Mediagazer: Can The Washington Post's national push help support local news? (Columbia Journalism Review)

2:20 PM ET, April 7, 2014

Top News:

Leslie Kaufman / New York Times:

Vox.com looks to technology to move beyond constraints of print media — Vox.com Takes Melding of Journalism and Technology to Next Level — WASHINGTON — Ask Ezra Klein what prompted him to leave a high-profile position at The Washington Post to start a new website, and the answer is a little wonkish …

Vox:

Welcome to Vox: a work in progress — Welcome to Vox.com! Again! On March 9, we launched Vox.com, which included our first videos, and we started talking to readers on our Facebook page and on our Twitter feed. Today marks phase two of Vox's launch: the beginning of our effort to build …

Michael Calderone / The Huffington Post:

New York Times Changes Ezra Klein Quote To No Longer Criticize Washington Post — NEW YORK — Ezra Klein, the editor-in-chief of the just-launched Vox.com, appeared to criticize his former employer, The Washington Post, in an article published Sunday night. — The New York Times' Leslie Kaufman reported the following:

Discussion: The New York Observer and Mediaite

Bloomberg:

Microsoft Xbox launching six TV series in June; comedians Seth Green, Sarah Silverman onboard — Microsoft Goes Hollywood in Amazon-Like Programming Push — Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) is going Hollywood with a cast including comedians Sarah Silverman and Seth Green, aspiring World Cup players and eerily human robots.

Martin Weil / Washington Post:

Charles S. Stone Jr, founder of National Association of Black Journalists, dies at 89 — Charles S. Stone Jr., journalist and professor, dies at 89 — Charles S. (Chuck) Stone Jr., a prominent and pioneering American journalist who touched and shaped many lives as a big-city newspaper columnist …

Discussion: Poynter, Philly.com, Gawker, The Newspaper Guild, WNCT-TV, @kpalmer433, Diverse, ncnn.com, @geoffedgers and Associated Press

Raju Narisetti / Nieman Journalism Lab:

We need to talk: 26 awkward questions to ask news organizations about the move to digital — Here are 25 awkward questions (and one counter-question) that I wish media reporters/critics would routinely ask of editors and mainstream news organizations, each year.

Discussion: @raju, @charlesforelle, @tothevictor, @sarahmarshall, @mattderienzo, @antderosa and @jbenton

Andrew Beaujon / Poynter:

Rutgers AD: If Star-Ledger died, 'That'd be great' — Speaking to a journalism class, Rutgers University Athletic Director Julie Hermann said “That'd be great” about the prospect of The (Newark, N.J.) Star-Ledger dying. “I'm going to do all I can to not to give them a headline to keep …

Discussion: New Jersey Online, @kellymcb, Muckgers and @mlcalderone

Cynthia Littleton / Variety:

Barbara Walters to Sign Off ‘The View,’ Retire From TV on May 16 — Barbara Walters has set May 16 as her final appearance on ABC's daytime strip “The View” as she retires from TV journalism. — Walters' 50-plus years in television will be feted that night with a two-hour primetime special on ABC.

Discussion: ABC News, TVNewser, Capital New York, The Wrap, New York Times, The TV Guy, Newsday and Just Jared

Columbia Journalism Review:

Can The Washington Post's national push help support local news? — When The Washington Post announced in mid-March that it would provide free digital access to subscribers of a half-dozen local papers around the country, the consensus take was clear: After years of hesitation, the Post …

Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:

AOL Appoints William Pence From WebMD As New CTO; Curtis Brown Steps Down — AOL's ongoing push to turn its business around and focus on more ad-tech fuelled media plays continues apace: today the company (which owns TechCrunch) appointed a new CTO, William Pence, who it's hired away from WebMD, where he was also CTO as well as EVP.

Discussion: FishbowlNY, ZDNet, Softpedia News, Wall Street Journal and thedrum.com

Alastair Reid / Journalism.co.uk:

Bleacher Report co-founder to launch ‘deep-interest’ titles — David Nemetz, founder of sports site Bleacher Report, is to launch a series of “deep-interest” sites that have an “educational aspect and a lifestyle aspect” by the end of the year. Speaking at the WAN-IFRA Digital Media Europe conference …

Discussion: FishbowlNY

David Carr / New York Times:

Questions for Comcast as It Looks to Grow — It is hard to say how rugged the questions will be when Comcast goes before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday to defend its proposed megamerger with Time Warner Cable. — We do know that Comcast is feeling pretty confident about its chances.