Internet Media

Future of Journalism is Here

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Article in TechXplore by Megan Schumann, 12/19/24

Headline:  “Survey highlights public concerns over AI’s political and media impact”

“As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more prevalent, a new Rutgers University-New Brunswick survey sheds light on public attitudes, revealing widespread concerns about its impact on politics and the media, alongside an increasing adoption of AI tools in daily life.

“More than half of the respondents expressed worry about AI’s impact on politics (58%) and news media (53%), with researchers suggesting these concerns may stem from fears of misinformation and manipulation, particularly during the 2024 election cycle when the survey was conducted.”

https://techxplore.com/news/2024-12-survey-highlights-ai-political-media.html

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Article in Columbia Journalism Review by Sarah Grevy, Gotfredsen, 12/19./24

Headline:  “An AI Chatbot Joins Time”

Subhead:  “The magazine calls it ‘a pivotal step toward charting the future of journalism.’ “

“Last week, Time continued its nearly century-old annual tradition of choosing a Person of the Year, or an individual who, “for better or for worse,” has had the biggest impact on the world over the previous twelve months. Donald Trump, who the magazine said has perhaps played the largest role of any individual in changing the course of politics and history, was Time’s pick for 2024. Alongside its big reveal, the magazine launched TIME AI: a platform that consists of generative AI tools meant to assist people as they read the story. It’s a move that Time optimistically describes as setting a new standard for immersive storytelling. “It’s more than an experiment,” a Time announcement proclaimed. “It’s a pivotal step toward charting the future of journalism.”

https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/time-magazine-ai-chatbot-openai-perplexity.php

Media Fringe Now

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Article in Mediaite by Zachary Leeman, 12/12/24

Headline:  “CNN’s Van Jones Frets ‘Fringe’ Has Replaced ‘Mainstream’ Media: ‘We’re on Cable News Getting 1-2 Million’ While They’re ‘Getting 14 Million Streams’ ”

“CNN’s Van Jones warned on Wednesday that the entire ‘political class’ in the country is ‘way off’ when it comes to connecting to voters, as ‘fringe’ platforms and voices have replaced ‘mainstream’ outlets like his own network.

“. . .Jones fretted that streamers and podcasters are bringing in views that cable news cannot come close to touching.

“ The mainstream has become fringe and the fringe has become mainstream,’ he said. ‘There are platforms, there are people out there that are getting 14 million streams and we’re on cable news getting one to two million.’ ”

https://www.mediaite.com/media/cnns-van-jones-frets-fringe-has-replaced-mainstream-media-were-on-cable-news-getting-1-2-million-while-theyre-getting-14-million-streams/

No News Without Tax?

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Article in Al Jezeera by Staff, 12/12/24

Headline:  “Australia plans to tax tech giants if they fail to pay news outlets”

Subhead: “Firms like Meta face tax if they don’t pay for news driving traffic to their sites, depriving media firms of revenue.”

“The Australian government has announced plans to tax Big Tech firms if they fail to share revenue with local news media organisations.

“The measure, applicable from January 1, will force firms like Meta and Google with an Australian-based revenue in excess of 250 million Australian dollars ($160m) to pay for content or face a hefty tax bill that could amount to millions.”

“. . . Announcing the move, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said on Thursday that the rapid growth of digital platforms had ‘disrupted’ the media landscape and was ‘threatening the viability of public interest journalism’ ”.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/12/australia-to-force-tech-giants-to-pay-for-news

Will the Regulators be Truthful?

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Article in ProPublica by Justin Elliot, Robert Faturechi, and Alex Mierjeski, 12/10/24

Headline:  “Donald Trump Controls a Publicly Traded Company. Now He Will Pick Its Regulator.”

Subhead:  ” There have been internal concerns that Trump Media could be misleading investors, a source said. But with its largest shareholder about to be president, experts doubt the SEC is up to the job of investigating Truth Social’s parent company.”

“. . .When Trump takes office in January, a president will for the first time be the majority owner of a publicly traded company, Trump Media, which runs Truth Social. Former SEC officials are concerned about how Trump could try to use the agency to go after the foes of his company, which accounts for more than half his fortune. They also worry that the agency isn’t up for the job of taking on Trump Media should it run afoul of securities laws. . .”

https://www.propublica.org/article/donald-trump-media-truth-social-sec-securities-exchange-commission

TikTok – Medium of Free Speech or Espionage?

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Update:

Article in Washington Post by Madalin Necsutu and Anthony Faiola, 11/6/24

Headline:  “Romanian court annuls presidential vote after Russian interference claims”

Subhead:  “Calin Georgescu won the first round of the election after being propelled by TikTok. Romania’s security services pointed to ‘Russian hybrid actions.’ “

“The Constitutional Court took the extraordinary step of annulling Romania’s presidential election Friday after the country’s security services assessed that the nation had been the target of ‘Russian hybrid actions’ that used TikTok to promote a candidate who has praised Russian President Vladimir Putin.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/12/06/romania-court-annuls-presidential-election/?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us

Headline:  “Appeals court upholds nationwide TikTok ban-or-sale law”

Subhead:  “The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit made the expedited decision ahead of the TikTok ban’s looming Jan. 19 deadline, in a high-profile case pitting national security concerns against free speech.”

“A federal appeals court has turned away a challenge to a fast-approaching nationwide ban of short-video app TikTok unless it divests from Chinese ownership, placing national security before free speech concerns and bringing the app’s 170 million U.S. users closer to losing access to the wildly popular platform.

“he U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on Friday sided with the Justice Department, which argued that the U.S. government has the authority to ban TikTok based on the national security risk that TikTok could be pressured by the Chinese government to expose Americans’ data or influence what they see. TikTok’s parent, ByteDance, is based in China.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/12/06/tiktok-ban-court-ruling-justice-department-bytedance/

Media Over the Falls

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Article in The Atlantic by Helen Lewis, 12/5/24

Headline:  “The ‘Mainstream Media’ Has Already Lost”

Subhead:  “The newspapers and networks of the 20th century are ceding ground. And the people taking their place aren’t playing by the same rules.”

“This October, in the closing days of the presidential election, the podcaster Joe Rogan said something extraordinary. He had just hosted Donald Trump for a three-hour conversation in his studio in Austin, Texas, and wanted to make clear that he had discussed a similar arrangement with Kamala Harris’s campaign. “They offered a date for Tuesday, but I would have had to travel to her and they only wanted to do an hour,” he posted on X. “I strongly feel the best way to do it is in the studio in Austin.” And so Rogan declined to interview the vice president..

“What a diva, some people said. If you’re offered an interview with a presidential candidate, get off your ass and get on a plane! But Rogan could dictate his own terms. He is not competing in the snake pit of D.C. journalism, where sitting opposite a major candidate delivers an instant status bump. He is the most popular podcaster alive, with a dedicated audience of right-leaning men who enjoy mixed martial arts, stand-up comedy, and wild speculation about aliens”

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/01/joe-rogan-political-right-media-mainstream/680755/

Crusader Against Media

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Podcast on NPR by Plott Calabro, 12/4/24

Headline:  “Kash Patel’s Crusade Against the Media”

“. . . Atlantic staff writer Elaina Plott Calabro, profiled Kash Patel in August, charting his rise to power, starting at the very beginning of his legal career. She explains how he came to loathe the media, and love Trump. Further reading: “The Man Who Will Do Anything For Trump,” by Elaina Plott Calabro “What the FBI Has Done, and Kash Patel Could Do,” by Jon Allsop On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today . Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

https://www.npr.org/podcasts/452538775/on-the-media

Please Support Independent Media

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Article by Staff in the Daily Kos

Headline:  “The traditional media is not our friend.”

“That’s not a controversial stance, but the notion of the ‘liberal media’ has been a hindrance for progressive power-building. It’s not their job to be our friend, but unlike conservative donors, who never tire of building new friendly media outlets, liberal donors refused to do so because, you know, ‘liberal media.’

“This year, the progressive movement saw the folly of that belief. And it brings home just how important it is to support real progressive media like Daily Kos.

“Media critic Jeff Jarvis calls out the media in the starkest terms:

‘You have refused to recognize fascism at the door. You insist on covering authoritarianism as just another side in still-symmetrical American politics.

‘You let yourselves be exploited by these malign forces to spread their bigotry and bile, cushioned with your white-gloved euphemisms and sane-washing. . . ‘ ”

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/11/20/2287098/-Support-independent-media-support-Daily-Kos?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=from_markos_desk&pm_medium=web

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Stopping Teen Social Media

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Article in TechXplore by Lara Chuung, 11/29/24

Headline:  “Social media companies slam Australia’s under-16 ban”

“Social media giants on Friday hit out at a landmark Australian law banning them from signing up under-16s, describing it as a rush job littered with “many unanswered questions”.”

“. . .One of the biggest issues will be privacy—what age-verification information is used, how it is collected and by whom.”

“. . .Social media companies remain adamant that age verification should be the job of app stores, but the government believes tech platforms should be responsible.”

“. . . The legislation will be closely monitored by other countries, with many weighing whether to implement similar bans.”

https://techxplore.com/news/2024-11-social-media-companies-slam-australia.html

Canada Leads Battle of Media Titans

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Article in The Guardian by Leland Cecco, 11/29/24

Headline: “Canadian media companies sue OpenAI in case potentially worth billions”

Subhead: “Litigants say AI company used their articles to train its popular ChatGPT software without authorization”

“Canada’s major news organizations have sued tech firm OpenAI for potentially billions of dollars, alleging the company is “strip-mining journalism” and unjustly enriching itself by using news articles to train its popular ChatGPT software.

The suit, filed on Friday in Ontario’s superior court of justice, calls for punitive damages, a share of profits made by OpenAI from using the news organizations’ articles, and an injunction barring the San Francisco-based company from using any of the news articles in the future.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/29/canada-media-companies-sue-openai-chatgpt

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Article in the New York Times by Matina Stevis-Gridneff, 11/29/24

Headline:   “Major Canadian News Outlets Sue OpenAI in New Copyright Case”

Subhead:  “A coalition of some of Canada’s biggest media companies is seeking billions of dollars in compensation for what they say is copyright infringement on their work through ChatGPT.”

“These artificial intelligence companies cannibalize proprietary content and are free-riding on the backs of news publishers who invest real money to employ real journalists who produce real stories for real people,” said Paul Deegan, president of News Media Canada.

“A coalition of Canada’s biggest news organizations is suing OpenAI, the maker of the artificial intelligence chatbot, ChatGPT, accusing the company of illegally using their content in the first case of its kind in the country.

Five of the country’s major news companies, including the publishers of its top newspapers, newswires and the national broadcaster, filed the joint suit in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on Friday morning.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/29/world/canada/canada-openai-lawsuit-copyright.html