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You might have heard: A Florida jury ordered Gawker to pay $115 million to Hulk Hogan, but legal experts say the effect on press freedom from the case is likely to be limited
But did you know: Nick Denton says the Hulk Hogan case was really about racist comments made in an unreleased video and that Gawker will win on appeal (Gawker)
Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against Gawker wasn’t really about a sex tape that Gawker published, but instead about racist comments Hogan made in an unreleased video, Nick Denton says. Denton argues that Hogan filed the lawsuit to prevent that video from being released. With that and other information left out of the trial, Denton says that explains why Gawker was held liable, but he maintains that Gawker will win on appeal. Denton writes: “These always-on celebrities should not be surprised when their credibility is questioned, and journalists attempt to sort out what is real and what is fake. That’s our job, and we intend to pursue it both in the courts and on the page.”
+ Mathew Ingram agrees that the ruling in the case will likely be overturned: “As with so many First Amendment cases, there’s no question that the Gawker story is unpleasant and possibly even offensive, and certainly distasteful in a variety of ways. But the test of a free speech standard isn’t that it protects speech everyone agrees with — it’s that it protects a media outlet’s right to publish offensive or unsavory or distasteful speech as well” (Fortune)
+ Noted: Chicago Tribune’s editorial board protests the Department of Justice’s decision to block Tribune’s purchase of the Orange County Register: “It’s a leap of faith to think you can go from bankruptcy to monopoly in one transaction” (Chicago Tribune); The New York Times is suspending the publication of its grammar, usage and style blog After Deadline “for the time being” (New York Times); ProPublica is offering need-based scholarships for students to attend this year’s NABJ and NAHJ conference; applications are due by April 30 (ProPublica)
NowThis says by eliminating the need for users to click through to their site, it increased video viewership (Garcia Media)
NowThis got rid of its website just over a year ago, and says by doing so it has increased the viewership of its videos. Mario Garcia writes that while not all news organizations should simply eliminate their websites and post entirely on social media, they can learn from this as a way to better engage their readers on social. NowThis’s vice president of social Ashish Patel said: “By reducing the friction and having the user able to consume videos directly, as opposed to having to click-through to the site, we started seeing more viewership.”
+ Earlier: After shutting down its website, NowThis reached 1 billion monthly video views on social media
French news sites are telling readers to uninstall their ad blockers before accessing their content (Guardian)
A group of some of the biggest French news sites including Le Monde and Le Parisien are either asking or forcing users to uninstall their ad blockers before they can access news content. This unified approach was organized by a trade organization representing online businesses, and includes non-news sites such as French music streaming service Deezer. While Le Monde still allows users with ad blockers installed to access their site, other news sites such as L’Equipe and Le Parisien are requiring users to remove the blockers.
+ A U.K. High Court judge rules that eight-second videos are long enough to infringe on copyright (Ars Technica)
News organizations including NYT and the BBC have said their sites were infected with ‘ransomware,’ but how does this kind of malware work? (KPCC)
Some major news organizations including The New York Times, AOL and the BBC have said their websites were attacked by “ransomware” that attempted to install the malware on users’ computers. Southern California public radio station KPCC reports that while this form of malware isn’t new, the attacks are becoming more common and often target organizations such as hospitals and schools. “Ransomware” works by a hacker encrypting a user’s information and holding it hostage until a ransom is paid, and an attack can come via an email attachment or through a website. To protect yourself and your organization from an attack, co-founder of the Institute for Critical Infrastructure Technology James Scott recommends taking a layered approach, starting with whitelist firewalls and intrusion-detection and prevention systems.
What will it take for people to pay for news? Engagement is the key to converting readers to subscribers (Medium)
Rounding up some of the best ideas lately about how to get readers to pay for news, Local News Lab says that engagement is essential to turn casual readers into paying subscribers: “Engagement can’t be marginalized, it has to be central to the work we are doing and has to be designed strategically and supported over time. … Engagement is not just about creating opportunities for community participation in the reporting process, it’s about making a commitment, building a relationship.”
+ Earlier: The rapid adoption and current landscape of digital subscriptions at US newspapers
Social media accounts dedicated to interesting ‘facts’ often get them wrong (Poynter)
Twitter accounts such as @UberFacts and @OMGFacts have often been proved inaccurate, Poynter’s Alexios Mantzarlis writes, but they embody a larger, more troubling trend: “‘Facts’ are increasingly seen [on social media] as one-line zingers that should, ideally, surprise you into sharing them.” Sometimes the facts promoted by these social media accounts aren’t technically incorrect, but leave out crucial information and context is lost. Mantzarlis writes: “It is also inevitable that brevity results in some approximation: My own Twitter profile is likely littered with tweets no more complete than the ones highlighted above. Yet these accounts take it a step further by vigorously marketing their content as fact, not lightly scrutinized surprising tidbits.”
The post Need to Know: Mar. 23, 2016 appeared first on American Press Institute.
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