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05 Mar 2012 19:48

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Politics: Three conversation-starting moments from HBO’s “Game Change”

  • oneAides realize early on that Sarah Palin, John McCain’s running mate, will have to learn a lot about history and current events to keep up in the public spotlight. When asked if she needed to take a break, she declined, saying “this is flippin’ awesome!”
  • two “I am not your puppet! You have ruined my reputation! I am ruined in Alaska,” Palin said in a meltdown over the phone due to when Nicole Wallace, a campaign press guru, pushed a series of talking points on the vice-presidential candidate.
  • three Near the end of the campaign, when Palin was a “loose cannon” and had a “swelling ego,” she told McCain: “We have to win this thing — I so don’t wanna go back to Alaska!” Despite this, Palin returned to her job for nearly a year after the election. source
  • » Sure to stir presidential emotions: The made-for-TV movie regarding the “rise of Sarah Palin” airs March 10. Though HBO claimed the movie is a “balanced portrayal” of events, Palin’s Super PAC has already labeled the movie “fact change.” Which may be true. “Game Change” may have taken some dramatic liberties from the book, but you’ll be the judge of that.
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Nov 2010 21:50

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Offbeat: The L.A. Times can’t get rid of their Bridge column quietly

  • 60 number of phone calls the paper’s reader’s representative got over removing the Bridge column, a stodgy tradition that predates everyone
  • 31 number of e-mails they got; who are these people and why do they actually play Bridge? And how do we get them to stop? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Nov 2010 11:30

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Biz: In this post, we give the L.A. Times crap for having too many ads

  • We rip on the L.A. Times a lot for the massive amount of advertising it runs on its front page, on the front page of its Web site, and other places. One place we haven’t run them over the coals over is the article pages that often get linked on Google News. Above the ad is another 728×90 ad. So, in other words, you have FOUR ads above the fold. FOUR. And here’s a article about the dangers of buying precious metals from certain firms. And it’s surrounded by ads … that encourage you to buy precious metals. Whoever is on the staff of the ad side of the L.A. Times needs to do some serious thinking about the kind of precedent the heavy advertising creates for their paper. Because, we’ll tell you now – it’s not a good one. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Aug 2010 19:59

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Biz: Yet again, the L.A. Times takes the advertising way too far

  • This is meant in no way to attack the journalists of the L.A. Times. Just its management. Dear L.A. Times: Please stop selling out your front page – both online and in print – to TV and movie companies. Sincerely, everyone. This damages your credibility as a paper of record.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink

02 Jul 2010 12:03

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Politics: L.A. Times’ misleading King Kong ad: Even politicians don’t like it

  • This L.A. Times ad drew a ton of controversy yesterday because it looks very much like a real newspaper. It fooled a lot of people, to the point that the L.A. County Board of Supervisors criticized the paper for the choice, which the editor is defending. We shouldn’t lower our standards to be misleading like this; it’s wrong, plain and simple. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink

27 Mar 2010 20:55

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Culture: Christine Daniels (and Mike Penner) still a sore spot for the L.A. Times

  • She said she didn’t want to be the spokesperson for anything, but unfortunately that’s what she had become.
  • Los Angeles Times blogs editor Tony Pierce • Regarding the pain sportswriter Christine Daniels, a transsexual formerly known as Mike Penner, eventually felt towards her very public identity change. Initially, Daniels wanted to use her status as a L.A. Times reporter to make the change a megaphone, but later felt so pressured by the change that she changed back to Penner and eventually broke many of her ties to the transgender community. Penner killed himself last year. Many Times reporters still won’t talk about the incident, including the brother and ex-wife he worked with. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Nov 2009 22:40

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Politics: L.A. Times: Maybe straight news is what CNN needs to stand out

  • I’d like to suggest that CNN, in parting ways this week with its most opinionated host, Lou Dobbs, may be planting the seeds of its resurrection and holding out the possibility that around-the-clock broadcasting doesn’t have to mean around-the-clock spin.
  • L.A. Times media columnist James Rainey • Discussing CNN’s move to objectivity thanks to the departure of Lou Dobbs and the subsequent scheduling of John King. Rainey suggests that the constant spin cycle on other networks is getting tiring for many who might just want good journalism – you know, the kind CNN used to do back in the day. “If CNN fortifies the information meal,” he suggests, “I think King could prove correct.” Considering the votes our poll got today, it seems a lot of ShortFormBlog’s readers agree with his assessment. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

26 Jun 2009 03:54

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Culture, Tech: The Internet wasn’t ready for Michael Jackson’s death at all

  • one Twitter’s traffic doubled in just a short period, and Jackson’s death nearly made Iran a forgotten memory on the site. Facebook had triple the traffic.
  • two The L.A. Times site, which was the first reputable source (sorry TMZ) to confirm his death, had over two million pageviews in just an hour.
  • three But most telling might be the long-running AOL Instant Messenger. They went down 40 minutes, and called the day “a seminal moment in Internet history.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink
 
 
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