Mediagazer: Think-tank journalism: more to promote ideas and policy than to inform or expose wrongdoing (Economist)

3:35 PM ET, September 23, 2014

Top News:

Freedom Communications ceases publication of L.A. Register — The Los Angeles Register, which launched in April as part Aaron Kushner's bold bet on print newspapers, will cease publication, effective immediately. — Orange County Register co-owner Aaron Kushner announced the decision Monday night in a memo sent to employees.

Discussion: JIMROMENESKO.COM, New York Times, Associated Press, Guardian, LA Observed, @earleyoc, USA Today, @hillelaron, @davidfolkenflik, @stevebuttry, @jimbradysp, @lauraelizdavis, @mattdpearce, LA Observed, Media Nation and Nieman Lab

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Disney's Maker Studios Pacts with MiTú to Produce Latino YouTube Content — Maker Studios, the YouTube multichannel network owned by Disney, reached an exclusive deal with Latino-focused MCN MiTú to develop original and branded content aimed at the fast-growing U.S. Hispanic market.

Discussion: The Wrap

Justin Ellis / Nieman Lab:

New York Times launches real-time aggregated feed of headlines, tweets, multimedia on homepage — Watching what happens: The New York Times is making a front-page bet on real-time aggregation — The rhythms of the homepage of NYTimes.com are by now familiar, even a little predictable.

Discussion: FishbowlNY, NetNewsCheck Latest, @jeffjohnroberts, Politico, @justinnxt, @brianboyer, New York Times Company, @jayrosen_nyu, New York Times and Cision

Ilya Khrennikov / Bloomberg:

Springer, Pearson Independence in Russia Tested by Media Bill — Russia's planned amendments to media law are threatening independent publications run by companies such as News Corp. (NWSA), Pearson Plc (PSON) and Axel Springer SE in the country, according to the Moscow-based Center for Political Technologies.

Discussion: ITAR-TASS

Liam Dillon / Nieman Lab:

Behind the plans to turn San Diego's daily newspaper into a non-profit — What we know (and don't know) about the plan to make San Diego's daily a nonprofit — Editor's note: In San Diego, a philanthropist is talking about buying up the local daily and turning its ownership into a nonprofit model.

Discussion: @jayrosen_nyu, @niemanlab and Voice of San Diego

Jennifer Steinhauer / New York Times:

A Tailor-Made Publisher Taking Over Jeff Bezos' Washington Post — WASHINGTON — Frederick J. Ryan Jr. juggles black-tie invitations, while Jeff Bezos shuns the social limelight for reading about space travel. — Former colleagues of Mr. Ryan joke that for him casual Friday is a day without …

Discussion: @thefix, @abeaujon, The New York Observer, @nytimesbusiness and @markberman

Mark Sweney / Guardian:

Mashable appoints Blathnaid Healy and Tim Chester as Editor and Deputy Editor of UK site — Mashable appoints editor for new London office as UK audience grows — Social media site's first operation outside of US to be headed by Blathnaid Healy, with Tim Chester taking deputy editor role

Discussion: Mashable, FishbowlNY, @blathnaidhealy, Poynter, @adamostrow, @nycjim, @marklittlenews and @blathnaidhealy

Economist:

Think-tank journalism: more to promote ideas and policy than to inform or expose wrongdoing — Think tanks and journalism: the divide between having ideas and reporting on them is dissolving — The divide between having ideas and reporting on them is dissolving

Joan E. Solsman / CNET:

Vevo ramps up original programming, adds over 100 new episodes — Vevo original shows are multiplying — and getting animated — The streaming service is amping up its own original content with its programming slate so far, finding visitors spend more time when they have more than just slick music videos to dive into.

Leslie Kaufman / New York Times:

Dataminr, which detects breaking news on social media, now commercially available to news orgs — A New Tool Scours Social Media for Hot Tips — Earlier this year, several producers at CNN received an alert from a new digital news gathering tool that they were testing …

Discussion: @tvnewslab and The Next Web

Peter Kafka / Re/code:

HBO, Amazon Prime and Broadband for $40 a Month at AT&T — It's still nearly impossible to get HBO, or any other pay-TV channel, without subscribing to a pay-TV package that gives you a bundle of channels, whether you want them or not. — But the people who sell you TV are starting to tinker with the model, at least at the margins.

Discussion: Home Media Magazine, Mashable, PC Advisor, Variety, @willrinehart, Electronista, Engadget and The Verge

Jim Romenesko:

Moody's sees “little evidence” that digital subs will help US newspapers and magazines — Moody's: ‘Our outlook for the U.S. newspapers and magazines sector is negative’ — No surprise: A new report from Moody's Investors Service says the outlook for newspapers and magazines “is negative through at least late 2015.”

Discussion: Guardian

Paul Sawers / The Next Web:

Audioboo rebrands as AudioBoom and overhauls its iOS app — Social audio platform Audioboo has announced that it's rebranding as AudioBoom, as it lifts the lid on an all-new iOS app too. — Launched in March 2009, Audioboo(M) lets you record audio snippets, which they can share with friends or broadcast to the world.

Discussion: Life Style Extra, The Drum and The Audioboo blog

Chris Roush / Talking Biz News:

Jonathan Weber out as Managing Editor of The Information — Weber out as ME of The Information — Weber wrote, “I'm out as managing editor of @theinformation, an abrupt turn of events. Best of luck to the fine staff there.” Weber had joined the site earlier this year after being the West Coast bureau chief for Reuters.

Discussion: @weberwest, @antderosa, @ranjanxroy, @learmonth, @hblodget, @sdkstl, PandoDaily and @mathewi

Jeff John Roberts / Gigaom:

In big setback for digital radio, court says SiriusXM must pay Turtles for pre-1972 recordings — In a ruling that could put major new costs on digital radio services, a judge ruled that the music industry can claim additional copyright in pre-1972 recordings under state law.

Discussion: Showbiz411 and Hollywood Reporter

Roy Greenslade / Guardian:

Popular 18 year old Libyan radio journalist Tawfiq Ben Saud shot dead following threats — Libyan journalist, 18, shot dead after weeks of threats — A young Libyan radio journalist who had been receiving death threats for weeks was shot dead in a hail of bullets in Benghazi on 19 September.

Discussion: Reporters Without Borders, Associated Press and Aljazeera