Iranian Court Sentences Roxana Saberi to Eight Years

An Iranian revolutionary court has convicted American journalist Roxana Saberi of spying and sentenced her to eight years in prison after a closed one-day trial.

Her father, Reza Saberi, told NPR's Scott Simon from Tehran that he was not allowed into the courtroom to hear the verdict. Saberi's lawyer was not allowed to ask the court about bail. She has been jailed at Evin Prison in Iran since Jan. 31.

NPR reports that Reza says Roxana wants to go on a hunger strike "to draw the attention of the Iranian authorities who have sentenced her without justifiable cause." He notes, however, that she is weak and "if she does [go on a hunger strike], it can be very dangerous to her health."

Agence France-Presse is quoting Reza as saying her daughter was tricked into confessing. "Roxana said in court that her earlier confessions were not true and she told me she had been tricked into believing that she would be released if she co-operated. Her denial is documented in her case, but apparently they did not pay attention to it," he said. "We are very shocked and we were not expecting it.

"We were hoping for six months and then clemency."

The deputy director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, Robert Mahoney, says her sentence is too harsh.

"We believe that Roxana Saberi's trial was not transparent," he said. "And it does not seem that she has been treated fairly. We would call on the Iranian authorities to release her on bail pending appeal because we believe she should not be confined in Evin prison."

NPR's CEO Vivian Schiller has appealed to the Iranian government to show compassion and allow Saberi to return immediately to the United States.

Saberi, 31, an Iranian-American freelancer from Fargo, N.D., was first detained in January, although no formal charges were disclosed. She told her family that she was initially held for buying a bottle of wine. A spokesman for Iran's Foreign Ministry said later that Saberi, left, was being detained at Tehran's Evin Prison for reporting ‎without proper accreditation.

CPJ reports that political prisoners are often jailed at Evin Prison.

At least two journalists have died ‎there in the last six years amid circumstances that have not been fully explained, ‎CPJ research shows.‎ Omidreza Mirsayafi, a blogger serving ‎a 30-month sentence on a charge of insulting ‎religious figures, died at the prison in March under mysterious circumstances.‎ In July 2003, Iranian-Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi died from a brain hemorrhage that resulted from a beating at Evin Prison. An intelligence agent charged in the killing was acquitted after a flawed trial. Kazemi had been jailed because she took photographs outside the prison.

Huffington Post Growth Slows, MSNBC.com on Top, Nielsen Online Reveals

The Huffington Post's rate of growth eased up in March, according to Editor & Publisher as it released new numbers from Nielsen Online.

The survey, which tracks the top 30 global news/current events sites, showed that Huffington Post's monthly unique viewers increased 27 percent year-over-year to 6.7 million in March. The site had reported that in February a monthly increase of 137 percent (year-over-year) to 8.8 million users, Editor & Publisher reported.

Jennifer Saba of Editor & Publisher reports:

MSNBC topped the list again in March with a 9% growth in monthly uniques to 39.9 million compared to the same month in 2008. In February more than 41 million unique users visited that site.

Growth at the NYTimes.com remains level with an increase of 7% year-over-year in March to 20 million uniques. About the same amount of people -- roughly 20 million -- visited the NYTimes.com in February.

New York's Daily News reported the biggest percentage gain of the list with an increase of 71% (year-over-year) to 5.6 million uniques.

Google News climbed the ranks in March to the No. 8 position (the site was No. 11 in February) with an 18% growth in uniques compared to March 2008.

News Cycle once again failed to make the list. But its unique visitors grew 7.2 percent in March over its February numbers, according to StatCounter.com. Year-over-year comparisons are irrelevant for News Cycle because the site started in 2008.

Gannett Reports U.S. Ad Revenue Drop of 28.2 Percent in First Quarter of 2009

Gannett Co. announced yesterday during a conference call that advertising revenue at its U.S. Community Newspaper division plunged 28.2 percent, including a nearly 40 percent decrease in classified advertising revenue.

Gannett reported that 2009 first quarter earnings per diluted share were $0.34 compared with $0.84 per share in the first quarter of 2008.

The results for the first quarter of 2009 include a $39.8 million pre-tax settlement gain related to one of the company’s union pension plans ($24.7 million after-tax or $0.11 per share) and $6.6 million in pre-tax severance and facility-related consolidation costs ($4.3 million after-tax or $0.02 per share). Results for the first quarter of 2008 included a $25.5 million pre-tax gain on the sale of land ($15.8 million after-tax or $0.07 per share). Excluding these one-time items, the company earned $0.25 per diluted share in 2009’s first quarter compared to $0.77 per diluted share in the first quarter a year ago.

“While revenue in the quarter benefited from growth in our digital segment and significantly higher retransmission fees for our television stations, our results reflect the pressure on advertising demand across all of our business segments due to continuing recessions in the U.S. and the UK. Our results, however, highlight the positive impact of the company’s efforts to operate its businesses as cost efficiently as possible in light of the revenue realities we are facing in this extraordinary time,” said chairman, president and chief executive officer Craig Dubow. “Although business conditions remain very challenging, we continue to transform all facets of the company as we position it for a more favorable economic environment and the opportunities we see in the changing media landscape.”

Total reported operating revenues for the company were $1.4 billion in the first quarter compared to $1.7 billion in the first quarter of 2008. The revenue decline reflects primarily the impact on advertising demand of the ongoing weakness in the economies of both the United States and the United Kingdom. Digital segment revenues increased significantly because of the consolidation of CareerBuilder and ShopLocal for the full quarter in 2009.

Reported operating expenses were $1.2 billion, a 10.2 percent decline from $1.3 billion in the first quarter of 2008, reflecting cost-containment efforts including the impact of personnel reductions in previous periods, furloughs in the current quarter and the pension settlement gain. The effect of these cost-savings initiatives was offset partially by restructuring expense. As well, the full consolidation of CareerBuilder and ShopLocal impacted reported expenses. Excluding one-time items in both years, pro forma operating expenses were 17.7 percent lower for the quarter. Corporate expenses declined 11.4 percent during the quarter compared to the first quarter in 2008.

Reported operating cash flow (defined as operating income plus depreciation and amortization) was $230.1 million for the quarter and net income was $77.4 million.

Average diluted shares outstanding in the first quarter totaled 230,951,000 compared with 229,661,000 in 2008’s first quarter.

Publishing segment operating revenues were $1.1 billion for the quarter, a 26.9 percent decline from the same quarter a year ago. Advertising revenues were $722.8 million or 34.1 percent lower than the first quarter of 2008. Advertising revenues in the U.S. were 28.2 percent lower while at Newsquest, our operations in the UK, ad revenues declined 38.7 percent, in pounds. The retail, national and classified categories for the publishing segment were 23.4 percent, 30.8 percent and 46.5 percent lower, respectively. The exchange rate of the British pound declined over 27 percent year-over-year. Excluding the impact of the exchange rate, total advertising revenues would have been 29.8 percent lower including declines of 20.9 percent in retail, 29.2 percent in national and 40.7 percent in classified. Circulation revenue was 3.1 percent lower in the quarter. Domestic circulation revenue increased 1.0 percent reflecting recent single copy and home delivery price increases in several markets and at USA TODAY.

Lower classified revenues reflect declines of 50.6 percent in real estate, 62.0 percent in employment and 39.2 percent in automotive. On a constant currency basis, real estate, employment, and automotive would have been down 44.3 percent, 57.2 percent and 34.8 percent, respectively. For U.S. Community Publishing, classified revenues were 39.0 percent lower reflecting declines of 36.6 percent in real estate, 60.2 percent in employment and 32.8 percent in automotive. In the United Kingdom, classified revenues were down 45.1 percent, in pounds, comprised of declines of 60.0 percent in real estate, 51.4 percent in employment and 43.2 percent in automotive.

At USA TODAY, advertising revenues were 33.5 percent lower in the first quarter compared to the first quarter in 2008. Paid advertising pages totaled 527 compared with 826 in the same quarter of 2008. The telecommunications, pharmaceutical, and advocacy categories grew but the gains were more than offset by losses in the entertainment, travel and financial categories.

Total publishing operating expenses declined 20.9 percent in the quarter to $954.7 million from $1.21 billion in the first quarter of 2008. The decline was driven by continued cost containment efforts including the impact of personnel reductions in previous periods, furloughs in the current quarter and the pension-settlement gain. These savings were offset, in part, by higher severance and facility-related consolidation costs. Publishing expenses, excluding severance expenses and facility-consolidation costs as well as the pension-settlement gain, were 18.1 percent lower. Newsprint expenses were down 15.6 percent for the quarter reflecting an increase in usage prices of 20.4 percent which was more than offset by a 29.9 percent decline in consumption. Operating cash flow in the first quarter for the publishing segment, which includes USA TODAY and Newsquest, was $179.3 million.

Circulation is reported down across the chain about 10 percent daily and 5 percent Sundays, with USA Today down about 7 percent. Even digital ads took a 20 percent hit.

North America's Top Newsprint Producer, AbitibiBowater, Files for Bankruptcy

UPDATE, 3 p.m. Eastern, April 17:

The Quebec government offered AbitibiBowater a loan guarantee of up to $100 million (Canadian) this afternoon to try to save 7,500 Canadian jobs.

"AbitibiBowater and its employees appreciate the confidence in our restructuring initiatives and the ongoing demonstration of support and collaboration shown by Investissement Quebec and the Quebec government," president and chief executive officer David J. Paterson said in a statement today.

CORRECTION: In the original posting, AbitibiBowater was described as Canadian based. It is based in the United States, but has administrative headquarters in Montreal.

AbitibiBowater, North America’s largest newsprint maker, filed for bankruptcy protection on Thursday in a Delaware court. Through acquisitions and mergers, the company holds 45 percent of the North American newsprint market. It also holds $8.78 billion in debt.

Bankruptcy doesn't mean closing down, it means it is seeking to restructure its debt. But it would be a crippling blow to the newspaper industry if AbitibiBowater were to go under.

AbitibiBowater has been attempting to stay ahead of its debts by raising newsprint prices by closing mills and reducing production. But the fall in demand from the troubled newspaper industry has been devastating to the company.

Company spokesman Seth Kursman told Ian Austen of The New York Times that the company would make a separate request for protection under Canada’s creditor laws in Montreal today.

Kursman told the Times that the filing would have no immediate effect on the company’s 25 pulp and paper mills and 30 wood products plants. Mills operated by AbitibiBowater units in Britain and South Korea are not covered by either bankruptcy filing. But he declined comment on what restructuring measures the company would propose to the two courts.

“The paper and forest products industry is in a very turbulent period,” he said in the Times.

The Pulp and Paper Products Council reported that in February alone newsprint demand in North America fell by 33 percent compared with the same month a year earlier, a sign of decreased demand in the struggling newspaper industry.

AbitibiBowater produces a wide range of newsprint, commercial printing papers, market pulp and wood products. It is the eighth largest publicly traded pulp and paper manufacturer in the world. AbitibiBowater owns or operates 23 pulp and paper facilities and 30 wood products facilities located in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and South Korea. Marketing its products in more than 90 countries, the company is also among the world's largest recyclers of old newspapers and magazines, and has third-party certified 100 percent of its managed woodlands to sustainable forest management standards. AbitibiBowater's shares trade under the stock symbol ABH on both the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange.

ASNE: 5,900 Newspaper Journalists Laid Off Last Year, Only 46,700 Left

American daily newspapers shed 5,900 newsroom jobs last year, according to The American Society of News Editors, which has conducted a census of newsrooms since 1978 primarily as a means of measuring minority employment.

Layoff counts by the websites News Cycle and Paper Cuts for 2009 exceeded 8,000 on April 16. Both websites include layoff totals from business and production personnel as well as newsroom employees.

Of the journalists who departed newsrooms, 854 were minorities according to ASNE’s 2009 census. The overall year-over-year drop left 46,700 journalists, including 6,300 minority professionals, on newspaper staffs at the end of 2008. The number of minority journalists stands at the level reported in the 1998 census, the report said.

“The loss of journalists is a loss for democracy,” said ASNE President Charlotte Hall. “The loss of people of color from our newsrooms is especially disturbing because our future depends on our ability to serve multicultural audiences. ASNE is committed to keeping newsroom diversity on the front burner even in tough times.”

ASNE said that the overall job loss was the largest one-year decline in employment in the history of the ASNE census and followed a drop of 2,400 a year ago. Since a modern era peak of 56,400 reported in 2001, newsroom jobs have decreased by 9,700. The highest employment level in the survey’s history was 56,900 reported in 1990.

In this decade, ASNE said there has been a net increase of Latino, Asian and Native American journalists and a net decline of Black journalists.

Minorities account for 11.2 percent of all supervisors in newsrooms, which remains virtually unchanged for the past two years. Of all minorities, 22 percent are supervisors.

ASNE said that 458 newspapers responding to the census had no minorities on their full-time staff. This number has been growing since 2006. The majority of these newspapers have circulations of 10,000 or less. All newspapers with circulations of 50,000 or more that responded to the census had at least one minority staffer.

Nearly two-thirds of minorities work at newspapers with circulations exceeding 100,000. The percentage of minorities working at newspapers with more than 500,000 circulation is 17 percent; 250,001 to 500,000 circulation, 19 percent; 100,001 to 250,000 circulation now account for 29 percent.

The census found 2,300 journalists worked solely online of which nearly 19.6 percent were minority. ASNE started counting online-only journalists in 2007. Then there were 1,900 online journalists of whom 16 percent were minorities.

The percentage of interns who are minorities stands at 26.4 percent, a decrease from 28 percent last year.

Minorities represented 16 percent of the journalists hired for their first full-time newsroom job down from 17.6 percent.

Women working full time in daily newspapers total about 17,300 or 37 percent. Minority women accounted for 16.6 percent of female newsroom staffers.

Men total just under 29,400. Minority men account for 11.5 percent of male newsroom staffers.

Since 2001, Asian American journalists have increased by 167, Latinos by 23 and Native Americans by 44. The number of Black journalists decreased by 539.

New York Times Eliminates Some Weekly Sections to Streamline Costs

The New York Times will eliminate several weekly sections with other parts of the newspaper absorbing some content starting next month in a move that is aimed at saving millions in annual costs, Executive Editor Bill Keller said Thursday in a Times story written by Richard Perez-Pena.

The sections that will be affected are Escapes, published on Fridays, and Sunday sections that only readers in the New York metropolitan area receive: City and regional sections named for New Jersey, Long Island, Westchester and Connecticut, Perez-Pena wrote.

The individual Sunday sections will no longer be published. Instead, the Times will create a new Sunday section that combines some elements of them with new features about New York City and the region. It will also include features that formerly appeared in the New York report.

There will be a zoned page with material specific to the part of the region where it is sold. Keller said that the new section, still unnamed, will appear on May 24 at the earliest.

Daily New York City news will be included in the first section alongside national news.

The Friday Escapes section will disappear on May 1 with parts of that section appearing in the Weekend section.

On May 10, The New York Times Magazine will no longer contain a regular fashion layout. Fashion reporting and photography will continue in the T magazines published every few weeks, and in the weekly Sunday and Thursday Styles sections, the Times announced.

The guide to each day’s newspaper that is printed on the second, third and fourth pages of the first section will be consolidated into a single page, much as it was until last year, Keller announced.

In addition, the newspaper is planning to reduce its spending on freelance work by 10 to 15 percent. The sections that are affected had relied on freelancers for the bulk of their copy. People might be reassigned in the newsroom, but no staff reductions are contemplated at this time, Keller said.

These moves come weeks after the Times cut the pay of non-union managers by five percent for the rest of the year. In addition, about 100 people have been laid off from the business side of the newspaper giant.

Keller told staff in the memo that “the hope and expectation remain that the pay cuts and the spending cuts outlined above will get us through the year without the need for other significant reductions.”

Washington Post Announces Newsroom Reorganization

Washington Post Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli announced sweeping changes in newsroom operations today in an extensive memo that was made public by Jim Romenesko. In it, Brauchli details "new reporting groups, streamline editing desks and anticipate the impending integration of our print and digital news operations."

Brauchli told staffer that "a single editor ultimately ought to be able to oversee all versions of a story, whether it appears in print, online or on a BlackBerry or iPhone. Space in the newspaper and editing firepower in general should be allocated based on a day’s news priorities, not a predetermined formula."

Here is the complete memo:

From: Marcus Brauchli
Sent: 04/16/2009 09:01 AM EDT
Subject: Announcement on Restructuring

To the staff:

Today, we are beginning a reorganization to create new reporting groups, streamline editing desks and anticipate the impending integration of our print and digital news operations.

The changes reinforce our longstanding belief in great reporting and writing as the vital center of The Post’s journalism. We want to empower journalists and encourage them to work across departments and platforms. In addition, we want to simplify the handling of words, pages, images and new media, building on the prescient move to “two-touch” editing under Len and Phil. Decisions about space and play must happen faster, both in print and online, and in a way that pulls together our now-separate newsrooms. A single editor ultimately ought to be able to oversee all versions of a story, whether it appears in print, online or on a BlackBerry or iPhone. Space in the newspaper and editing firepower in general should be allocated based on a day’s news priorities, not a predetermined formula.

These changes will alter the way we do things, but they will not affect the commitment to journalistic depth, authority and excellence that has defined The Post. Just the reverse: We think these steps will help us to adapt more easily to the economic and technological challenges that face us, while preserving the best of our traditions and values.

Key Personnel Changes:

In keeping with our strategic focus on serving readers in and interested in Washington, we will put most news reporters under two senior editors, a National Editor and a Local Editor. Much first-line editing, copyediting
and production will occur on a new Universal News Desk under another senior editor. Together with the executive editor, the managing editors and the deputy managing editor, these people will form the core leadership of them newsroom.

* Kevin Merida, now Assistant Managing Editor for National News, will become National Editor.

* Emilio Garcia-Ruiz, now Assistant Managing Editor for Sports and Weekend Editor, will become Local Editor.

* Sandy Sugawara, now Assistant Managing Editor for Business, will become Editor of the Universal Desk

These changes, which become effective May 1, will set in motion other personnel moves.

* Scott Vance, now Assistant Managing Editor for News online, will become News Editor when our print and online desks merge, working closely with the National and Local editors to drive coverage across platforms.

* Bill Hamilton remains Enterprise Editor, working for Liz and
helping to guide many major projects into the paper and online.

* Bob McCartney, now Assistant Managing Editor for Metro News, will become a columnist on metropolitan affairs.

* Matt Vita, now Emilio’s deputy, will become Sports Editor.

* Greg Schneider, now Sandy’s deputy, will assume responsibility for Business.

Coverage Groups:

Local, National and Business reporters and editors who “commission” or drive coverage will be organized into coverage groups. Decisions about what we cover and who should handle what story will be made by the leaders of these reporting groups. Each reporting group will be responsible for a specific area of coverage and be led by an editor and probably at least one deputy, who may also write.

To give you an idea how this will work, we recently posted a job running Science, Health and Environmental coverage. That editor will have primary responsibility for coverage of those areas, across the paper and the website, and will oversee the reporters on those subjects. Most stories from these coverage groups will be edited on the universal desk throughout the day. The groups will manage blogs and may edit major projects internally. Other groups will be created around subjects such as National Security, Local Business and Development, Social Issues, and so on. We will announce their formation in coming weeks and post available openings for editors and deputies.

All the news reporting groups will work for Kevin or Emilio. Kevin has run National since January, but already has displayed great talent as a story conceptualizer and the special effectiveness of someone who is both a leader and a role model for many of his reporters. Together with his deputy, Marilyn Thompson, Kevin has been building a highly capable team whose coverage goes beyond the routine and brings real insight.

Emilio, a native of the Washington area, has run sports brilliantly in his second stint here at The Post. His focus on breaking news and exclusives, on strong narratives and the superb work of our columnists and photographers, has made our Sports section the best. He’s also pioneered print-online integration for The Post this year, bringing together our sports journalists in what has been a very useful and successful experiment. We will place great emphasis on developing strong local journalism, especially online.

Emilio’s exceptionally talented and versatile deputy, Matt Vita, will succeed him as Sports Editor. A former national-security editor and
Congressional reporter for The Post and a former foreign correspondent for Cox Newspapers, Matt shares much credit for the Sports department’s recent successes.

Bob McCartney, who has served the paper so well as AME/Metro for the last four years, will become a Metropolitan columnist, one of our leading voices in the community where Bob grew up and has lived and run coverage for so long. His distinguished career as a foreign correspondent, managing editor of the International Herald Tribune and the first AME of the continuous news desk, and as a business editor and a reporter gives him the kind of depth and wisdom that will infuse his writing with authority and insight.

Universal News Desk:

The Universal Desk will ultimately combine what is now spread across departments and two separate newsrooms, bringing together many people now in the ranks of assigning editors, copy editors and the news desk, as well as many producers at the website. It will handle editing tasks large and small, and make decisions about space allocation and story play, deciding what appears where on the paper’s news pages and online. Most stories will be edited on the universal desk, rather than in reporting groups. Stories edited during the day for use online will form the basis for their print versions, and vice versa.

We still have a lot of planning and consultation to do before the desk will be up and running. We invite your input and ideas, and expect to be discussing with many people both downtown and in Arlington what the right organization is.

Anyone who has watched Sandy’s incredibly agile oversight of the business and financial staff, especially the way she and Greg led The Post’s super coverage of the economic and financial crisis, will understand immediately why she is the right person to take on the immense task of creating a new, high-octane news engine.

Greg, a smart, seasoned editor with experience on National as well as Business, will take over the business staff from Sandy and become The Post’s main national economics and business editor. Greg has more than earned this field promotion after the often-heroic hours and exacting editing he put into the business staff’s outstanding coverage of the financial and economic crisis. Like Kevin, Emilio and Sandy, Greg will work with us in mapping out the detailed newsroom structure.

The bridge between the coverage groups and the Universal Desk will be Scott, when he becomes News Editor. Among his many roles will be setting intraday deadlines, guiding our homepage and ensuring that The Post is competitive on all platforms, on all stories that matter to our readers. A veteran of National and the printside before he took on a key news job at washingtonpost.com, Scott has worked with just about everyone here, and to great effect.

Another central figure in the universal desk will be Ju-Don Roberts, Managing Editor of washingtonpost.com, who has steered our digital edition’s continued success and whose print and online experience are vital to re-imagining our editing operations. She’s been a top-class leader and will remain point person for The Post’s digital edition, working with Raju on innovations and development of the best possible website for our readers.

Future Changes:

While we have outlined major changes here, there are many gaps still in our plan. As you will see, there are unanswered questions about some departments, including Style and the presentation, visuals, interactivity and web tools/innovations groups. Working with the new leadership team, we will come back to you with more specifics in coming weeks. We plan to move as quickly as possible to announce further details of the structure of the reporting and editing groups. Some new roles will emerge from this process, and we expect to post those jobs as well.

We are, as you know, embarked on a number of big projects. Most notably, we plan to bring in a new content management system—production software, in plain English—and are rethinking aspects of our newspaper’s design. We expect that system will take a year to go live, but our reorganization anticipates the changes in workflow that will result from a single editing and production system. Design changes in turn will reflect what the new technology and newsroom organization will enable.

We also are on track with plans to meld our print and digital newsrooms over the summer and into the fall. Shirley Carswell, Claudia Townsend, Peter Perl and a small army of others are leading various efforts, and we undoubtedly will have more to say about these plans in coming weeks.

We believe the changes we are undertaking will enhance our competitiveness by focusing our journalistic energy on coverage of core areas and by simplifying editing processes. As we integrate editing and production, print and digital, we will be able to deliver smarter, faster news online, while preserving the writing, depth and range of coverage that define The Post.

Finally, for anyone who gets this far, we have one final tidbit: We’ll hold a town hall meeting at 2 p.m. today in the auditorium to take questions and discuss these plans or any other issues.

Marcus
Liz
Raju

Journal Sentinel, Union Fail to Reach Agreement on Compensation Cuts

Journal Sentinel Inc. officials and the union representing more than 200 employees in the company's newsroom failed to agree on new compensation terms this week, according to Milwaukee and Southeastern Wisconsin Business News.

According to sources involved with the negotiations, the company proposed wage cuts. The leaders of the Milwaukee Newspaper Guild Local 51 will take the company's latest offer to the full membership of the union for consideration on April 23, sources said.

One source described the company's latest offer as "pretty lousy."
If the members of the Guild vote against accepting the offer, the company has indicated it may initiate involuntary layoffs.

It's Tea Time! Cable Networks More Concerned About Competition's Viewpoint Than Good Journalism

While certainly multiple protests around the country are worthy of attention from news organizations, some cable TV journalists have started sniping at each other in regards to coverage. Much of it is predictable, but through the course of the day it has become a bit of a side show.

James Rainey at The Los Angeles Times notes the different perspectives offered by FOX News and MSNBC:

You'd expect conservative commentators like Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity to be hyping today's wave of anti-tax "tea parties." But Fox personalities labeled "news" anchors are right there with their blessings too -- one telling us the protests will focus on "how much of our hard-earned money is going to the federal government," another assuring us the tea parties themselves are sparking economic activity.

The Fox promotions people have been pumping up the volume, with ads celebrating hundreds of rallies and citizens who are "demanding real economic solutions." That's in contrast, you see, to the fake solutions President Obama wants to foist on the American people. ...

That said, some liberal media voices seem just as intent on squelching the protesters before they've shoveled a single bag of Lipton into a single pond. At MSNBC, commentators Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddow and Chris Matthews wrote off the demonstrations as the work of nothing more than crackpots or political stooges.

I've got a novel idea: How about if we wait and see what happens at these rallies? Maybe journalists can watch, report how many people are there, describe the kinds of things they say and tell us what they plan to do next.

CNN correspondent Susan Roesgen became an activist defending the federal government while pretending to cover the event as a unbias journalist. She interrupted one of the protesters and slammed the event for being “anti-government,” “anti-CNN,” and “not really family viewing.”

Roesgen asked a man holding his toddler, “Why are you here today?” The man started to respond saying, “Because I hear a president say that he believed in what Lincoln stood for. Lincoln’s primary thing was he believed people had the right to liberty and they had the right”

She then interrupted him by asking, “But sir, what does that have to do with taxes? What does this have to do with your taxes?” She continued asking questions over his as he asked her to “let me finish my point.” One crowd member was heard to yell “shut up” to the Roesgen.

When the man finished his statement about people having the “right to the fruits of their own labor” and “government should not take it,” Roesgen began arguing with him again and other protesters began to get upset.

She closed by saying “you get the general tenor of this. Anti-government, anti-CNN since this is highly promoted by the right-wing conservative network FOX and since I can’t really hear much more and I think this is not really family viewing. Toss it back to you Kyra.”

Not exactly down-the-middle reporting by a long shot. Her report is here:


MSNBC’s commentators have been hammering FOX all week long, going as low as to use some vile humor in their discussions.

On Tuesday’s “Countdown,” Keith Olbermann played clips of Fox personalities talking up tea parties. “As ever,” he said, Fox was “showing both sides ‘fair and balanced’ — supporting the tea baggers and sponsoring the tea baggers.” Rachel Maddow said that “our colleagues at Fox News are not just reporting on tea bagging, they are officially promoting it."

David Shuster had this piece:



On the other side of the discussion, FOX is serving up the tea parties by promoting them. “Fox appears to be promoting these events at the same time it is presenting them in a way that looks like reporting,” said Stephen Burgard, director of Northeastern University’s School of Journalism, told POLITICO's Michael Calderone.

Burgard called the practice “pseudo-journalism,” adding: “We have seen this before from Fox News Channel, but its role as galvanizer of opposition to President Obama's policies and leadership posture appears to be emerging.”



A Fox spokesperson said the network did not have an executive available to speak about its tea party coverage. A second Fox representative declined repeated offers to address the charge that it was blurring the lines between journalism and advocacy.

While tea party organizers say their movement is nonpartisan, the protests lean hard to the right: Newt Gingrich and Michelle Malkin are on board, as is Freedom Works, an organization run by former Republican Majority Leader Dick Armey. And more than a dozen prominent Republicans were set to participate in tea party protests Wednesday, including South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) and a slew of other Republicans from Congress.

Roxana Saberi's Trial Lasts One Day in Iran, Her Fate Is Uncertain

The jailed Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi is waiting to learn her fate after a one-day trial on espionage charges at the Tehran Revolutionary Court. She was tried on charges of "spying for foreigners ... for America", an Iranian government spokesman said, adding that a verdict was expected in two to three weeks.

Saberi, 31, was arrested in January after buying a bottle of wine and accused of working without press credentials, was charged last week with spying for the United States. An investigative judge alleged that she had passed classified information to United States intelligence services.

Iranian deputy prosecutor Hassan Zare Dehnavi reportedly said that “Saberi has admitted the charges against her.”

"The Iranian authorities use and abuse this charge to arrest journalists and tighten the muzzle on free expression,” Reporters Without Borders said, reiterating its call for Saberi’s release.

Foreign ministry spokesman Hassan Ghashghavi said she had been working illegally in Iran. Judicial authority spokesman Alireza Jamshidi said last month that she had been “arrested on the order of the Tehran revolutionary court and is now in detention in Evin prison.”

Sam Zell: Buying the Chicago Tribune Was a Mistake

Sam Zell is having second thoughts about his $8.2 billion purchase of the Chicago Tribune, which like all newspapers are losing money hand over fist. He told Bloomberg:

"By definition, if you bought something and it's now worth a great deal less, you made a mistake and I'm more than willing to say I made a mistake. I was too optimistic in terms of the newspaper's ability to preserve its position.

"It's very obvious that the newspaper model in its current form does not work and the sooner we all acknowledge that the better. Whether it be home delivery, whether it be giving content away for free -- these are critical issues.

"We are seriously looking at everything because in effect the future of the newspaper industry is at risk today."

SF Chronicle, Union Agree to Eliminate at Least 70 Drivers

UPDATE, April 20, 10:27 a.m. Eastern: The Guild voted to approve the cutbacks, and the Chronicle wrote last night it would result in at least 90 jobs lost.

The San Fransisco Chronicle and the Teamsters Local 853 reached a tentative agreement that authorizes the release of at least 70 drivers as part of the newspaper's campaign to cut operating costs.

The union represents roughly 235 drivers in the circulation department. Members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 853 will vote Sunday on the plan, said Rome Aloise, the local's secretary-treasurer, in a story in the Chronicle.

The proposal would eliminate 30 to 35 percent of those drivers, which means the loss of 70 to 83 jobs. Departing workers would receive two weeks' severance pay for every year of employment, up to a maximum of 52 weeks.

Hearst Corp announced in February that it would sell or close the 144-year-old newspaper if it couldn't quickly achieve significant savings.

Nurse Laid Off in Middle of Surgery

This isn't media related, but for all journalists who get handed the bad news while in the office, remember, it could be worse.

A registered nurse working for Dean Health System in Madison, Wis., found out that she was among 90 employees being laid off by getting the pink slip in the middle of surgery, according to a story by Dee J. Hall in the Wisconsin State Journal.

The abrupt removal, which spokesman Paul Pitas said posed no danger to the patient, came after the Madison-based health care provider announced Wednesday that it planned to “immediately” lay off 90 employees.

Pitas, director of corporate communications, labeled the action “clearly ... an error in judgment on the part of the manager conducting the layoff.” He declined to name the manager but described her as “an otherwise good employee with more than 30 years of nursing experience who made a regrettable decision.”

“This person is very upset and is extremely remorseful over this,” Pitas said, adding that the layoffs created “extraordinary circumstances.”

The nurse has not been identified, nor has the type of procedure she was working on when she was summoned and let go, the newspaper reported. The patient was in no danger, the hospital spokesman said.

Chicago Tribune: No Number Set in Future Job Cuts

Management at the Chicago Tribune said that advertisement revenue was off by 20 percent this year and that they expect that trend to continue, but they denied a report in Crain's Chicago Business that they were looking at trimming its newsroom staff by 20 percent.

Job reductions will take place throughout the paper, not just the newsroom, Tribune publisher and chief executive officer Tony Hunter and editor Gerould Kern said in an article posted at media reporter Phil Rosenthal's Tower Ticker blog. They said that specific numbers have also not yet been determined.

"We are reorganizing the newsroom to meet our strategic goals, respond to the current economic downturn and position ourselves for success in the future," Kern said. "It would be premature to say more at this time."

Navy SEALS: Three Shots, Three Hits, in Only One Second

The Navy SEALS once again showed the world why they are the best of the best.

Ann Scott Tyson of The Washington Post tells us why:

Before a highly trained team of Navy SEAL snipers opens fire on multiple targets, one of their team members takes a deep breath and begins a countdown.

"There is a countdown, a tempo. It gets everyone on the same sheet, and they release their shot at the same time," said Scott Tyler, who led a SEAL sniper cell in Iraq and now works as a contractor protecting ships from piracy.

"You don't want to drop one guy and have two others with weapons who can start shooting, especially when there is a hostage involved," Tyler said.

In this way, with deadly accuracy, three SEAL snipers fired their rifles in synchrony on Sunday, instantly killing the three pirates who held a ship's captain, American Richard Phillips, at gunpoint, according to military officials and experts familiar with SEAL sniper operations.

The snipers' pinpoint accuracy -- firing from one moving ship onto the bobbing lifeboat after a split-second decision -- was perhaps the main factor in the keeping Phillips, 53, alive, giving President Obama a successful resolution to one of his first international crises.

"It's extremely difficult" to execute such a mission, said one 23-year member of the Navy SEALs who was a sniper and a sniper instructor.

This was the Obama administration first real test in dealing with an international incident. Everyone involved from the president down to the three men who pulled the trigger did an excellent job.

Gannett Move Eliminates 44 Jobs at Michigan Newspapers

The Observer & Eccentric Newspapers announced today it will cease publication of five Eccentric print and Web editions in suburban Detroit as of Sunday, May 31: The Birmingham, West Bloomfield, Troy and Rochester editions of the Eccentric will end publication in print and on the Web with the Sunday, May 31 edition.

In addition, the Southfield edition and O&E's Mirror Newspaper will become part of a new, multi-community Sunday newspaper, the South Oakland Eccentric, which will serve Royal Oak, Berkley, Clawson, Huntington Woods, Southfield and Pleasant Ridge.

The closure will result in workforce reductions of approximately 44 people in all departments - advertising, editorial, circulation and production.

"These expense reductions are a direct effect of our challenging economy and changing media landscape," said Susan Rosiek, executive editor of the Observer & Eccentric/Mirror/Hometown Newspapers. "These decisions, as difficult as they are to execute and to accept, position the newspaper for the future - a future that includes multiple platforms of news and advertising."

The newspaper company will continue to publish the Observer Newspapers in western Wayne County and Farmington/Farmington Hills and the Hometown Weekly Newspapers in Northville, Novi, Milford and South Lyon. The company also provides news and information on the Web at www.hometownlife.com.

Rosiek met Monday with employees and representatives of employee unions - Graphic Communications Conference/International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 13N District Council 3 and the Newspaper Guild of Detroit, Local 34022 to inform them of these decisions.

The Birmingham Eccentric has been published since 1878. The Eccentric was founded and named after a local men's club - The Eccentric Club. The first edition of the Birmingham Eccentric in 1878 sold for two cents a copy. The award-winning Birmingham Eccentric has had six owners in its 131 year history. The newspaper has been known for its local news and prep sports coverage. Local names and faces in award-winning photo pages were a staple of the newspaper.

The Eccentric "brand" expanded in the late 1960s when a Troy Eccentric was launched in 1968 followed by the West Bloomfield Eccentric and Southfield Eccentric in 1970. A Rochester Eccentric was started in 1972. The Eccentric Newspapers merged with the Observer Newspapers and the two companies began combined publishing operations in March 1974.

The O&E purchased the Mirror from Oak Communications Inc. in 1998. The Mirror will become part of the new South Oakland Eccentric published on Sunday. The new product will offer local and national advertisers a greater reach with consumers in highly desirable south Oakland County communities.

The O&E and Hometown Weeklies are owned by Gannett Co. Inc.

Crain's: Chicago Tribune to Lay Off 20 Percent of Newsroom

The Chicago Tribune is informing its employees that management plans to lay off 20 percent of the newsroom in the coming months, representing roughly 90 to 100 people, Crain's is reporting.

Ann Saphir, with Lorene Yue, wrote today:

Staffers were told of the impending layoffs last week, according to three people who attended a meeting on the topic. The cuts will take place over the next several weeks, the sources said.

The expected cuts are the latest attempt to reduce expenses at the paper, whose parent Tribune Co. filed for bankruptcy protection from creditors in December.

A Trib spokeswoman declined to comment.

Saphir and Yue noted the Tribune had 480 employees in its newsroom last August. It cut about a dozen workers in December, just before its Chapter 11 filing, and eliminated the jobs of another 20 people in February.