Tag: free press

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Reporters say White House sometimes demands changes to press-pool reports

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Reporters say White House sometimes demands changes to press-pool reports
By Paul Farhi September 23 at 7:06 PM

White House press-pool reports are supposed to be the news media’s eyes and ears on the president, an independent chronicle of his public activities. They are written by reporters for other reporters, who incorporate them into news articles about President Obama almost every day.

Sometimes, however, the White House plays an unseen role in shaping the story.

Journalists who cover the White House say Obama’s press aides have demanded — and received — changes in press-pool reports before the reports have been disseminated to other journalists. They say the White House has used its unusual role as the distributor of the reports as leverage to steer coverage in a more favorable direction.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/reporters-say-white-house-sometimes-demands-changes-to-press-pool-reports/2014/09/23/e5e6fec8-42d9-11e4-9a15-137aa0153527_story.html

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Obama’s FBI to hire firm to rate ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ stories about the agency

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Obama’s FBI to hire firm to rate ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ stories about the agency

Officials mum on need for and use of such info

The FBI is hiring a contractor to grade news stories about the agency as “positive” “neutral” or “negative,” but the agency won’t say why officials need the information or what they plan to do with it.

FBI officials wouldn’t even reveal how they will go about assigning the grades, which were laid out in a recent contract solicitation. The contract tells potential bidders to “use their judgment” in scoring news coverage as part of a new “daily news briefing” service the agency is seeking as part of a contract that could last up to five years.

The move is reminiscent of a similar effort the Obama administration made to grade media coverage of its response to the BP oil spill. A separate defense contract rating reporters’ work was scrapped in 2009.

In a statement of work, the agency says its public affairs office needs a contractor to help monitor “breaking news, editorials, long-form journalism projects and the larger public conversation about law enforcement.”

But the lack of clear public methods and goals raises “troubling questions,” said Dan Kennedy, a journalism professor at Northeastern University.

“You would certainly worry this could affect access,” he said. “It might affect the way they’re going to approach your questions, whether they’re going to be extra careful not to make news if you’re on the ‘bad list.’”

Mr. Kennedy also pointed out that journalism can be nuanced and complicated, raising questions about what sort of guidance the agency provides to contractors to fit stories into positive, neutral or negative boxes.

“If you’re rigorously fair about it and you’re getting the FBI’s point of view out there, they would probably write that as a negative story, but it strikes me as neutral,” he said.

Read more: https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/aug/3/fbi-hires-firm-to-rate-news-stories-about-the-agen/#ixzz39WHAdr1E 

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NYT reporter: Obama administration the ‘greatest enemy of press freedom’ in a generation

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NYT reporter: Obama administration the ‘greatest enemy of press freedom’ in a generation

New York Times reporter James Risen called the Obama administration “the greatest enemy of press freedom that we have encountered in at least a generation” on Friday, explaining that the White House seeks to control the flow of information and those that refuse to play along “will be punished.”

Poynter reports that Risen made the remarks while speaking at Sources and Secrets conference — a meeting of journalism and communication professionals held in New York City. The foreign policy reporter, who is currently fighting a fierce court battle with the federal government over his protection of a confidential source, warned that press freedom is under serious attack in today’s America.

In a speech kicking off the conference, Risen claimed that the Obama administration wants to “narrow the field of national security reporting” and “create a path for accepted reporting.” Those who stray from that path, he cautioned, “will be punished.”

Read more: https://dailycaller.com/2014/03/24/nyt-reporter-obama-administration-the-greatest-enemy-of-press-freedom-in-a-generation/#ixzz2wvJ7hJNC

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Welcome to Fascism 101: The FCC Wades Into the Newsroom

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Welcome to Fascism 101: The FCC Wades Into the Newsroom

Why is the agency studying ‘perceived station bias’ and asking about coverage choices?

Feb. 10, 2014 7:26 p.m. ET

News organizations often disagree about what Americans need to know. MSNBC, for example, apparently believes that traffic in Fort Lee, N.J., is the crisis of our time. Fox News, on the other hand, chooses to cover the September 2012 attacks on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi more heavily than other networks. The American people, for their part, disagree about what they want to watch.

But everyone should agree on this: The government has no place pressuring media organizations into covering certain stories.

Unfortunately, the Federal Communications Commission, where I am a commissioner, does not agree. Last May the FCC proposed an initiative to thrust the federal government into newsrooms across the country. With its “Multi-Market Study of Critical Information Needs,” or CIN, the agency plans to send researchers to grill reporters, editors and station owners about how they decide which stories to run. A field test in Columbia, S.C., is scheduled to begin this spring.

The purpose of the CIN, according to the FCC, is to ferret out information from television and radio broadcasters about “the process by which stories are selected” and how often stations cover “critical information needs,” along with “perceived station bias” and “perceived responsiveness to underserved populations.”

https://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304680904579366903828260732

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USA Plunges To 46th In World Press Freedom Index…

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Biggest rises and falls in the 2014 World Press Freedom Index

The 2014 World Press Freedom Index spotlights the negative impact of conflicts on freedom of information and its protagonists. The ranking of some countries has also been affected by a tendency to interpret national security needs in an overly broad and abusive manner to the detriment of the right to inform and be informed. This trend constitutes a growing threat worldwide and is even endangering freedom of information in countries regarded as democracies. Finland tops the index for the fourth year running, closely followed by Netherlands and Norway, like last year. At the other end of the index, the last three positions are again held by Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea, three countries where freedom of information is non-existent. Despite occasional turbulence in the past year, these countries continue to be news and information black holes and living hells for the journalists who inhabit them. This year’s index covers 180 countries, one more than last year. The new entry, Belize, has been assigned an enviable position (29th). Cases of violence against journalists are rare in Belize but there were some problems: defamation suits involving demands for large amounts in damages, national security restrictions on implementation of the Freedom of Information Act and sometimes unfair management of broadcast frequencies.
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Follow Up Re: The Ridgewood News Letter to the Editor

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file photo of PJ Blogger reading the Ridgewood News

Follow Up Re: The Ridgewood News Letter to the Editor

James J. Foytlin
The Ridgewood Blog
Ridgewood, New Jersey

Dear Mr. Foytlin:

I am writing as a follow up to North Jersey Media Group’s (NJMG) June 28, 2013 letter posted on The Ridgewood Blog in response to several comments left by blog readers concerning a letter submitted by a resident for publication in the Letters to the Editor section of The Ridgewood News.  It is kindly requested that you post this letter on the blog as well.

It is my understanding that some were disappointed with NJMG’s June 28, 2013 letter because it was not as forthcoming with details as those interested in this matter would have liked.  However, as you likely know, New Jersey has a very strong shield law that is designed to safeguard the newsgathering process and allow our reporters to do their job to the fullest ability.  Information obtained by reporters in the course of their professional activities, including discussions with their sources, is privileged.  NJMG must be cautious with the information it discloses so as not to unintentionally waive this most important safeguard.

NJMG recognizes that some will likely decry this explanation as a way to simply dodge the underlying issues.  However, such complaints are shortsighted.  The shield law is designed to protect the free flow of information to the press.  If the information obtained and the sources consulted in connection with news articles and editorials, such as letters to the editor, are subject to disclosure at the demand of the public, then the willingness to provide information to reporters will quickly evaporate and have a detrimental effect on the amount and quality of information available to the public at large.

However, in light of the fact that Mayor Aronsohn has already identified himself as having contacted The Ridgewood News and without waiving the right to any otherwise privileged information, NJMG would like to state the following:

·         The Ridgewood News was never asked by the Mayor or anyone else in person or by any other means to withdraw, hold, pull or not to publish the resident’s letter;

·         As he himself stated, Mayor Aronsohn contacted The Ridgewood News after a June council meeting to confirm what had already been discussed openly during that public meeting covered by our reporter; to wit, that there was a discrepancy between the letter writer’s statement regarding the village attorney’s advice and what the village attorney’s actual advice was with respect to handling matters in open or closed session.

The Ridgewood News was obligated to hold the resident’s letter until the facts could be confirmed.  While The Ridgewood News does not fact check every letter to the editor, the newspaper would have been remiss by publishing information that it actually knew was not entirely accurate.  Indeed, our courts have held news media liable for publishing letters to the editor that contain inaccurate statements.

As a further point of clarification, the resident was never advised that the letter would be printed in The Ridgewood News in the days immediately following the submission. Rather, newspaper staff contacted the resident for the purpose of confirming the authorship of the submission.  The decision to print any news or opinion letters in The Ridgewood News rests in the sole discretion of NJMG and is further subject to space limitations in the newspaper.

In accordance with the privilege afforded The Ridgewood News under the shield law to safeguard its newsgathering activities and editorial process, NJMG is unable to make its editorial staff available for further inquiry, including personal meetings, to discuss this matter.

Finally, to the extent that any individual or entity has impliedly suggested or explicitly stated that The Ridgewood News succumbed to any pressure from the Mayor or any other public or private figure with respect to publication of the resident’s letter, NJMG unequivocally denies the accusation and the actual facts support that position.

We appreciate the community’s interest in our reporting and for bringing these concerns to The Ridgewood News’ attention.

Sincerely,

ROBERT D. THOMPSON

—————————————————–

Robert D. Thompson, Esq.
Corporate Attorney
North Jersey Media Group Inc.
1 Garret Mountain Plaza
P.O. Box 471
Woodland Park, NJ 07424
T: (973) 569-7685
F: (973) 569-7268

 

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Even the Bergen Record noticed its been 14 years

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Even the Bergen Record noticed its been 14 years

Ridgewood NJ , In the Record’s recent editorial Failure to disconnect even the far left leaning Bergen Record had to admit ,”were the Village Council and the municipal administration? No one knew for at least 14 years that a council or Planning Board member had improper contracts with the town?

And as a readers so eloquently said ,”So let me get this straight, Mayor Aronsohn who voted for letting Riche do the work is now saying it was illegal. Then why did he vote YES! He was the one who gave approval NOT Riche. It’s like a cop tells me I can buy some pot and then arrests me for smoking it!

The Record: Failure to disconnect
Friday, June 7, 2013
The Record

A COUNCIL member should not do business with the municipal government he represents. That principle is not hard to grasp.

But for some inexplicable reason, it was not followed in Ridgewood, where Councilman Thomas Riche has had a long-standing business relationship with the village through his telecommunications firm, Extel Communications.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/opinions/210523931_The_Record__Failure_to_disconnect.html?scpromo=1