Archive for February, 2011

Churnalism.com: A Writer’s Best Friend?

Google’s recent announcement that it is cracking down on “content farming” was bad news for media outlets producing low-quality regurgitated or repackaged stories.

Further scrutiny now comes in the form of Churnalism.com, a website that asks users to paste press releases into a search engine, which then compares the text with as many as three million news stories and determines how much of their text has been lifted directly from the release.

Posted on February 28, 2011 at 12:49 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: ,

Update: Editors respond to VIDA stats on female writers

Recent stats from VIDA that showed how few women are getting their work published in literary magazines and journals had us and many others asking questions but coming up with few answers. Now, we hear from the people who decide what makes it into those publications. Elissa Strauss at The Sisterhood blog sent letters to […]

Posted on February 24, 2011 at 7:00 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , , ,

Union representing Globe staff files grievance

As reported previously, editors at the Globe and Mail asked staff—and freelancers, though it’s not clear how many—not to write for Toronto Life and Chatelaine, claiming that they are competing publications (though we suspect it may have more to do with this). Now a rep from SONG, the union that represents Globe staff, has confirmed […]

Posted on February 23, 2011 at 6:00 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , ,

The Big Three and what they own

Sometimes we need a reminder that, despite having a strong public broadcaster, media ownership is as concentrated in Canada as it is south of the border.

Posted on February 22, 2011 at 9:00 am by editor · One Comment · Tagged with: , , ,

WaPo gets excited about aggregating news, but who’s getting paid?

The Washington Post Co. has reportedly invested between $5 and $10 million in developing Trove, a free personalized aggregation service that will collect news from 10,000 sources online. WaPo’s senior vice president and chief digital officer, Vijay Ravindran, says it “probably won’t save journalism on its own, but it’s a start.”

Posted on February 21, 2011 at 4:13 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , , , ,

Star editor slams Globe cover

We hear that Star editor Michael Cooke made fun of the the Globe over its choice of chocolate over Egypt for an above-the-fold cover story last week – in the middle of the African country’s revolution. Cooke was speaking at Toronto’s Massey College. A little bird told us he said something like “If the Globe knows what it’s doing, […]

Posted on February 17, 2011 at 12:24 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , ,

Let me take this job, or shove it

Here’s an interesting tidbit that’s recently gone viral: a letter from Hunter S. Thompson looking for work at the Vancouver Sun. Reading it is a treat, as reading HST (nearly) always is. The letter is from 1958 – more than a decade before Hunter achieved his first taste of fame notoriety with Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. […]

Posted on February 16, 2011 at 4:33 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: ,

New Globe and Mail policy affects freelancers

John Stackhouse, executive editor at the Globe and Mail, has reportedly told Globe staffers they can no longer freelance for Toronto Life  and Chatelaine because the magazines are now considered “competitors.” What’s more, the same policy applies may soon apply to freelancers who contribute to the paper, most of whom don’t earn enough from the Globe to […]

Minding the gender gap in literary publishing

Earlier this month, VIDA released The Count 2010, a breakdown of women’s representation in a number of literary publications. Though not comprehensive, the study casts a light on the wide gender gap in the industry, revealing — in easy to digest pie charts — who is getting published where. For example, 36 men had their books […]

Posted on February 15, 2011 at 2:30 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , ,

Get your CAJ award submissions in today

Submissions for the Canadian Association of Journalists annual awards must be postmarked today. You can download an application here.  Print, broadcast and photojournalism submissions must have been published or broadcast during the 2010 calendar year. The CAJ/CNW Group Student Award of Excellence deadline is February 28, 2011. Award winners will be announced at CAJ’s 2011 convention, May 13-15, at […]

Posted on February 15, 2011 at 2:13 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: ,