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Media Crack
Boston Globe's 'Friendly' Joke
In your soothing Wednesday media column: the Boston Globe has a sense of humor, Jon Friedman turns 10, the Weekly Standard's getting dumped, Steve Doocy's kid finds a job, and crazy people want to start a new newspaper. More » -
series of tubes
Capturing Jon Friedman
Jon Friedman, the superlative media columnist for MarketWatch, wants to say just one word to you. Just one word. Are you listening? Web. There's a great future in the web. Just think about it. Friedman himself has embraced this "web," it seems, and now he has a little YouTube thing where he will explain the future of the media to you in one minute or less, every week. If you have never heard or seen Friedman, it is an enlightening experience! For example, now we understand why he doesn't "get" Anderson Cooper. But Friedman's is a reassuring message—that there is room for all of us on this "web," regardless of age, appearance, or ability to craft and present a compelling opinion. (Video after the jump!) More » -
mass appeal
Jon Friedman Doesn't "Get" Anderson Cooper
MarketWatch media guru Jon Friedman just doesn't get the deal with that Anderson Cooper fellow. You know the one, right? Infinite blue eyes, enveloping gaze, powerful (but gentle) arms, distinguished and shimmering silver hair? Works on CNN? Well Friedman thinks he's the bunk! People just like Anderson 'cause he's adorable, and warm, and kind, and earnest! Not for any good reasons! Or, as Friedman puts it: "Yes, CNN's Anderson Cooper has heart. He oozes empathy. He's clearly a good-hearted fellow and, by all accounts, as likeable as all get-out." YES, YES, BUT WHY IS HE SO POPULAR? And, more importantly, why don't people feel the same way about Jon Friedman?? (Click thru to see the t-shirt we just bought for Jon, btw.) More » -
journalismism
5 Years After Jayson Blair, Newspapers Too Broke to Care About Ethics
Superstar MarketWatch media columnist Jon Friedman remembered recently that there was this young fellow who worked for the Times once who got in trouble for making things up and lying. It was a bit of a scandal! It happened five years ago this... season, so Friedman asks a couple folk what they think of the current state of media ethics. Salon's Joan Walsh says the Jayson Blair (for that was the fabricator's name) scandal forced writers and editors to remind themselves not to lie, or to maybe fact-check once in a while. Editor & Publisher's Greg Mitchell says the scandal encouraged more papers to issue corrections more often and not plagiarize so much. But a couple critics note that Jayson Blair is really the least of the newsmedia's woes in 2008. More » -
magazines
Jon Friedman Also Misses 'George'
MarketWatch media guru Jon Friedman wants to know why you kids aren't reading three of his favorite magazines anymore: U.S. News & World Report, The Sporting News, and Fast Company. We want to know whatever happened to Collier's Weekly! And where's our new issue of The American Mercury? [MarketWatch] -
jon friedman
Jon Friedman Says Something We Don't Really Object To
Marketwatch media person (and frequent target of Gawker ridicule) Jon Friedman actually wrote a thought that is sorta original and correct and interesting! According to him, MSNBC's ratings may suck, but they "stand out in one underappreciated category: embarrassing, mealy-mouthed apologies." He refers to David Shuster's suspension for his remarks about Chelsea Clinton (ably dissected down to the very last gruesome detail by Rachel Sklar here), which, along with Chris Matthews' half-hearted and partially reversed apology for being insane about Hillary, has MSNBC holding the early lead in the "apologizing to the Clintons" race. Of course, in the overall apology race, Fox did force anchor John Gibson to apologize for laughing it up at the death of Heath Ledger. But he didn't really mean it so that doesn't count. [Marketwatch] -
class warfare
Friedman: Ron Rosenbaum Will Save The Internet
Marketwatch media critic Jon Friedman's MEDIA WEB QUESTION OF THE DAY: "Who is your favorite writer on the Internet?" Ours is MarketWatch media critic Jon Friedman! Today he wants to introduce you to 61-year-old Ron Rosenbaum, who, writing at Washington Post-owned internet magazine of conventional wisdom plus occasional contrarianism Slate, "represent[s] a turning point in the evolution of online journalism." Finally, these new-fangled internet websites are hiring ultra-established, book-writin' old white dudes. More » -
the new model
The 'Times' Bets It All On Graphics
Vivian Schiller General Manager, NYTimes.com: I just want to say one word to you—just one word. More » -
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bad spin
Why People Care About 'Portfolio'
Today endlessly irksome media columnist Jon Friedman writes: "It's still hard to believe that a monthly, which has published a total of two issues, can seem so important. Yet Portfolio has taken on the aura of a big-budget Hollywood production, where pandemonium appears to be everywhere. Unfortunately, the magazine raises comparisons with "Heaven's Gate" and "Gigli." ("Do you even remember the latter's plot line?" Friedman asks. Sadly, some people do.) Friedman trots out Portfolio's publisher David Carey and Conde publicist Perri Dorset to dismiss the hubbub and claim that everyone's just talking about their stories. And, for real? It's "hard to believe" that this magazine—for which Conde Nast crowed about spending $100 million and poached nearly every business journalist with a pulse and maybe one standout clip—"can seem so important"?
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our celebrities, ourselves
Jon Friedman Loves Julia Allison
Much like the many men who want to do Julia Allison but don't want to be known as having done the charming Star Editor-at-Large, plenty of reporters want to write a story about Julia Allison, but don't want to be known for having penned a profile of the bubbly media figure. Marketwatch's Jon Friedman finds the perfect solution to the dilemma: Pretend it's a happy piece about a stupid weblog, and then, with that window-dressing in place, Allison it up! It's a charming, self-inoculating strategy, and who are we to begrudge the guy? Julia Allison, like it or not, is traffic! Think about that when you write your angry comments about why we're giving her so much coverage, okay? More » -
media bubble
Conrad Black Even Swears Like Nixon
- In an interview with the Guardian, Conrad Black calls his fraud trial "bullshit" and announces that he's at war with the U.S. government. The paper also has an excerpt from Black's forthcoming biography of Richard Nixon, which praises the former president's "surpassing dignity." Read into that what you will. [Guardian] More »
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media bubble
Oprah Cancels Presidential Election
- Oprah Winfrey endorses Barack Obama. Hell, if she can move copies of The Road she can probably sell anything. [NYT] More »
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media bubble
Guns & Blammo
- Garden & Gun has less than auspicious debut, arriving as it did just a few days before decidedly unpicturesque massive gun violence at Virginia Tech. [NYT] More »
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media
Media Bubble: Conrad Black Trial Begins
- Conrad Black's fraud trial starts today. [Chicago Tribune] More »
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media
Media Bubble: Maer Reports To Yusef
- Surly Maer Roshan only talks to Yusef Jackson. Yusef talks to Ron Burkle. It's called plausible deniability. You know, allegedly. [NYO] More »
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media
Media Bubble: Meth Mag Sales Slaves Of America
- Holy crap, Ian Urbina did a lot of work in this piece on kids who just want to sell magazines but wind up hanging out with meth-addicted prostitutes. Only 11 months and one week until the next Pulitzer deadline! [NYT] More »
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jon friedman
Someone Stole Jon Friedman's Thesaurus
Count Marketwatch media critic blatherer Jon Friedman as unhappy with the newest member of "The Today Show" team. Jonny thinks that Tiki Barber was a little too petulant during the press conference announcing his hire. On the other hand (and with Friedman, there's always another hand), it might not make a difference. Barber has something: a certain je ne sais quoi, an element of... well, we're not sure. Jon? More » -
media
Media Bubble: DO NOT MAKE IT LIVE!!!
- "Time Inc. has selected Stockholm's Bonnier Group as the winner of the auction for the right to buy 18 of Time Inc.'s magazines. There was no immediate word on the price that Bonnier will pay, but the terms are in place and a deal should close within a month." That's what AdAge said, but then they pulled it. So who knows? [AdAge] More »
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jon friedman
Media Critic's Finger Firmly On The Pulse
Noted without comment.[W]hy did "60 Minutes" feel the need to include in Sunday's show a melodramatic segment dealing (again) with the Duke alleged-rape case? The program showed the furious parents of the accused lacrosse players sounding off before a national audience....Then again, maybe I'm in the minority here. Perhaps America craves the spectacle of furious mothers railing against a flawed legal system.
Jon Friedman60 Minutes "made Nielsen's top-10 list by delivering its best audience in key demographics in over a year last Sunday," CBS notes in a press release. The newsmag had 14,470,000 viewers and delivered an 11.2/16. "The broadcast finished at #6 in viewers and #5 in households to make the weekly top-10 list for the fifth time this season. In adults 25-54, 60 Minutes (6.0/12) had it best delivery since Jan. 8, 2006 and best adults 18-49 (4.9/11) delivery since Dec. 11, 2005." Scott Pelley had an interview with President Bush and Lesley Stahl had a double-length segment on the Duke rape case...
TVNewser More » -
media
Media Bubble: Trees Falling in the Forest
- Here come the layoffs at the Philadelphia Inquirer. [NYT] More »
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media
Media Bubble: YOU Are Kind Of Creeping Us Out
- Dean Baquet wins the coveted Observer Media Mensch of the Year award. This follows hot on the heels of a bunch of other bullshit made-up media awards by organizations you've barely heard of, and comes a day in advance of our naming Chris Mohney's right testicle Gawker's Blog Ball of the Year. [NYO] More »
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media
Media Bubble: All in the Family
- The Chandler family, former owners of the Los Angeles Times, are unhappy with the way Tribune is selling itself off. [NYT] More »
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media
Media Bubble: Ironies Abound
- A group of Columbia journalism students allegedly cheated on an ethics exam. There go those cushy Voice gigs. [Radar] More »
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media
Media Bubble: Here Is The Internet
- We think it's kind of tacky to mock a Parkinson's patient for writing a doddering, fogeyish column about the Internet. So we'll let Wonkette do it. Anyway, our guess as to the mystery journalist is Kaus. [Slate] More »
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media
Media Bubble: This Is The Sound Of Someone Losing The Plot
- Is Rupert Murdoch losing it? Surprisingly, a rival paper thinks yes. [Telegraph U.K.] More »
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jon friedman
We're Rubber and Jon Friedman is Glue
Over the last few months on certain blogs, Marketwatch media transcription service has been called a "douchebag," compared to a child molester, mocked about his appearance, chided for his inflated sense of importance, and even taunted about his writing style. Not to mention the repeated assertions that he essentially peddles conventional wisdom and rarely says anything of interest. Well, in a piece about Men's Health EIC Dave Zinczenko, (and isn't that an innovative choice of topic), Big Jon gets his revenge. It's a subtle dig, and he utters under the guise of defending the Zinc man, but we can tell it's really all about him. How does Friedman dispose of the derision so frequently flung his way? More » -
jon friedman
Jon Friedman: "You talkin' to me? Then who the hell else are you talkin' to?"
Today's Jon Friedman column concerns Illinois Senator Barack Obama, who appeared at this week's American Magazine Conference. It's the platonic ideal of a Friedman column, regurgitating the conventional wisdom while offering the meaningless on-the-one-hand, on-the-other-hand assessments (he actually uses the phrase "on the one hand") that have become his stock-in-trade. Our favorite part, though, comes when Friedman meets the man himself at a dinner: More » -
media
Media Bubble: What Would Jesus Expense?
• You ever get so incapacitated by the incredible number of jokes that you could possibly do about a story that you just bury it in a linkdump? Because sometimes we do. [FBW] More » -
media
Media Bubble: The Man Can't Bust Our Music
• Music industry decides that illegal downloaders are people too. Which means they can be marketed to. [WSJ] More » -
media
Media Bubble: Tripped Up
• That Cathy Horyn correction? It was a big "fuck you" to Styles editor Trip Gabriel. [WWD] More » -
media
Media Bubble: Dick Parsons Pissing On Chad Hurley's Parade
• Dick Parsons to GooTube: "Good luck. Also, we're going to sue your socks right off your ass." [Guardian] More » -
jon friedman
Fake News Helps Friedman Hit His Stride
Talented media reporter/secretary Jon Friedman plays it close to the vest this week with a cagey, contemplative piece on an oft-overlooked player's comments at a classified event: Jon Stewart's chat with David Remnick at the New Yorker festival. (God only knows what sort of deep cover Friedman had to undergo to nab that score.) The intrepid reporter goes out on a limb, declaring that Stewart has "an uncommonly sophisticated understanding of journalism" — but it takes one to know one. Friedman's so sophisticated that he effectively conveys Stewart's impact within only the first few words of every paragraph! You don't even need to read a whole sentence to get the point: More » -
media
Media Bubble: Seriously, Is There Anything New To Say About Roger Ailes?
• The blood will continue to spill at Time; Jon Meacham shakes things up at Newsweek. [NYP] More » -
arianna huffington
Liberals In A Lot More Trouble Than We Thought
Actually, the fact that this assertion comes from Jon Friedman should put everyone at ease. We love how he refers to himself as a "sneaky journalist" for waiting six months to ask a question ("Arianna, do you think that you are the left-wing's great media hope?") the affirmative answer to which Arianna herself has been pushing forever. Pretty sneaky, Jon! We're sure Michael Isikoff is pissing himself in fear of the competition right now. More » -
media
Media Bubble: The Moving Finger Wags, and Having Wagged Moves On
• You'll find a lot of information in this David Carr piece on how journalists are forced to act like C.I.A. agents, "encoding files, shredding notes and switching cellphones." What you won't find is any mention of the Observer, which reported essentially the same story two Wednesdays ago. [NYT] More » -
jon friedman
Jon Friedman Finally Tells You Something You Won't Hear Anywhere Else
Yesterday Jon Friedman wrote a column about Katie Couric that began, "Katie Couric, at first, lived up to all the hype surrounding her move from NBC's "Today" show to "The CBS Evening News." Couric's show finished first in the much-followed television ratings on her first few nights after her ballyhooed debut on Sept. 5. In a remarkably short time, even by American television standards, Couric has slipped and her program fell back to a position that CBS unhappily knows all too well — third place, trailing NBC and ABC." More » -
media
Media Bubble: Fall 'Maxim' To Feature Classy "Snatches of the Sorbonne" Spread
• Apparently Maxim really is looking to go upscale; "subtle transformation" to be completed by October with debut of Chris Wilson's monthly art appreciation column, "Paintings That Will Get Their Pants Off." [FBNY] More » -
jon friedman
Media Critic Congratulates Himself on Grasp of the Obvious
Humility is a character trait in short supply among the media; confidence much less so. Put the two traits together, however, and you find a rare sort of dignity. The merely confident man, when proven right in a prediction he's made, will shout it from the mountaintops. The man of humility is secure enough in his judgment that he has no urge to trumpet his correctness. What makes the humble man so admirable is his restraint: "Yes," he says, "I was right this time. Next time I may be wrong. I see no need to brag." More » -
media
Media Bubble: Pretty Girl Makes Grade
• Wenner Media buys out Disney's share of Us Weekly. We're not sure why this is important, but the folks at WWD thought it merited an e-mail alerting us to it, so what the hell. [WWD] More »






























