by jpitney | Jan 19, 2022 | Mass Media, Polarization
Steven W. Webster, Elizabeth C. Connors, and Betsy Sinclair have written a study titled “The Social Consequences of Political Anger.” The abstract: A functioning democracy relies on social interactions between people who disagree—including listening to...
by jpitney | Dec 16, 2021 | China, Freedom of Press, Journalism, Journalists, Mass Media
From Reporters Without Borders: According to Reporter Without Borders’ (RSF) annual round-up published today, a record number of journalists – 488, including 60 women – are currently detained worldwide, while another 65 are being held hostage. Meanwhile, the number of...
by jpitney | Jun 13, 2021 | Business, Mass Media, Newspapers
\ Jack Shafer at Politico: In 2009, just as the apocalypse befell the newspaper industry but while local news was still in relative abundance, many readers gave it an apathetic shrug. A Pew Research Center survey from that year found that an astonishing 42 percent...
by jpitney | May 23, 2021 | Mass Media, Newspapers
Mason Walker and Katerina Eva Matsa at Pew: Staff layoffs continued to pummel the beleaguered U.S. newspaper industry in 2020. A third of papers with an average Sunday circulation of 50,000 or more experienced layoffs last year, a period complicated by the impact of...
by jpitney | Apr 16, 2021 | Journalism, Mass Media, Russia
From the Treasury Department: Russian Intelligence Services, namely the Federal Security Service (FSB), the Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), and the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), play critical roles in propagating Russian disinformation online. The FSB, GRU,...
by jpitney | Jan 9, 2021 | Civility, Congress, Mass Media, Polarization
Michael S. Johnson at New GOP Forum: Congress, as it has been frightfully clear for some time needs reform. Begin with the stark reality that the institution is highly vulnerable to violent occupation, guarded by a 2,000-person police force that let down its guard...