The Latest: Journalism philanthropy up; WSJ reporter's detention extended; New 24-hour CNN livestream; GOP debate reactions

August 24, 2023

■ Russian court extends pretrial detention of jailed WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich (WSJ) / “Our anger over Evan Gershkovich’s unjust de tention has been heightened over the Russian court’s decision, yet again, to extend his period of pretrial detention.’ (NPC/JI) / ‘For 21 weeks, American journalist Evan Gershkovich has been locked in a Russian jail cell for doing journalism for @WSJ. We continue to call for his release.’ (Joanna Sugden)

■ Altered evidence list indicates Marion police kept illegal copy of evidence from Kansas newspaper (Kansas Reflector) / Lawyer says cops secretly copied Kansas newspaper data after raid (Daily Beast) / Will the judge who let police raid a small Kansas newspaper be held accountable ? (Forbes)

■ Warner Bros. Discovery plans new 24-hour livestream called CNN Max (Axios) / CNN taps anchors for original streaming shows on Max (Variety) / ‘A lot of differences between this streaming play and CNN+: - Not standalone, it’s part of Max - Much more heavily leans on live news feeds than personality programming - Cost is a lot cheaper when pulling from existing live feeds’ (Sara Fischer)

■ Aaron Morrison named Associated Press race and ethnicity news editor (AP)

■ A Fox News debate that skimped on ‘the elephant not in the room ’ (New York Times) / Fox News debate moderators didn't mention Trump for nearly an hour . It wasn't an accident (CNN) / ‘What a terrible production from top to bottom. Constant audience interference. No control of the stage. And botched the execution of their best question (would you still support Trump if convicted). How do you let multiple candidates halfway raise their hands and not follow up?!? (Tim Alberta) / Christie knocks debate moderators , saying stage was ‘completely out of control’ (The Hill)

■ Tucker Carlson’s Trump interview starts tough fight to take on Fox and Cable News (WSJ) / Trump is bragging about 100 million views for Tucker Carlson interview — here's why that's misleading (The Wrap) / ‘Quick reminder: TV ratings measure the per-minute viewership of an entire program. X "views" measure every time a video appears on a screen, even for just a second. If TV programs were measured the same (absurd) way, the Fox debate would have had *billions* of views.’ (Brian Stelter)

■ Judge lets Smartmatic expand 2020 election defamation suit against Newsmax (CNN)

■ Ray Epps defamation lawsuit dismissal sought by Fox News (Washington Post) / Fox argues its conspiracy-tinged Jan. 6 coverage is protected by the First Amendment (CNN)

■ Vice Media to move out of Brooklyn offices following bankruptcy (Bloomberg)

■ Texas Tribune lays off journalists and entire copy desk : Colleagues call it ‘a mistake’ and ‘incomprehensible’ (Austin Chronicle) / How did one of journalism's darlings do this after industry experts hailed its (revenue) success ? (John Hernandez)

■ Warren Hoge, a New York Times correspondent, bureau chief, and masthead editor who reported from more than 80 countries, is dead at 82 (New York Times)

■ Content farms are using AI chatbots to plagiarize news outlets (Gizmodo)

Elevate your research and reporting next month at two free NPCJI webinars

April Hines, journalism and mass communications librarian for the George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida, will share ways that journalists can tap public and academic libraries to find and use government documents, academic research, archives, and other resources that are free via libraries.

Join us on Friday, Sept. 8, at 11:30 a.m. ET over Zoom.

Caryn Baird, award-winning investigator and researcher for Politifact and the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, will discuss the public records that exist online and where to find them; strategies for efficient independent public record searches; and guidance on practical searches for more common fact-checks.

Join us on Friday, Sept. 15, at 11:30 a.m. ET over Zoom.

Quick tip to nail your next job interview

“Journalists should be inquisitive by nature. Do not let the opportunity slip to demonstrate that in an interview. Not asking questions could be considered a red flag . … Questions should focus on the short- and long-term future. Ask what it is like to work for the company, the deliverables you will need to meet, the management style or system, or what you will need to do to pass the probation period.”

-- Jacob Granger, senior reporter at Journalism.co.uk, “Looking for a job in journalism? Check out this advice from industry experts”

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