PressEthic

In an article for USA Today, Kevin Maney asks internet entrepreneurs and tech-heads the question, "If you owned a newspaper, what would you do with it?"

He received varied responses, but, for the most part, they weren't terribly revolutionary, with most techies predictably saying that they would break free of the print form as soon as possible to focus on digital content.

We all know. We've heard about it, read about it, maybe even someone we work with asked, "Did you hear about that guy from 'Seinfeld'?" Well, really, aside from those in the know, or perhaps who live in New York or Los Angeles, Michael Richards is "that guy from Seifeld." Kramer. Now, he rants. The rant, and the apology, and the subsequent apology and the news that Richards will be seeking counseling, was carried by all the major newspapers, and MSNBC, and CNN and . . .

The debate over using the phrase "civil war" when refering to the sectarian violence in Iraq has escalated over the past several days, calling into question the true nature of this violence, as well as the media's role in reflecting the administration's rhetoric.

Spewing hate speech is still accepted in some media.

Surfing through CNN.com, the online presence of the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune - and in a hurry - I was more frustrated than usual by the intrusion of advertisements. This small, square screen on my lap is My Space, that is, my work place, my main conduit for communication and information and where I look to relax.

The influential filmmaker has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars for a sports journalism program at Morehouse College, an all-male, traditionally black college.

The Boston Police Department helped to orchestrate a truce between two local gangs. Hometown newspapers were asked not to reveal information about the respite. The Boston Herald complied. The Boston Globe did not. Which newspaper handled the situation properly?

The disgrace of fabrication permeates all facets of publishing.

The latest nude emperors flash the unwitting media.

Barbara Walters recently visited 40/40 Jay-Z's club to interview him. Today she was on her show The View where a sort of condescending tone was taken. Walters said she took her rich friends to "this 40/40 downtown" and snapped her fingers trying to be all "hip-hoppy". She goes on to tell her anecdote and after she says all these wonderful things ends with "you know he used to be a drug dealer." Rosie O'Donnell kind of got annoyed and then Walters covered her tracks by saying what a wonderful man he was and how he rose from the gutter. I don't know the finances of these women, but I do know that Jay-Z sits on a $320 million dollar empire that he cultivated through business practices.

It's hard to identify the single most interesting part of the Lou Dobbs phenomenon. There's his transition from business reporter to anchorman, the conversion of his show from Moneyline to Lou Dobbs Tonight, and his ability to violate CNN's semantic policy and get away with it (like using the term, "war on Islamists"). But it is the way he has combined different formats of journalism and the cable news imitation of it that makes Lou Dobbs such a singular marvel.

The star quarterback flipped off some fans after a game this weekend, but television stations had to blur the "obscene" act. I guess we, the television audience, are just not quite prepared to see a single middle finger trust into the air.

The power of technology is getting a little bit out of hand, especially with Verizon Wireless' new YouTube feature its adding to their mobile phones. Of course, unlike the FREE website, the youtube feature on cell phones will be operating through a service called Vcast, costing it's wireless subscribers $15 a month. According to Steve Chen, chief technology officer and a co-founder of Youtube, people will be able to take their phone out and watch a video while waiting on the bus. Are you kidding me? Are the American people really this 'pressed' to watch Christina Aguilera in a video? A cell phone's main purpose is to communiate, not to watch Jim Jones and friends in his"BALLIN" video. What do you guys thing about this, good or bad move for Verizon?

Yes, the media landscape is changing. But how to take advantage of it?

Al Jazeera's coverage, in English, of the aftermath of Israel's war with Lebanon gets to the point.