeff Bercovici / Forbes:

Glenn Beck on the CNN ‘Pit of Despair’ and Why He Got Out of Cable TV — Glenn Beck thinks the television industry as we know it is dying, but that's not why he left it to start his own digital network, The Blaze. He's making a lot more money now than he did at Fox News, but that wasn't it either.

Discussion: TVNewser, The Raw Story and Mediaite