Internet Media

Social Media Good or Bad for Democracy?

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Article in AP, 11/1/24

Headline: “Mauritius suspends access to social media ahead of parliamentary elections”

“JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The government of Mauritius on Friday banned access to social media websites ahead of parliamentary elections on Nov. 10 in which Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth is seeking a second term in power.

‘The directive was announced by the national communications regulator, which said social media sites will be banned until Nov. 11, the day after the election.

‘The unprecedented social media ban follows a wiretapping scandal which rocked the country last month when recorded conversations of politicians, business people, and members of civil society were leaked on social media.

‘According to media freedom advocacy group Reporters Without Borders, the recorded conversations of five well-known journalists were also published on social media.

https://apnews.com/article/mauritius-social-media-suspension-elections-pravind-jugnauth-2e4e13fcd2ab37c32f85e4d042726022

Article in Reuters

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/mauritius-suspends-social-media-until-after-election-communications-regulator-2024-11-01/

Article in Al Jezerra

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/11/1/mauritius-blocks-social-media-until-after-election-amid-wiretapping-row

 

Right-Wing Newser Called on Facts, Quits in Snit

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Article in The Daily Beast by Grace Harrington, 11/1/24

Headline: “Hugh Hewitt Resigns as Washington Post Columnist After Storming Off Paper’s Livestream”

Subhead: “The conservative had argued with two progressive columnists amid the backlash at the paper over owner Jeff Bezos’ endorsement decision.”

“Conservative columnist Hugh Hewitt resigned from The Washington Post on Friday, shortly after exiting a stormy livestream debate moderated by Jonathan Capehart, the New York Post reports.

“Hewitt walked off of the Post‘s show “First Look,” with liberal columnists Jonathan Capehart and Ruth Marcus, after a heated discussion on Donald Trump’s lawsuit about alleged voting irregularities in Pennsylvania.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/hugh-hewitt-resigns-as-washington-post-columnist-after-storming-off-papers-livestream/

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Article in The Hill by Donald Mastrangelo, 11/1/24

Headline:  “Conservative radio host and political pundit Hugh Hewitt stormed off a Washington Post live event Friday after an argument over former President Trump’s rhetoric on election integrity ahead of Tuesday’s election.”

“. . .After a brief pause, Capehart told Hewitt, “I don’t appreciate being lectured about reporting when, Hugh, many times you come here saying lots of things that aren’t based in fact.”

“I won’t come back, Jonathan, I’m done,” Hewitt said, ripping his earpiece out and standing up.

“I’m done. This is the most unfair election ad I’ve ever been a part of,” Hewitt continued, his face no longer visible on the screen. “You guys are working, that’s fine, I’m done.”

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/4965738-hugh-hewitt-washington-post-live-jonathan-capehart-ruth-marcus/

Podcasts Stomping Out Newspapers?

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Article in Al Jezeera by John Power, 10/31/24

Headline: “What Joe Rogan, Washington Post dramas say about the US election and media”

Subhead: “Trump and Harris have both shunned newspapers in favour of podcasts, highlighting media’s struggle for relevance.”

“Two stories about the United States presidential election this week highlight the total transformation of the news business.

“One involves Joe Rogan, the world’s most popular podcaster.”

“. . . Tellingly, while both Trump and Harris have made time for a number of high-profile podcasts, neither has sat down for an interview with The [Washington] Post.”

https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2024/10/31/what-joe-rogan-washington-post-dramas-say-about-the-us-election-and-media

Google Blocks Russian Media Propaganda – Fined

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Article in The Register by Iain Thomson, 10/29/24

Headline: “Russian court fines Google $20,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000”

Subhead: “Don’t hold your breath Putin”

“The bizarre amount has been calculated after a four-year court case that started after YouTube banned the ultra-nationalist Russian channel Tsargrad in 2020 in response to the US sanctions imposed against its owner. Following Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine in 2022 more channels were added to the banned list and 17 stations are now suing the Chocolate Factory, including Zvezda (a TV channel owned by Putin’s Ministry of Defence), according to local media.”

“. . .The court imposed a fine of 100 thousand rubles ($1,025) per day, with the total fine doubling every week. Owing to compound interest (Einstein’s eighth wonder of the world), Google is now on the hook for an insane amount of money, or what the judge on Monday called “a case in which there are many, many zeros.”

https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/29/russian_court_fines_google/

Which Podcasts are Reliable?

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From Ad Fontes Media 10/24/24

Headline:  “Junk News is Like Junk Food”

Subhead:  “We love them, but both damage our health and our society as a whole. What can we do?”

“We, as humans, have basic needs for several things. One of them is food. Another is information. We are always, by necessity and want, taking in both.”

“. . .Ad Fontes Media has known for years that podcasts, as well as YouTube and other social media platforms, have become a popular place for people to get their information. For that reason, we began analyzing news and news-like podcasts for their bias and reliability in 2021.

“As Podcasts Grow in Popularity, Harris and Trump Appear as Guests to Reach New Audiences

“Find out which shows can be trusted on the October Media Bias Chart for podcasts.

“Our team has now rated more than 740 of them, and 48 are featured on the October Media Bias Chart® for podcasts that was released earlier this week. Learn more about the chart, including which eight podcasts are included for the first time:”

https://adfontesmedia.com/podcasts-grow-popularity-oct-24-chart/?utm_source=Ad+Fontes+Media&utm_campaign=348e0cf117-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2023_07_17_01_44_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-e5ace1450d-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D&goal=0_7489d5d067-348e0cf117-433946301&mc_cid=348e0cf117

Can Missouri Decide What’s on Internet Media?

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Article in Ars Technica by Jon Brodkin 10/25/24

Headline:  “Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey said he is investigating Google, claiming that the tech giant censors conservative speech and manipulated search results about Donald Trump.”

“BREAKING: ‘I am launching an investigation into Google—the biggest search engine in America—for censoring conservative speech during the most consequential election in our nation’s history. Google is waging war on the democratic process. It’s time to fight back,’ Bailey wrote on X, the social network owned by notable Trump supporter Elon Musk.”

“. . . Many Republican government officials want more authority to regulate how social media firms moderate user-submitted content. Republican officials from 20 states, including 19 state attorneys general, argued in a January 2024 Supreme Court brief that they ‘have authority to prohibit mass communication platforms from censoring speech.’ ”

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/10/missouri-ag-claims-google-censors-trump-demands-info-on-search-algorithm/

Traditional Media Diminished

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Article in AP by David Bauder 10/24/24

Headline:  “By moving to podcasts, Harris and Trump are turning away from legacy media to spread their messages”

“During this truncated campaign, some of the traditional giants of journalism are being pushed aside. The growing popularity of podcasts and their ability to help candidates in a tight race target a specific sliver of the electorate is a big reason why.”

“. . . In general, television networks don’t have the audience they once did. CNN, for example, reached 1.24 million viewers per evening during the third quarter of 2016, when Trump first ran, and 924,000 this year, according to the Nielsen company. Broadcast networks are so named for their ability to reach a broad audience; sometimes candidates need that, often they don’t.

“The picture is more dire at newspapers, which collectively boasted 37.8 million in Sunday circulation in 2016 and dropped to 20.9 million by 2022, the Pew Research Center said. Candidates once submitted to tough interviews with newspaper editorial boards in the hope of winning an endorsement; now many newspapers don’t even bother making that choice.”

https://apnews.com/article/trump-harris-media-podcasts-a5a0870943177ea9320389748fe2fa5c

Tax on Tech Media for News Posts?

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Article by Rod Sims on TechXplore, 10/23/24

Headline: Should a big tech tax fund news? A new report reopens debate on platforms and media

What will Australia do?

“Meta’s announcement nearly eight months ago that it would no longer do commercial deals under the News Media Bargaining Code has led to much speculation as to how the government would respond.

“The code became law in 2021. Facing the threat of designation under it—which would involve further legal obligations platforms may wish to avoid—both Google and Facebook (now Meta) did deals with news media businesses worth up to A$250 million per year.”

https://techxplore.com/news/2024-10-big-tech-tax-fund-news.html

S.O.S.! Someone Wants to Burn Down the Media

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Article in the New York Times by By Michael M. Grynbaum and David McCabe, 10/21/24

Headline:  “Trump Ratchets Up Threats on the Media”

Subhead:  “Presidents are not all-powerful, but, if elected, Donald Trump would have some influence with the federal regulators who oversee major television networks.”

“Threatening the news media is nothing new for former President Donald J. Trump. He has accused major news outlets of defamation, blocked journalists from rallies and White House events, goaded followers into profane chants about CNN and popularized the term “fake news,” now embraced by autocrats around the world.

“. . . Broadcast networks like ABC, CBS and NBC do not actually need a license to produce or publish news content. But the local affiliate stations that carry their broadcasts do require licenses. Those licenses are overseen by the F.C.C., which is independent from the White House.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/21/business/media/trump-media-broadcast-licenses.html

“Who me, I’m Innocent?” – Said to the Media

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Article in AP by Emma Burrows, 10/17/24

Headline: “Tech firms remove social media accounts of a Russian drone factory after an AP investigation”

“Google, Meta and TikTok have removed social media accounts belonging to an industrial plant in Russia’s Tatarstan region aimed at recruiting young foreign women to make drones for Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

“Posts on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok were taken down following an investigation by The Associated Press published Oct. 10 that detailed working conditions in the drone factory in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone, which is under U.S. and British sanctions.”

https://apnews.com/article/alabuga-russia-africa-ukraine-war-shahed-drones-bc175c4c98d752dc298c23434637417e