Mediagazer: PRESS MAN: Pundit (Declined) (Andrew Ferguson/Commentary)

9:40 AM ET, September 5, 2010

Top News:

Adam Penenberg / Fast Company:

The $131M Ford Rollover Death Verdict That Twitter Broke — Fast Company's Adam L. Penenberg tweets the breaking news about a verdict against Ford in the death of rising Mets star Brian Cole. As reporters lagged behind on the story, Penenberg discovered a new media use for the 140-character format.

Frances Martel / Mediaite:

When Journalists Bury The Lede, Is Twitter The New Way To Dig It Back Up? — The family of late New York Mets prospect Brian Cole finally gained closure after being rewarded $131 million by the Ford Company in redress after the star was killed in an Explorer crash. In the mainstream media, that's where the story ended.

Arthur S. Brisbane / New York Times:

In an Age of Voices, Moving Beyond the Facts — WHAT some call opinion, others call interpretive journalism — a label as opaque as the practice. Call it what you will, nothing has generated more reader indignation in the past few weeks than when it has appeared on a news page.

Ben Parr / Mashable!:

Kanye West and How Twitter Has Changed the Way We Communicate — If you needed any more proof that Twitter has transformed how we absorb information and communicate, look no further than Kanye West. — Just a few hours ago, the superstar rapper let loose a barrage of 70+ tweets …

Discussion: Gizmodo, Speakeasy, TechCrunch and Hollywood Life, more at Techmeme »

Andrew Ferguson / Commentary:

PRESS MAN: Pundit (Declined) — Peter Beinart is one of those journalists, common in Washington, who is less interesting for what he says than for who he is, or who he wants to be thought to be. He's an exemplar, and when, this May, he published an essay in the New York Review of Books announcing that …

Jack Shafer / Slate:

Team Murdoch on Ethics — Let's review the recent ethical conduct of Rupert Murdoch's London tabloid, News of World. — In 2007, News of the World reporter Clive Goodman, and a private investigator who worked with him, Glenn Mulcaire, went to jail for hacking the phone mail of aides to the royal family.

Discussion: Gawker and BBC College of Journalism Blog

Mark Oppenheimer / New York Times:

A Niche of the Unreal in a World of Credulity — Since 2008, ChristWire.org has emerged as the leading Internet site for ultraconservative Christian news, commentary and weather reportage. — “Hurricane Earl Projected Path, Gay East Coast of America,” ChristWire opined on Monday.

Discussion: ChristWire, Advocate and New York Magazine

Doc Searls Weblog:

Why Howard Stern's next act is Internet radio — Howard Stern's contract with Sirius XM is up at the end of the year, and it was good to hear on the show this week that the full retirement option is off the table. That was one of five options Howard said he was considering.

Devon Glenn / FishbowlNY:

‘Condé Nast meets Demand Media’: New Platform Connects Indie Publishers with Top-Tier Advertisers — Strap on your sandals, bloggers, and get ready to give the big publishing companies a run for their money - the creators of StyleCaster just announced the launch of The Masthead …

Discussion: eMedia Vitals

Sharon Waxman / The Wrap:

Updated: Eminem Wins Royalties from Universal, UMG Will Fight It — The U.S. Court of Appeals has overturned a lower court ruling and decided that Eminem's music-publishing company is owed royalties by Universal Music Group (UMG) for music downloaded over iTunes or sold as cellphone ringtones.

Discussion: Variety, L.A. Times Tech Blog and Techdirt, more at Techmeme »

David Rothman / The Solomon Scandals:

TBD hyperlocal site's traffic pops up after hostage crisis at Discovery Channel's headquarters — TBD's new hyperlocal Web site for the D.C. area is no great shakes so far in the visitor count department, but it's too early to pass judgment. That's what I wrote last month.

Discussion: The Buttry Diary

Economist:

Putting your money where your mouse is — Crowdfunding: Artists, musicians and writers are using the internet to aggregate lots of small donations to fund their work — WIKIPEDIA, a giant online encyclopedia compiled by volunteers, is the product of the aggregation of lots of people's spare time.