Mediagazer: How James Foley advised and encouraged a freelance reporter to go to Syria in 2012 (Tom Risen/US News)

8:00 AM ET, August 22, 2014

Top News:

Flood of cameras, appalling media behavior in Ferguson spur freelancer to opt out of spectacle — I will not be returning to Ferguson — I had been on the ground helping Al Jazeera America** cover the protests and unrest in Ferguson, Mo., since this all started last week.

Discussion: Guardian, The Daily Caller, @anildash, @penenberg, @vdcphotonews, @elisewho, @ryanschuessler1, @iamsakuma, @tomgara, @yvonnemmu, @clairecmc, @april_davis, @vdcphotonews, @amaditalks, @mmasnick, @_peech, @antderosa, VDC Photo Blog, Gawker, Hot Air and Mediaite

Margaret Sullivan / New York Times:

A Ferguson Story on ‘Conflicting Accounts’ Seems to Say ‘Trust Us’ — Want an object lesson in the problems of dubious equivalency and anonymous sources? — Look no further than Wednesday's Times, where a highly fraught question — precisely how, in Ferguson, Mo., a black teenager …

Discussion: msnbc.com, @lawrence, @lawrence, @the_fjp, @elizabethdrewoh, @occbaystreet, @jayrosen_nyu, @dangillmor, @johnmcquaid, Pressing Issues, Latest News & Headlines and Hot Air

Pew Research Center:

Cable, Twitter picked up Ferguson story at a similar clip — The shooting death of an unarmed teenager in Ferguson, Missouri, quickly became a national news story on mainstream and social media last week. A new Pew Research Center analysis of media coverage of the event and subsequent protests finds …

Discussion: Columbia Journalism Review, SocialTimes and The Huffington Post

Martin Chulov / Guardian:

James Foley and fellow freelancers assumed more risks as media outlets cut back budgets — James Foley and fellow freelancers: exploited by pared-back media outlets — In this new age of journalism, publishers should not abdicate responsibility by hiding behind low budgets

Discussion: @davidc7, @benplesser, @renireni, @remcoand, @eefita, @robcrilly, @allison_good1, @martinchulov, @brightey, @blakehounshell, @janemartinson, Forbes and CNN

Tom Risen / US News:

How James Foley advised and encouraged a freelance reporter to go to Syria in 2012 — Jim Foley's Advice: Go to Syria — In 2012 James Foley advised me how I could freelance in Syria, where he was eventually kidnapped. — A passionate journalist on a mission

Discussion: New York Times, Guardian and Associated Press, Thanks:@tomrisen

Brian Fung / Washington Post:

A federal court rejects Aereo's request to argue it's a cable company — Aereo's seemingly last-ditch argument to save itself won't be given an airing in court, according to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. — Instead, if the shuttered streaming video company wants to keep fighting for its survival …

Discussion: Bloomberg, @pkafka, @mikesnider, TechCrunch, USA Today and Electronista

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:

Majority Of Digital Media Consumption Now Takes Place In Mobile Apps — U.S. users are now spending the majority of their time consuming digital media within mobile applications, according to a new study released by comScore this morning. That means mobile apps, including the number 1 …

Discussion: Forbes, comScore, Inc., @craigmod, @benhuh, Music Ally, Talking New Media and Marketing Land, Thanks:@steverubel

Mathew Ingram / Gigaom:

Immersive journalism: What if you could experience a news event in 3D by using an Oculus Rift? — Journalist and documentary film-maker Nonny de la Pena is using the three-dimensional virtual world technology behind the Oculus Rift headset to create immersive journalistic experiences based on major news events

Joseph Lichterman / Nieman Lab:

How a Norwegian public radio station is using Snapchat to connect young listeners with news — The newsonomics of Schibsted's VGTV and web-native TV — In 2011, the Norwegian public broadcaster NRK set the world record for the longest single television show by broadcasting a cruise ship traversing the country's coast.

Discussion: AdExchanger, VatorNews and SocialTimes

CNN:

Friends of ISIS captive Sotloff speak out admiringly of his talent, passion — (CNN) — When freelance journalist Steven Sotloff disappeared during a reporting trip to Syria in August 2013, his family kept the news a secret. Families of hostages are frequently advised to do this by security firms …

Discussion: USA Today

Caroline O'Donovan / Nieman Lab:

This: Why Atlantic Media is funding a social platform for sharing links, one at a time — By now, you might have heard that Atlantic Media's Andrew Golis is incubating a small social network inside the company. Golis came to Atlantic Media as entrepreneur-in-residence a little over a year ago …

Discussion: @yingworld, @laura_warne, @jaredbkeller, @jeremymbarr, @nadinegoff and @agolis

Anne Gearan / Washington Post:

Photojournalist held in Iran is released on bail, but Washington Post reporter still held — A photojournalist arrested in Iran alongside Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian and his wife was released on bail Wednesday, a family source said. — Separately, the State Department …

Discussion: New York Times, @pressfreedom, @sherifmnsour, @cpjmena and Agence France-Presse

James Ball / Guardian:

Twitter's claim to be just a platform, and not a publisher, is suspect if it censors images and videos — Twitter: from free speech champion to selective censor? — By acting on footage of James Foley's murder, Twitter has taken responsibility in a way it hasn't over abuse and threats.